See WA State’s 10 Most Wanted List–For Insurance Fraud?!?

When we see a Most Wanted List, we usually think of the FBI, or US Marshals.  They're usually dangerous criminals who are the subject of nationwide manhunts.

  These folks may not fit that bill, but they're just  as wanted as the others.

The Washington  State Insurance Commissioners Office has what's called the Criminal Investigative Unit. They look into allegations of the very common crime of insurance fraud. Whether it's filing false claims, unscrupulous agents who pocket clients money, or staging fake accidents, they are prosecuted.

The CIU has maintained a Ten Most Wanted list.  It begins with a former Seattle insurance agent who was added recently, for allegedly pocketing dozens of client's checks into his personal account to the tune of $400K-plus.

1. Edward Hadley  He's the former agent  we just talked about. An arrest warrant was issued January 15th. As of now, $147K is still missing from his 2020-2021 crimes. He was just added to the list a few weeks ago.

2. Patricia Ochoategui  She is wanted for a failure to appear in January of this year on charges of filing false claims in excess of $1,500.

3. Maria Carrerra-Martinez   Also in January of this year, she is being  sought for failure to appear for arraignment on charges of False Claims or Proof in excess of $1,500.

4. Michael Aramde   in late 2024, he failed to show up for an omnibus hearing, where attorneys and prosecutors meet to discuss issues of a case, to avoid snarls when it doe to trial. He too, is charged with False Claims in excess of $1,500. He was involved in a crash in 2021, and then (according to the WIC):

"Aramde did not have insurance at the time, so he purchased a policy online with Progressive and filed a claim the next day. 

Progressive obtained a copy of the collision report and discovered that the collision occurred prior to Aramde’s policy inception. They denied Aramde’s claim for $16,869 to repair his 2016 Audi Q3. After his claim was denied, Aramde filed another claim on Jan. 28, 2021, stating his vehicle had been involved in a second collision. Progressive also investigated this claim and found that the vehicle had been in a tow yard since Jan. 9, 2021, until it was repossessed on Jan. 26, 2021."

  5. Bryan Carraway  the former Richland WA resident and MMA fighter is facing fraud charges on over $18,500 worth of policies purchased for an ATV which he falsely reported as stolen in 2018.  In 2024 he failed to show up for a pre-trial hearing, and has been in the wind ever since.

6. Santiago Rodriguez   In 2023, he was charged with False Claims or Proof in excess of $1,500. According to the WIC:

"On March 8, 2021, Rodriguez stated his vehicle had been broken into and that someone had stolen $19,029 worth of scuba diving gear. He filed a claim with Homesite Insurance, where he had purchased a renter’s insurance policy. 

However, the company found he had falsified the theft claim, and then learned Rodriguez had filed a similar claim for over $16,000 previously with another insurer.He failed to show up in court.

7. Patrick Kim   Kim, in May of 2022 failed to appear in court on multiple counts of Theft 1.  This could mean the theft of services besides property, including insurance services.  He is accused of misleading Asian clients who could not speak English with false personal injury claims, in excess of over $1,828 million dollars, which he diverted to himself. He is still at large.

8. Jessica Berman   Berman, who was from Yakima, was accused of insurance fraud concerning a policy on a car, she tried to claim the vehicle was worth more than it's worth, to the tune of $10K. She'd used the car as loan collateral, but then falsely reported it totaled in 2018 to receive the fraudulent money.  She was added to the list in 2022 for failure appear in Yakima Court.

9. Anfernee Aldan  The Lakewood, WA man in 2021 was accused of taking out an expensive car policy on his vehicle several hours after it was involved in a Seattle-area crash.  He failed to show up in court. The fraud was discovered after a suspicious adjuster saw his car on the back of a wrecker (TV news) prior to the policy being issued.

10.  Nickolas Andrews   He was charged in 2020 with False Claims or proof in excess of $1,500. No specific information about Andrews was released by the WIC.

 Who's been on the list the longest? A man by the name of Shinebayer Baterdene. In March of 2011, the WSP says he was charged with charging personal insurance claims for property he claimed was stolen but was returned to stores he bought it from either before or after the insurance theft.  The WSP said he was kwn to have done this in multiple states.  He's been on the list for going on 14 years now.

   IF you happen to see or know these folks, call 360-586-2561.  As far as we know, the Top 10 are all still on the loose.