Los Angeles, California – While bears breaking into vehicles is nothing new, in what has been dubbed “Operation Bear Claw,” the California Insurance Department has reported that four Los Angeles residents were arrested on Wednesday after breaking into vehicles dressed in a bear costume.
Specifically, the four residents were accused of defrauding three insurance companies out of approximately $142,000 by claiming a bear had caused damage to their vehicles.
The Sun news originally reported that the group has been accused of providing video footage from the San Bernardino Mountains in January of a bear moving around inside a Rolls-Royce and two Mercedes-Benz to the insurance companies as part of the damage claims. Photos further provided to the insurance department also show what at the time, appeared to be scratches on the vehicles’ seats and doors.
The department—suspeciting foul play—had a biologist from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife review the footage, who concluded that it was “clearly a human in a bear suit.”
After executing a search warrant, detectives found the bear costume in the suspects’ home, the department said.
As a result, in the end, it seems these suspects tried to “paw” their way through a clever scam, but it looks like their plan was ultimately “clawed” back.
