LAPD reserve officer and brother arraigned for felony insurance fraud

Eric Benjamin “Ben” Halem, 37, of Porter Ranch, a former full-time Los Angeles Police Department officer and current LAPD reserve officer, and his brother, Jacob Halem, 32, of Tarzana, were arraigned on felony insurance fraud charges following an investigation by the California Department of Insurance.

The investigation found the brothers allegedly filed a fraudulent auto insurance claim in an attempt to obtain benefits they were not entitled to receive, CDI said in a news release.

The Department of Insurance began its investigation after receiving a fraud referral alleging Eric Halem falsely reported a crash involving his 2020 Bentley Continental GT, stating his brother Jacob Halem had borrowed the vehicle and was involved in a solo-collision on January 5, 2023. However, the investigation revealed that the luxury vehicle had actually been rented out through Eric Halem’s exotic car rental company, Drive LA, and crashed by the renter three days earlier.

Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD) deputies responded to the accident scene, documenting the vehicle’s damage with body-worn camera footage before it was impounded.

Shortly after, Eric Halem contacted his insurance company twice to obtain proof of insurance, which he then used to release the Bentley from impound. Meanwhile, the renter filed a claim with their insurance company, but it was denied due to lack of first-party collision coverage.

Upon learning that the rental driver’s claim had been denied, Eric Halem allegedly filed a fraudulent claim with his insurance company on his personal policy, misrepresenting the accident details. He claimed that his brother, Jacob Halem, had been driving the vehicle at the time of the crash, the release said.

To support their false claim, Eric and Jacob Halem submitted staged photographs of the damaged Bentley on a tow truck near the alleged accident location. These photos were intended to mislead adjusters, but the investigation discovered that the damage in the photos was identical to the damage captured in LASD’s body-worn camera footage from Jan. 2, 2023, showing the damage was created before when the brothers claimed.

Further investigation revealed that Jacob Halem also provided a false statement to the insurance company investigator in an effort to corroborate his brother’s fraudulent claim. The total potential loss from the fraudulent claim was $229,283, the release said.