An Australian man is facing multiple charges after allegedly orchestrating a three-year spree of staged car crashes involving 45 vehicles in 16 separate crashes, with authorities saying the man collected a total of $390,480 AUD, or about $254,000 in U.S. dollars, in insurance payouts. According to the New South Wales Police Force, the man was arrested at the Sydney airport on July 3.
In January 2024, Campsie Police Area Command officers were reportedly alerted to multiple reports of suspicious insurance claims filed between 2019 and 2022, and all took place in the Canterbury-Bankstown area.
During an 18-month long investigation, police claim they found evidence that showed a 66-year-old man had been using fake identities to take out third-party insurance on cars, which they claim would then be intentionally driven into parked vehicles and an insurance claim then filed. Not only did the suspect reportedly pocket over $250,000 USD from this scheme, but he also filed another $47K USD worth of bogus claims that had not been paid out yet, according to 9 News Australia.
A warrant was issued for his arrest, according to authorities, and police picked him up at Sydney Airport. He was charged with two counts of dishonestly obtain financial advantage by deception. The suspect was granted bail and made his first appearance before the Bankstown Local Court on August 11.
According to New South Wales law, a person found guilty of fraud by any deception, dishonestly and obtains a financial advantage is subject to maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. Walking away with over a quarter of a million dollars in American greenbacks certainly seems like it could be considered gaining a financial advantage.
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