NEWS

Insurance scam cracked after netting 1.3 mln euros

Four police officers, two lawyers and an insurance adjuster are among 13 people arrested on Friday in connection with an insurance scam which cost at least 27 companies an estimated 1.3 million euros.

The report pertaining to the investigation, which was conducted by the internal affairs department of the Greek Police, is 25,000 pages long and contains 550 false claim files ranging up to as much as 250,000 euros.

According to investigators, the scam was spearheaded by a 44-year-old man who owned an auto repair and paint shop in Trizonia, north of Attica. The basic method used was through online advertisements for the shop promising cheap repairs and fast settlements with insurance companies in case of accidents. Once a customer was hooked, the gang would compile a false claim with the help of the four police officers who falsified accident reports. It would also draw up fake declarations with the customers’ forged signatures giving members of the gang the right to file the claim and handle the money from the insurer.

The 54-year-old insurance adjuster who is among those arrested is further believed to have falsified dozens of out-of-court settlements between nonexistent parties.

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