Durham Regional Police have charged two Pickering residents with insurance fraud following an investigation into a reported stolen vehicle. The incident, which unfolded over several months, involved a vehicle that was initially reported stolen but was later found to have been deliberately left at a dealership.
Authorities say that on August 20, officers responded to a report of a stolen vehicle near Fairport Road and Strouds Lane in Pickering. A man and woman informed police that their vehicle had disappeared from their driveway overnight. The woman subsequently received compensation from her insurance company after the vehicle remained unrecovered.
Further investigation, however, revealed a different sequence of events. Police determined that the vehicle, described as “inoperable,” had been delivered to a dealership by the woman in early August. Despite repeated attempts by the dealership to contact the vehicle owners, it was never reclaimed and eventually towed away from the dealership property in November.
After the investigation, the two suspects, a 69-year-old woman and a 36-year-old man, turned themselves in to the Durham Police station on January 17. Both individuals have been charged with public mischief (false report), fraudulent concealment, fraud over $5,000, and conspiracy to commit an indictable offense.
Detective Brown is handling the case and has requested anyone with information to contact him at 905-579-1520, extension 7827.
