Sylvester Chavez, 22, and Shelly Hayworth, 45, both of Fresno, were each charged with one felony count of insurance fraud after investigators learned that they had allegedly conspired to obtain insurance benefits for Chavez to which he was not entitled.
CDI fraud investigators learned that on Jan. 27, 2000, Chavez filed a theft claim with Western United Insurance Company, alleging that his truck had been burglarized and vandalized while parked in his apartment complex’s parking lot. He claimed that the windows and mirrors had been broken, the door handles pried out, the interior partially stripped, the paint damaged and the body dented. He also claimed that the stereo, wheels and tires had been stolen, and that the truck was left up on blocks.
Two independent witnesses who saw Chavez near his vehicle on the morning of Jan. 27 told investigators that only one window was broken and the wheels and tires were on the truck. One of these witnesses, who saw Chavez with his truck about 90 minutes later, claimed that the truck was severely damaged and missing its wheels and tires. When one of these witnesses told Hayworth (the apartment complex manager and a friend of Chavez) what he had seen, she allegedly told him that Chavez had a plan to hoodwink his insurance company. She then asked the witness to remain silent about what he had seen.
As a result of his claim, Western United Insurance paid Chavez more than $10,500.
Topics Auto
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