Los Angeles residents reported their Rolls-Royce interior had been damaged by a bear but it was actually a person in a bear suit
- Footage of a bear damaging a Rolls-Royce in the US was released
- The furry offender caused chaos
- However, it turns out that it’s not all it seems
Published on Nov 19, 2024 at 8:22 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Nov 20, 2024 at 11:04 AM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Tom Wood
A new definition for ‘bear-faced cheek’ has to be added to the dictionary after a bear damaged a Rolls-Royce in the US state of California.
The story goes that four LA residents reported a ferocious animal broke into their 2010 Rolls-Royce Ghost.
They even had incriminating footage of the furry offender causing chaos.
However, it turns out that their insurance claim was rather grizzly.
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The bear damaged the Rolls-Royce
However, the fuzzy footage sent to the insurance company as ‘evidence’ didn’t have the intended effect.
Quite the opposite, in fact.
The video ‘proof’ appeared to show the animal climbing into the front seat of the Rolls-Royce before clawing its way toward the back and falling out of the open passenger-side door after 30-45 seconds.
Photos of damage revealed claw marks on the leather interior and door lining – thankfully, it couldn’t have stolen the Spirit of Ecstacy even if it had wanted to.
However, rather than pushing their claim through, it has led to the four individuals from Glendale and Valley Village being arrested and charged with insurance fraud.
On a smaller scale, US car wash workers found a groundhog stuck in a woman’s car.
The truth is stranger than fiction
“Upon further scrutiny of the video, the investigation determined the bear was actually a person in a costume,” the California Department of Insurance said in a statement.
After executing a search warrant, they indeed found a bear costume in the suspects’ home.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist confirmed that ‘it was clearly a human in a bear suit’.
Dubbed ‘Operation Bear Claw’, it led to the suspects being charged with insurance fraud and conspiracy.
They’d received $141,839 (£111,619) in insurance payments for their alleged scam.
This wasn’t the first time they’d tried the hair-brained scheme.
It was the third time the suspects filed insurance claims for the same rare method of damage, according to investigators.
Those incidents, filed via a different insurance company, involved a 2015 Mercedes G63 AMG and a 2022 Mercedes E35.
The San Bernadino County District Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the bizarre charges.
One story you can believe is this moose breaking into a BMW performance shop and causing next-level chaos.
Let this be a lesson to you all – this particular scam doesn’t bear repeating.
With a dual English and French degree and NCTJ diploma, Amelia began her career doing award-winning writing and editing for titles and brands spanning Women's Health, the Telegraph, Boots, and Vitality. Amelia joined the SB Media family in September of 2023, bringing her expertise in SEO and reader takeaway. As Lead Editor, her superpower is translating technical jargon about the mechanical workings of a supercar into a shareable story.
