You can't make this stuff up!
Well, four geniuses in California actually did make this up. In San Bernardino County, a group of masterminds apparently decided to fake bear attacks on their cars to scam their insurance companies. And they did it by allegedly dressing up in a bear costume.
Check it out:
"Operation Bear Claw" uncovered this scheme, with investigators saying four residents claimed their cars were ravaged by a bear in Lake Arrowhead. Turns out the "bear" was just one of them in a bear suit.
Here's how they got caught: All three claims came from the same location, on the same day, with the same video footage. They didn't even bother switching up the scenery! Amateurs. Their Oscar-worthy footage showed a "bear" climbing into cars, but when authorities took a closer look, they realized that Smokey had some pretty human-looking body language.
The cherry on this bear claw? A California Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist reviewed the videos and reported that it was "clearly a human in a bear suit."
I mean, look at this suit:
These furry frauds filed claims for a 2010 Rolls Royce Ghost, a 2015 Mercedes G63 AMG and a 2022 Mercedes E350, defrauding insurance companies of $141,839.
The suspects — 26-year-old Ruben Tamrazian, 39-year-old Ararat Chirkinian, 32-year-old Vahe Muradkhanyan and 39-year-old Alfiya Zuckerman — were arrested by Glendale police and the California Highway Patrol, and have been charged with insurance fraud and conspiracy.
Those cars' interiors are wrecked! And now so will the fraudsters' records be!
Bad news bears!
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