Several drivers were allegedly targeted in staged crashes on New York’s busy highways, with the fraudsters securing more than $80,000 (Rs 7,649,234) in insurance payouts before a viral video helped authorities uncover the fraud, according to New York Post. Jaime Huiracocha, 53, and Victor Murillo, 34, will respectively serve at least one year and two years in prison after pleading guilty to insurance fraud charges, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced Thursday.
Fraud enforcement is part of DFS’s continued work to enact Governor Hochul’s comprehensive plan to lower insurance costs for New Yorkers. I thank the Governor, Queens District Attorney, and the New York Police Department for their partnership.”
“This original video, which happened to have been the third incident, not the first, was really key in us identifying, investigating and making sure we had the right people,” she told reporters.”We worked backwards from that viral video. New York State Department of Financial Services Acting Superintendent Kaitlin Asrow said: “Insurance fraud leads to higher costs for all drivers and is a strain on New York’s insurance system.
Katz credited the TikTok clip, of a Honda Civic brazenly backing into another vehicle on the Belt Parkway after a near-miss collision – shown to her by her 15-year-old son with jumpstarting the investigation that uncovered three crashes staged by Huiracocha and Murillo, according to The Post.
