3 Southern California residents sentenced in bear suit insurance fraud scheme
ABC7 Los Angeles • • nation
Key Points:
- Three Southern California residents were sentenced for staging fake bear attacks on luxury cars as part of an insurance fraud scheme involving a 2010 Rolls-Royce Ghost.
- The suspects submitted claims alleging a bear damaged the car’s interior and provided a video showing a "bear" inside, which was later revealed to be a person in a bear costume.
- The investigation, called "Operation Bear Claw," involved experts from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife who confirmed the "bear" was a human in disguise.
- The trio—Alfiya Zuckerman, Ruben Tamrazian, and Vahe Muradkhanyan—received 180-day jail sentences and were ordered to pay restitution, while a fourth suspect’s case remains pending.
- The fraudulent claims resulted in a total loss of $141,839 to the insurance companies.
