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Hialeah Police Bust Body Shops, Tow Companies For Fraud

HIALEAH (CBS4) - This morning as South Florida headed to work, Hialeah Police were rounding up tow trucks drivers and body shop owners.

Janet Rodriguez and her husband Eduardo Valdes were led away in handcuffs by police. Police say it was stark contrast to recent photos of them posted on social media with wads of cash.

"Like rockstars. On insurance company money and from victims, drivers who end up having to pay for all these loses," said Hialeah Police Lt. Carl Zogby.

Police say the couple's scam started with tow truck driver Edwin Rodriguez. Monitoring police scanners he would pull up to accident scenes quickly offering to tow you.

"That is illegal. The moment that happens that should be a red flag and you should say no," said Lt. Zogby.

Tim Mengo, 81, didn't.

"He was convincing and so I just took it there on the promise that they were good people," said Mengo.

The shop collected forty five hundred dollars from Mengo's insurance and allegedly took their time making the repairs.

"It was over thirty days," said Mengo. "I had to rent a car,"

Investigators say he's lucky. Many didn't get their car back.

"These individuals opened five collision shops in five years and made one mistake," said Zogby. "One of them opened up in Hialeah."

Hialeah Police caught onto the scam last year. With the help of Allstate Insurance Company, they blew it wide open. Loses are estimated to be up to a million dollars.

"At the end of the day it ends up in higher premiums," said Allstate spokesperson Shane Robinson. "I think all Florida citizens are sort of feeling the pain from the fraud and abuse that goes on in the system here."

All of the shops involved have been closed down. The owners are being charged with defrauding more than 50 victims. Some of those who were duped worked in the State Attorney's office, police department, a local news photographer.

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