San Diego Accident Blog

One of the main reasons that clients hire a personal injury attorney is to recover money for property damage repair.  Auto mechanics charge a lot of money for their work, and almost all the time, they earn every bit of their bill.

But how do you know when an auto mechanic is taking advantage of you?  Thanks to “Operation Straight Body”, Orange County prosecutors have charged 53 auto mechanics with felony insurance fraud.

Richard Evans of ‘Chop Cut Rebuild’ overcharged for property damage repair.

According to a KTLA report, Richard Evans of Huntington Beach Body Works — known for his show on the Speed Channel called “Chop Cut Rebuild” and “Monster Garage” — was among the 53 auto mechanics arrested.  “Operation Straight Body” involved 152 undercover operations in which investigators went to auto body shops to get property damage estimates.  They would ask if property damage could be covered under their insurance claim even if some of the damage wasn’t caused by that particular car accident.

“This prosecution put dishonest operators and anybody thinking about committing fraud on notice,” Rackauckas said at a news conference.  “I think consumers have the right to know which of the auto repair shops are conducting straight business and which are not.”

Orange County auto mechanics caught in insurance sting operation.

1. Sheridon John Bailey, 41, Power Collision Center, 2352 Commerce Center, Laguna Hills
2. Stephen Raymond Baker, 59, A J Auto Body, 1020 N. Harbor Blvd. Garden Grove
3. Edward Arutan Bilezikchian, 36, OC Collision Center, 7100 Hazard Ave., Westminster
4. James Fay Burroughs, 48, Fix It Auto7522 Westminster Ave., Westminster ,
5. Ronald Dean Campbell, 48, Orange Coast Auto Body, 10810 Talbert Blvd., Fountain Valley
6. Thomas William Carmer, 55, Specialized Coach Works, 33207 Paseo Cerveza, San Juan Capistrano
7. Yoon Kyu Choi, 41, Son’s Auto Body, 1808 Commonwealth Ave., Fullerton
8. Michele Anne Conlon, 36, Euro American Collision Center, 20591 Pascal Way, Lake Forest
9. Angelea Danciu, 52, G D Auto Collision, 2085 Placentia Ave., Costa Mesa
10. Fernando Gonzalez Delgado, 46, Fernando’s Auto Body, 3500 Westminster Ave. #K, Santa Ana
11. James Michael Desmond, 35, A B Auto Body, 1607 E. Edinger Ave., Santa Ana
12. Dennis Dee Eagleton, 43, Euro America Collision Center, 1343 Logan St., Costa Mesa
13. Oscar Alvarado Escalera, Jr., 34, Kraemer Auto Collision, 1361 N. Kraemer Ave., Anaheim
14. Javier Gutierrez Espino, 31, C N Auto Body, 4609 W. 1st St., Santa Ana
15. Richard Todd Evans, 41, HB Body Works, 18108 Redondo Cir., Huntington Beach
16. Art Flores, 21, Century Auto Body and Collision, 14042 Goldenwest St., Westminster
17. Tateoz Gasparyan, 57, Southern Auto Body, 118 E. 16th St., Costa Mesa
18. Felipe Gutierrez Gomez, 37,Easy Auto Body1646 W. Lincoln Blvd., Anaheim
19. Robert Charles Gomez, 29, Southern Auto Body 118 E. 16th St., Costa Mesa
20. Efren Francisco Gonzalez, Jr., 29, Sterling Auto Body Center, 750 Monroe Way, Placentia
21. Sergio Rene Gonzalez, 49,Superior Collision Center, 1646 Superior Ave., Costa Mesa
22. Hollian Houston Hannah, 53, American Auto Center,12794 Nutwood St., Garden Grove
23. William Ray Harris, 38, Snyder Auto Collision, 11050 Western Ave., Stanton
24. John Ngoc Hoang, 37, Orange County Auto Body Works, 11711 Westminster Ave., Garden Grove
25. Ryan Alan Kissinger, 35, Anaheim Hills Auto Collision, 3627 E. Miraloma Ave., Anaheim
26. Brent David Lanksbury, 39, Hi Tech,1399 Logan St., Costa Mesa
27. Jose Luis Marquez, 45, Body Masters, 2431 S. Broadway Ave., Santa Ana
28. Angel Martin, 30, Auto Collision Solution, 23251 Antonio Pkwy., Rancho Santa Margarita
29. Mark Andrew McNeil, 36, Autobody USA, 26361 Via De Anza, San Juan Capistrano
30. Freddy Cardona Morales, 35, Specialty Collision Center, 330 Paularino Ave., Costa Mesa
31. Dean Nguyen, 28, Hi Tech Auto Collision, 2541 W. La Palma Ave., Anaheim
32. Minh Anh Nguyen, 41, #1 Auto Body and Repair, 2402 W. 17th St., Santa Ana
33. Sarkis Michael Ohanian, 24,Sarkis Auto Body, 15142 Beach Blvd., Westminster
34. Nabor Olivera, 39, Olivera Auto Body, 711 S. Raymond Ave., Fullerton
35. Miguel Ortiz, 30, MOB Works, 975 N. Batavia St., Orange
36. Ramanlal Patel, 61A to Z Auto Body, 5042 Lincoln Ave., Cypress
37. Sergio Escalante Perez, 44, USA Auto Collision, 471 W. Imperial Hwy., La Habra
38. Justin Micheal Picon, 26, Solesbee Auto Craft, 4051 2nd St., Yorba Linda
39. Ronald Joseph Pierce, 53, Big Ron Body and Paint, 12781 Nelson St., Garden Grove
40. David Brian Prukop, 53, Prukops Auto Body And Paint, 15362 Electronic Ln., Huntington Beach
41. Erik Ruben Reyna, 25, Adonai Auto Body, 3122 Westminster Ave., Santa Ana
42. Mike Vargas Rocha, 54, Placentia Auto Body, 233 Santa Fe Ave., Placentia
43. Tomas Moreno Rodriguez, 41, Moreno Auto Body, 1125 Ash Ave., Fullerton
44. Philip David Sanchez, 44, Autobahn Autobody, 1107 Baker St., Costa Mesa
45. David Joseph Schmulbach, 25, McLaren Unibody, 20781 Canada Rd., Lake Forest
46. Lawrence Scrivani, 68, Laguna Niguel Auto Collision, 27622 Camino Capistrano #D, Laguna Niguel
47. David Dean Snavely, 61, OC Auto Collision, 28002 Forbes Rd., Laguna Niguel
48. Michael Tran, 34, Salem Auto Body, 15126 Weststate St., Westminster
49. Petch Vatcharasumphun, 35, Ming Auto Body, 13822 Harbor Blvd., Garden Grove
50. Javier Velasco, 46,J V Auto Body and Paint, 3721 W. McFadden Ave., Santa Ana
51. Paula Christina Villalobos, 26, Sterling Collision Center, 1111 Bell Ave., Tustin
52. Edgar Villegas, 36, Choice Of Color Auto Paint, 13871 West St., Garden Grove
53. Nasr Nazmy Youssef, 53, Deal Time Auto Body, 1107 E. Elm Ave. #F, Fullerton

If you need help recovering money after an automobile accident, contact our bilingual offices anytime — day or night — at 1-800-655-6585 for a FREE Consultation with a San Diego County personal injury attorney.

You may also click here to submit your case for a FREE Online Review.  Our attorneys work on a contingency fee basis, which means you owe nothing until we recover money on your behalf.