Five Orlando residents are accused of an elaborate insurance fraud scheme that involved staging a car accident, according to the Orlando Sentinel. According to prosecutors and the Florida Department of Financial Services, Lufaite Olizia, 40, and Tracey McFarlane, 40, recruited people to stage the car accident on July 10, 2010.
The two then paid the “victims” to file medical claims at Silver Hills Health & Rehab and Injury Care Inc. in Orlando. The claims were submitted to GEICO, Allstate, Progressive and State Farm.
“This is the type of scheme that is costing honest Floridians millions of dollars through skyrocketing auto insurance premiums,” said Jeff Atwater, Florida Chief Financial Officer. “During these challenging economic times, Florida families cannot afford to spend one more dime on increased insurance costs. It is my mission to stamp out auto insurance fraud and to ensure these cheats who are making money off the backs of Florida drivers serve real time.”
The suspects face up to 12 years in jail. What if there had been a wrongful death as a result of the accident? There are no victimless crimes; thankfully, this scam was stopped before anyone was seriously hurt.
Wooten Kimbrough, P.A.—Orlando accident attorneys