Five individuals involved in orchestrating a hit-and-run car collision to claim an insurance payout exceeding $30,000 are now being charged following the discovery of a video capturing the incident.
Five individuals, including Priscilla Carmona Arajo, 29, Juan Barajas, 25, Gabriella Cervantes, 52, Roberto Carlos Macias, 40, and Humberto Ortiz,  32, have been accused of committing insurance fraud.
The Ontario, California police investigation uncovered that the group allegedly orchestrated a staged crash and filed a fraudulent insurance claim, potentially aiming for a $30,000 payout.
The incident, which occurred on September 6, 2021, before 2:30 p.m., was captured on footage showing a light-colored vehicle stopping in the middle of an intersection. Subsequently, the driver exited the car and walked away, only to be followed by a dark-colored vehicle crashing into the side of the car.
The driver of the second vehicle also exited and walked in the same direction as the first person. The police stated that upon arrival at the scene, a woman claimed to be the victim of a hit and run, but later admitted to walking over to the vehicles after the crash.
Each of the accused individuals now faces charges related to the alleged insurance fraud scheme.
WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW:
“In this case, no innocent drivers were victimized, but the Department always urges drivers who suspect they or someone they know are the victim of a staged collision to insist on a police report; document as much information about the collision as possible; use a cell phone to document the post-collision damage with photographs or video; ask the peace officer to positively identify everyone involved; and report the suspicious collision to the California Department of Insurance by calling 800-927-4357 or visiting our website at insurance.ca.gov.”
