A second man has been sentenced for his part in a ‘crash-for-cash’ insurance fraud scam in west London, according to police.
Mohamed Labre Chiadmi – also known as Adam Leno – had pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation and two counts of making false declarations to obtain motor insurance, and was later sentenced to 10 months’ imprisonment, the Met said.
His accomplice, Moussa Elwardi of Bonchurch Road, Ladbroke Grove, had previously pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation and was sentenced in January.
Police were alerted to the suspicious activities of Chiadmi, from Edbrooke Road, Maida Hill, because of the large insurance payments made into the 37-year-old’s account.
Further enquiries showed the payments related to a collision said to have happened on December 30, 2013 in Chiswick.
Chiadmi and Elwardi claimed that their respective vehicles – a Volkswagen Golf and Mercedes Sprinter van – were involved in a collision, with Chiadmi claiming his Golf had crashed into the back of Elwardi’s van.
They both made insurance claims for their ‘written-off’ vehicles, with Chiadmi receiving around £5,000 for his car and Elwardi £3,300 for his van from their insurers, police said. Elwardi also made a further personal injury claim for £10,000, although it was never paid.
However, enquiries by officers showed that the collision did not happen as they claimed. Expert collision reports and photographs of the vehicles after the alleged collision contradicted their accounts.
Insurance fraud
Photos taken in January 2014 showed Chiadmi’s Golf had been involved in a serious collision, but not as he had described to his insurers, and a photo of Elwardi’s van showed that it had suffered no damage.
Officers also established that at the time of the alleged crash Elwardi was not even in the country.
Further enquiries found that Chiadmi had taken out two other insurance policies where he had not correctly declared his personal information, including details of previous convictions, previous collisions and insurance claims he had been involved in.
Elwardi was arrested on December 16 and he was charged with fraud by false representation. He pleaded guilty to the offence on January 30 at Hammersmith Magistrates’ Court and was sentenced to a 12-month community order to carry out 60 hours of unpaid work and fined £1,550.
Officers also looked to arrest Chiadmi at the same time, but discovered that he was in Morocco. He was arrested at Gatwick Airport upon his return on February 12 and charged the following day.
He entered his guilty pleas on August 24, and was sentenced at Isleworth Crown Court on September 21.
Officers also applied for a confiscation order, which is due to be heard in February next year.
Detective Inspector Dave Hindmarsh, from the Met’s Roads and Transport Policing Command, said: “While he never admitted to how the damage to his car was actually sustained, Chiadmi and his accomplice clearly looked to benefit from making false insurance claims.
“Our message is clear – if you commit any kind of insurance fraud, then we will investigate and look to bring you before the courts.”
GetWestLondon
