Accidents with elderly drivers allegedly staged; 2 charged

Shasha Siganoff, 27, is accused of staging accidents with elderly drivers, then collecting on insurance claims. Shasha Siganoff, 27, is accused of staging accidents with elderly drivers, then collecting on insurance claims. Photo: Santa Clara DA's Office Photo: Santa Clara DA's Office Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close Accidents with elderly drivers allegedly staged; 2 charged 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

According to prosecutors, the scams all followed the same basic plot: As an elderly driver pulled out of a parking space, one person would stand behind the vehicle, slap it to create a loud sound, and then pretend to be hit while feigning injury.

An accomplice would claim to have witnessed the crash. Later, the two conspirators would cash in on an insurance claim.

Santa Clara County prosecutors said Friday that they had charged a “nomadic” man and a woman for staging four such accidents in 2013 in drug store, restaurant and shopping center parking lots in the cities of San Jose and Santa Clara. The scheme targeted motorists as old as 93 and netted at least $18,000, officials said.

The accused were identified as Anthony Thompson, 30, and Shasha Siganoff, 27, who were arraigned Thursday in Santa Clara County Superior Court. The two switched roles — witness and victim — in the purported accidents and used a string of aliases, prosecutors said.

“These were not harmless pranksters, but highly organized scam artists who repeatedly preyed on the elderly,” said prosecutor Christine Garcia-Sen. “We are concerned that this scheme was widespread and often unreported.”

The criminal case began with a tip from an insurance company that got suspicious about the claims.

After an investigation by the district attorney’s office, the National Insurance Crime Bureau and the state Department of Insurance, Thompson was charged with 16 felony counts including grand theft and had his bail set at $160,000. Siganoff was charged with 10 felony counts and was being held in lieu of $100,000.

Hamed Aleaziz is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: haleaziz@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @haleaziz