A 24-year-old man facing multiple charges in an insurance fraud case was arrested this morning by the King County Warrant Team at a residence in Tacoma.
Andre Romeo Zamora Sarmiento was charged last year with second-degree theft, forgery and insurance fraud for allegedly filing altered and fake medical bills after a car accident. He failed to appear for arraignment on Dec. 24, 2012, resulting in the warrant that led to his arrest this morning.
The fraud case involves a November 2011 auto collision in Tacoma. A car turned in front of Zamora's car, cutting him off, and leading to the crash.
Zamora subsequently filed a claim with the other driver's insurer for injuries to his back and $2,542 for vehicle damage to his vehicle. For the medical claims, Zamora filed several bills totalling $14,857.
A subsequent investigation by our anti-fraud Special Investigations Unit revealed that several bills were altered and grossly inflated. A bill for $360, for example, had a "9" added, to make it look like a bill for $9,360. A bill for $33.50 was turned into what looked like a bill for $3,358.80.
All told, Zamora submitted claims for $13,236 more than he actually paid. The insurer paid Zamora $5,497 before discovering that the bills were fraudulent.