“It’s hard to comprehend that someone would intentionally put a life and property in danger for personal financial gain, but unfortunately there are unscrupulous individuals who intentionally cause vehicle crashes in hopes of cashing in on underserved insurance payouts.  Thankfully the California Department of Insurance employs dedicated investigators and detectives to investigate potential wrongdoing.” – CSLEA President Alan Barcelona

LOS ANGELES — On December 8, 2022, Kenneth McDaniel, 32, was arrested on four felony counts of insurance fraud and assault with a deadly weapon after a Department of Insurance investigation found he allegedly caused a vehicle collision in order to receive an undeserved insurance payout. McDaniel’s alleged actions left a victim with injuries and a totaled vehicle.

The Department began an investigation after being contacted by the California Highway Patrol following an auto accident. On July 30, 2022, McDaniel’s alleged victim was driving onto the 405 freeway when McDaniel in his Ram pickup truck crossed over the gore area between the traffic lane and freeway entrance at a high speed and got behind the victim. McDaniel then cut over two lanes and sped past other vehicles to intentionally cut in front of the victim and then abruptly stopped the vehicle for no reason. The entire collision was captured on dash-cam on both the front and back of the victim’s vehicle.

The type of alleged scheme in this case is called a swoop and squat and is used to force a victim to remain in their lane so a collision cannot be avoided. These types of intentional collisions are extremely dangerous, not only for those involved, but for anyone on the road.

The victim’s vehicle was totaled and the driver suffered soft tissue damage because of the intentional collision. McDaniel’s alleged actions also resulted in a loss of $25,062 for the victim’s totaled vehicle.

McDaniel was booked into the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office is prosecuting this case.