ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE
SANTA ANA – Sixteen uninsured drivers were charged with insurance fraud for attempting to purchase an insurance policy, reinstate a lapsed policy, or add additional coverage after being involved in a car accident. The defendants below each face a maximum sentence ranging from one year in jail for misdemeanors to five years in state prison for the felony charges with enhancements. The defendants charged in these cases were a part of Operation Crash and Buy, which was a statewide operation cracking down on fraudulent insurance claims from uninsured drivers.
“Unfortunately, this type of insurance crime is surprisingly common,” said Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. “Insurance fraud is an expensive drain on the state’s economy that totals into the billions of dollars annually in California. This is not a victimless crime. The costs of these scams are passed along to consumers through higher rates and premiums–everyone pays for insurance fraud.”
“Insurance fraud drives up premiums for law abiding citizens and we must attack this problem from every angle,” stated District Attorney Tony Rackauckas. “The intent of obtaining insurance is to provide coverage for law abiding citizens and should not be used as a means by uninsured drivers to escape their obligations.”
What is Crash and Buy Insurance Fraud?
A crash and buy insurance fraud case occurs when one party is involved in an accident while he or she does not have automobile insurance. The person involved in the accident then purchases a new insurance policy, reinstates a lapsed policy, or adds additional coverage. A claim is then made with the insurance company, either by the person involved in the accident, another driver involved in the accident, or by both parties. After obtaining insurance, the person involved in the accident would lie to the insurance company and claim that the accident occurred after they purchased the insurance policy in order to obtain the benefits of the policy. In some cases, the other driver conspires with the person involved in the crash to get coverage for the accident damage.
Leon Nicholas Blanchard (Case #14CF3624)
Leon Nicholas Blanchard, 34, San Juan Capistrano, is charged with three felony counts of insurance fraud. At approximately 7:00 a.m. on Sept. 26, 2013, Blanchard is accused of being an uninsured driver and getting into an accident with another driver. Blanchard is accused of purchasing an automobile insurance policy at 9:13 a.m. and filing a claim with the insurance company that the crash occurred at 10:00 a.m. The defendant is accused of asking the other party involved in the crash to lie about the time of the accident to the insurance company.
Charles Lester Carlson and Frances Liua Pogi (Case #14CF3593)
Charles Lester Carlson, 26, Anaheim, and Frances Liua Pogi, 25, Downey, are each charged with three felony counts of insurance fraud. At the time of the accident, Carlson is accused of being an uninsured driver. At approximately 1:25 p.m. on June 12, 2013, Carlson is accused of driving alone and being involved in a crash in a vehicle being driven by John Doe. At approximately 3:39 p.m., Pogi is accused of purchasing an automobile insurance policy for Carlson’s vehicle and filing a claim that the accident occurred at 5:00 p.m. Pogi is accused of stating in the claim that she and Carlson were in the vehicle at the time of the crash.
Seyedeh Roudbari (Case #14CF3630)
Seyedeh Roudbari, 45, Beverly Hills, is charged with three felony counts of insurance fraud. At approximately 8:30 a.m. on March 25, 2014, Roudbari is accused of being an uninsured driver and crashing her vehicle into a cement post. Following the crash, the defendant is accused of re-activating her automobile insurance policy which had been cancelled for non-payment. She is accused of reporting the accident to property management to pass it off as a hit-and-run. At approximately 2:46 p.m. the defendant is accused of filing a claim with her insurance company and filing a claim that somebody had hit her car at 1:30 p.m. in a parking lot. She is accused of attempting to create witnesses to corroborate her hit-and-run claim.
Spencer Casey Sanford (Case #14CF3595)
Spencer Casey Sanford, 24, Huntington Beach, is charged with four felony counts of insurance fraud with a prior prison conviction in 2010 for assault with a deadly weapon. At approximately 2:00 p.m. on Oct. 24, 2013, Sanford is accused of being an uninsured driver and being involved in a car crash with another driver. He is accused of purchasing an automobile insurance policy within 30 minutes following the crash. At approximately 7:00 p.m., Sanford is accused of filing a claim with his insurance company stating that the accident occurred at 3:30 p.m.
Jesus Alvarez (Case #14CM09099)
Jesus Alvarez, 24, Santa Ana, is charged with three misdemeanor counts of insurance fraud. On April 26, 2014, Alvarez is accused of driving an uninsured vehicle and getting into a car accident. On May 1, 2014, Alvarez is accused of adding the vehicle to his insurance policy. On May 4, 2014, he is accused of filing a claim stating that the accident occurred the same day he purchased the insurance policy. Alvarez is accused of making the same false statement on May 19, 2014, and June 5, 2014.
