8 Arrested in Vehicle Insurance Scheme
Eight people were arrested Wednesday after they allegedly tried to change vehicle identification numbers and buy phony DMV registration documents from undercover police officers during a sting operation, authorities said.
The arrests capped a four-month investigation.
Arrested were Eric Huerta, 28, of Costa Mesa; his mother, Margarita Garcia Huerta, 54, of Lakewood; his sister Jennifer Emma Huerta, 22, of Lakewood; Chad Nakosone, 29, of Irvine; Sean Michael Brantley, 31, of Mission Viejo; Oscar Sanchez, 32, of Costa Mesa; Alexander Paleo, 20; and Christian Sanchez, 26, of Hawthorne.
They are being held at Santa Ana Jail.
Deputy Dist. Atty. Pete Pierce said suspects handed over their cars to alleged ringleaders Eric Huerta and Nakosone, who switched the vehicle identification numbers and provided fake DMV records.
“The members wouldn’t report the cars stolen until after Huerta does the information switches,” Pierce said. That way, he said, they got insurance money for the car while also reselling the vehicle.
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