Officials in California announced this week that four individuals were arrested in an insurance scheme that allegedly included one person wearing a bear costume in a staged attack.
California is no stranger to bears breaking into vehicles, but when footage surfaced of bears slipping into luxury cars, it alerted insurers that something was amiss.
Operation Bear Claw
In an operation called “Bear Claw,” the California Department of Insurance announced Wednesday that four Los Angeles residents were arrested on charges of defrauding three insurance companies of nearly $142,000 by falsely claiming that bears had damaged their vehicles.
According to the California Department of Insurance, the group submitted video footage allegedly showing a “bear” inside a Rolls-Royce and two Mercedes in the San Bernardino Mountains last January as part of their damage claims to insurers. Photos released by the department reveal apparent scratch marks on the vehicles’ seats and doors…