Police have arrested four people in Los Angeles in a remarkable case of insurance fraud.
They had claimed $141,839 (more than 134,000 euros) for damage allegedly caused by a bear to three luxury cars. Research (‘Operation Hogweed’) showed that it was not a real bear, but someone in a bear suit.
Hairy figure
The four are suspected of having filed multiple claims for damage to a Rolls Royce Ghost, a Mercedes G63 AMG and a Mercedes E350. With their claims they included surveillance images of the moment the interiors were demolished. Right under the camera the door opens, and crawls.
“Further investigation of the video revealed that the bear was a person in a bear suit,” said a California Department of Insurance (CDI) official. To be sure, a biologist from a government department that deals with wild animals was contacted, ‘and he also stated that it was clearly a human in a bear suit’.
Hogweeds
A bear suit was found at the suspects’ home, as can be seen in a photo from the CDI. It also shows two pieces of kitchen tools that are sold under the name ‘meat claws’.
These are actually intended for making pulled pork, for example, but now appear to have served as bear claws.
