“Workers’ Comp insurance fraud impacts all of us, as we as consumers, end up paying higher prices for things to compensate for high insurance premiums that businesses pay.  SCIF investigators are working to combat fraud and to protect the integrity of the Workers’ Comp program and funds.”

CSLEA President Alan Barcelona

VENTURA – On September 15, 2025, Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko announced that Gonzalo Robles Zurita, 36, of Oxnard, has been charged with felony workers’ compensation insurance fraud for allegedly claiming that an arm injury he received in 2022 occurred at his place of employment. He is also charged with one felony count of attempted perjury under oath for statements made during a sworn deposition regarding the arm injury.

 Zurita made his first court appearance on September 11, 2025, where he pled not guilty to all charges. Zurita’s claim in 2022 that he was injured on the job resulted in the opening of a State of California worker’s compensation claim, which entitled him to compensation, medical treatment, and other worker’s rights. The State Compensation Insurance Fund (SCIF) paid over $20,000 based on Zurita’s allegedly fraudulent claim that his injury was workplace related.

The State Compensation Insurance Fund assigned their Special Investigation Unit to conduct a criminal investigation regarding the date, time, and location where the arm injury occurred. The investigation revealed that Zurita allegedly made false or fraudulent statements and representations for the purpose of obtaining compensation.

Zurita is scheduled for an early disposition conference on September 22, 2025, and a preliminary hearing is scheduled for September 24, 2025. Zurita was released from custody on his own recognizance and faces a maximum of three years, six months in jail.

The California Department of Insurance (CDI) estimates that workers’ compensation fraud costs $1 billion to $3 billion annually. This fraud increases the premiums that employers pay to obtain insurance, affecting legitimate businesses and all consumers in California through increased prices for goods and services.