Tionna Raychale Carson (Case #14CM09071)
Tionna Raychale Carson, 29, Los Angeles, is charged with three misdemeanor counts of insurance fraud. At approximately 10:00 p.m. on Sept. 28, 2013, Carson is accused of getting into a car accident and only having liability insurance. Approximately one hour later, the defendant is accused of upgrading her policy to add additional coverage for repairs for her car. On Sept. 30, 2013, she is accused of filing a claim stating that the accident occurred on Sept. 29, 2013.
Raquel Adrienne Castro (Case #14CM09152)
Raquel Adrienne Castro, 23, Huntington Beach, is charged with two misdemeanor counts of insurance fraud. At approximately 11:30 a.m. on Jan. 30, 2013, Castro is accused of being an uninsured driver and getting into a car accident with another driver. At approximately 6:00 p.m. that evening, she is accused of purchasing an automobile insurance policy. On Feb. 1, 2013, Castro is accused of filing a claim with the insurance company that the accident occurred on Jan. 30, 2013, between 6:30 p.m. and 6:35 p.m. On Feb. 13, 2013, the defendant is accused of making the same false statement again.
Patricia De La Torre (Case #14CM09105)
Patricia De La Torre, 43, Garden Grove, is charged with two misdemeanor counts of insurance fraud. At approximately 1:30 p.m. on July 25, 2014, De La Torre is accused of being an uninsured driver and getting into a car accident with another driver. A short time later, she is accused of reinstating her automobile insurance policy. On Aug. 1, 2014, and Aug. 15, 2014, De La Torre is accused of making a false claim with her insurance company stating that the accident occurred between 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.
Rene Rizo Rosiles and Erica Gonzalez (Case #14CM09151)
Rene Rizo Rosiles, 28, Santa Ana, is charged with one misdemeanor count of insurance fraud. Erica Gonzalez, 24, Santa Ana, is charged with two misdemeanor counts of insurance fraud. At the time of the accident, Rosiles is accused of being an uninsured driver. On Sept. 13, 2013, Rosiles and Gonzalez are accused of being involved in a car accident with each other. On Sept. 14, 2013, Rosiles purchased an automobile insurance policy. The defendants filed a claim with their insurance company that the crash occurred on Sept. 14, 2013.
Priscilla Saenz (Case #14CM09108)
Priscilla Saenz, 36, La Habra, is charged with one misdemeanor count of insurance fraud. At approximately 1:00 p.m. on March 10, 2014, Saenz is accused of being an uninsured driver and getting into a car accident. She is accused of purchasing an automobile insurance policy shortly after the accident. Saenz is accused of filing a claim with her insurance company stating that the accident occurred in the evening after purchasing the insurance policy.
Jorge Andres Torres and Luis Carlos Morales (Case #14CM09068)
Jorge Andres Torres, 31, Mission Viejo, is charged with two misdemeanor counts of insurance fraud. Luis Carlos Morales, 28, Montebello, is charged with two misdemeanor counts of insurance fraud. On Feb. 20, 2014, Morales is accused of crashing into Torres on the freeway. Morales is accused of being uninsured at the time of the crash. Torres is accused of reporting the accident to the insurance company which denied the claim because the damage is $900 and the deductible is $1,000. On March 12, 2014, Morales is accused of purchasing an automobile insurance policy. Both defendants are accused of lying about the date of the accident.
Thanh Tom Vu (Case #14CM09109)
Thanh Tom Vu, 43, Long Beach, is charged with two misdemeanor counts of insurance fraud. At approximately 8:30 p.m. on July 4, 2014, Vu is accused of being an uninsured driver and getting into a car accident. At approximately 9:20 p.m., that same day, he is accused of purchasing an automobile insurance policy. Vu is accused of filing a claim the next day and on July 7, 2014, stating that the accident occurred between 10:00 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. on July 4, 2014.
Mai Wallace (Case #14CM09063)
Mai Wallace, 64, Fountain Valley, is charged with one misdemeanor count of insurance fraud. At approximately 4:45 p.m. on May 9, 2014, Wallace is accused of being an uninsured driver and getting into a car accident. At approximately 11:45 a.m. on May 10, 2013, Wallace is accused of purchasing an automobile insurance policy. On May 14, 2013, Wallace is accused of filing a claim stating the accident occurred at 4:45 p.m. on May 10, 2013, and that no police report was taken.
Deputy District Attorneys Claudia Alvarez and Steven Bunn of the Insurance Fraud Unit are prosecuting these cases.
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TONY RACKAUCKAS, District Attorney
Susan Kang Schroeder, Chief of Staff
Office: 714-347-8408
Cell: 714-292-2718
