Ex-NFL Player Accused in Insurance Scam

A former NFL player who lives in Southern California faces felony charges for allegedly staging four car crashes and filing claims resulting in $70,000 in fraudulent insurance payouts, the California Department of Insurance announced Wednesday.

Jeffrey Leon Webb, 34, was arrested by California Highway Patrol officers on the afternoon of June 28 on Goodrich Street in Indio, the city where he lives, according to the DOI.

Webb, a wide receiver, played three seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs from 2006-08. He last played football in 2011 with the Omaha Nighthawks of the United Football League.

Webb is accused of being the ringleader in an insurance scam in which he and eight others allegedly crashed owned and rented cars into poles or curbs on purpose to collect insurance payouts.

According to the California Department of Insurance, the crashes resulted in minor damage to the vehicles, but Webb and his co-conspirators all requested medical assistance, including transportation to hospitals for supposed injuries.

Webb is accused of receiving the bulk of $70,000 paid out by insurance companies following the crashes.

Another $70,000 in pending claims was also slated to be paid out to Webb before the involved insurance companies, who suspected fraud, alerted the Department of Insurance.

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Webb was booked at the Riverside County jail in Blythe and released the following day on $120,000 bail. He is due to make an Aug. 8 court appearance at the Riverside Hall of Justice, according to jail records.

He is charged with four counts of causing an accident for the purpose of presenting a false claim, two counts of preparing writing with the intent of supporting a false claim, and one count of filing a false claim with an insurer.

"California is ground zero for staged auto collisions," said Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. "Organized crime rings are responsible for the majority of staged collision, which are costly to insurers and consumers."

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