Alleged Fake Car Accident Ring: 22 Charged In Santa Clara County

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CA — The Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office has charged 22 people for their alleged involvement in what authorities believe was an insurance fraud ring in which numerous car accidents were faked. Almost a quarter of a million dollars was fraudulently obtained through the fictional crashes, which were often reported as caused by a distracted driver striking parked vehicles, the DA's office alleged in a news release Monday.

Between 2012 and 2015, the ring staged 18 different accidents, with the highest claim being $37,723, prosecutors said.

“When false claims are paid out by insurance, losses are passed along to consumers who pay hard-earned premiums to cover real accidents,” said prosecutor Charlotte Chang.

It is alleged that some of the cars and two San Jose auto shops – Espinosa Body Shop and Auto Parts USA – were used repeatedly in the scams.

According to the DA's office:

"One of the false claims tipped off a Farmers Insurance investigator when the damage on one of the cars did not match the reported details of the loss. The investigator then discovered that the son of one of the suspects had also been involved in an identical alleged accident two months before. Both phantom accidents involved the same auto shop – Espinosa Body Shop. The case was referred to the Silicon Valley Auto Insurance Task Force. The lead investigators from the District Attorney’s Office then uncovered a pattern of scams with this ring after noticing that numerous auto crash claims involved the same vehicles/suspects and insurance policies that were bought shortly before the alleged 'accidents.'"

Gerardo Ivan Espinosa Martinez, the owner of Espinosa Body Shop, is being prosecuted by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office in a similar alleged insurance fraud ring case involving 15 false claims he, along with 17 associates, including his wife, are suspected of filing.

The DA's office says 19 of those charged in the case announced Monday live in Santa Clara County, while three live in Butte and San Benito counties:

JOSHUA TOPETE, SAN MARTIN

ANGEL BERNARD TOPETE, SAN MARTIN

GREGORY CARL HARRISON, GILROY

JARION OMAR ESCOBAR, MILPITAS

ALMA ELISA AGUILAR, SAN JOSE

DANIEL WAYNE MENDOZA, SAN JOSE

CARLOS ERNESTO RECINOS, SAN JOSE

ALTAMIRANO ESCOBEDOVENANCIO, SAN JOSE

GABRIEL ERNESTO OSUNA, GRIDLEY

BLANCA MARIADELROSA ARIASGUERRERO, SAN JOSE

ERIC LEE HARRISON, GILROY

GERARDO IVANESPINOSA MARTINEZ, SAN JOSE

PABLO DANIEL GOVEACABRERA, SAN JOSE

NORA LOPEZ, SAN JOSE

PEDRO OZUNA CALDERON, SAN JOSE

RAFAEL RANUEL, SAN JOSE

SAMUEL OSUNA, SAN JOSE

GUADALUPE ANDRADE CARDENES, SAN JOSE

CLAUDIA MARLEN JIMENEZESTRADA, GRIDLEY

HUGO ENRIQUE LUA, HOLLISTER

MARIA GUISELLE CRUZ, SAN JOSE

EDGAR FERNANDO HERNANDEZSORIA, SAN JOSE

Some of the defendants will be arraigned in the South County Court in Morgan Hill this week on the alleged insurance fraud charges. If convicted, they face incarceration and will be required to pay restitution to the victim insurance companies, the DA's office said.

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