Three individuals in California were sentenced for orchestrating an elaborate insurance fraud scheme. The scam involved using a person in a bear costume to stage damage to luxury cars, resulting in fraudulent claims for nearly $142,000.

Three people in California have been sentenced for insurance fraud in a bizarre scam that involved someone dressed in a bear costume damaging luxury cars. The California Insurance Department said the three used a person in a bear suit to stage fake attacks inside a Rolls-Royce and two Mercedes in 2024, then submitted fraudulent claims seeking nearly US$142,000 in payouts from insurance companies. The department called it “Operation Bear Claw”. Two Los Angeles-area men and a woman pleaded no...