Ventura County District Attorney Gregory Totten announced that Armando Lopez (DOB 12/24/82) and his brother Fernando Lopez (DOB 5/10/84), both from Oxnard, pleaded guilty to felony auto insurance fraud.The case is set for sentencing on Jan. 8, 2009. The Lopez brothers are both facing a maximum penalty of five years in state prison and a fine of up to $50,000.
On Sept. 26, 2008, Armando Lopez's 2006 Nissan Altima was falsely reported as “stolen” to the Oxnard Police Department and to Progressive Insurance. The Altima, however, was equipped with a LoJack device which was activated less than two hours after it was reported “stolen.”
Oxnard police officers located the vehicle parked on North 5 th Street in Oxnard. Since the Altima was parked and unattended, Oxnard officers contacted VENCAT detectives (Ventura County Auto Theft Taskforce) to monitor the vehicle.
At approximately 1:50 p.m. on Sept. 26, VENCAT detectives reportedly observed a Chevrolet truck arrive and park next to the Altima. One of the two male occupants got out of the truck and reportedly began removing items from the Altima, placing them in the truck. The two males then drove away in the truck, reportedly abandoning the Altima.
After the truck left the scene, it was stopped by the police. The occupants, later identified as Armando and Fernando Lopez, were arrested.
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