Four people from [1]Los Angeles County are facing insurance fraud and

Four people from [1]Los Angeles County are facing insurance fraud and
conspiracy charges after staging fake bear attacks with a bear costume,
the Department of Insurance announced Wednesday.

Initially the suspects -- Ruben Tamrazian, 26, of Glendale, Ararat
Chirkinian, 39, of Glendale, Vahe Muradkhanyan, 32, of Glendale, and
Alfiya Zuckerman, 39, of Valley Village -- had requested insurance
payout for their car, 2010 Rolls Royce Ghost, after claiming a bear had
entered the car and caused interior damage to the vehicle in Lake
Arrowhead on Jan. 28.

But the insurance company suspected fraud after reviewing security
camera footage.

“Upon further scrutiny of the video, the investigation determined the
bear was actually a person in a bear costume,” the Department of
Insurance said in a statement.

Security camera image

CA Department of Insurance
The Department of Insurance claimed a person in a bear costume staged a
fake bear attack.

As authorities joined the investigation, they learned there were two
other similar claims filed with two different insurance companies on
the same date and the same location.

In the other claims involving a 2015 Mercedes G63 AMG and a 2022
Mercedes E350, the fake bear also entered the cars to leave behind
damage.

The same video footage was also submitted as evidence in the other
claims.

Suspects being arrested
A total of four people of Los Angeles County were arrested for
insurance fraud.

To prove that it was actually not a bear damaging the three cars in the
video, a biologist from the Department of Fish and Wildlife was brought
in to review the footage.

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“They also opined it was clearly a human in a bear suit,” the insurance
agency said.

When detectives searched the suspects’ homes, they found a bear costume

The suspects allegedly defrauded $141,839 from the insurance companies.

References

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