CDI Announces Arrests of 15 Suspects in Interstate Auto Crime Ring

The California Department of Insurance (CDI) announced Jan. 28 that it recently led a multi-agency law enforcement fraud investigation that resulted in the arrests of 15 individuals.

The arrests by CDI’s Urban Auto Fraud Task Force are the result of an intensive three-year investigation into a large interstate staged collision ring. The crime ring reportedly includes attorneys, doctors, chiropractors and other suspects who allegedly conspired to defraud insurance companies by staging collisions and submitting phony medical bills.

According to investigators, the ring allegedly staged more than 110 collisions and defrauded insurers out of more than $2.5 million.

Suspects reportedly traveled to Phoenix to recruit drivers to stage collisions with rental vehicles containing as many as three or four passengers. Most collisions reportedly took place late at night in busy Los Angeles intersections.