Watch out, this scam could be pulled on you.
Kenneth Pham Tran, 54, of San Jose, Calif., was sentenced last week after dashcam footage showed him initiating a road rage incident, which resulted in him being rear-ended by a semi-truck. Tran attempted to hide his wrongdoing and profit from the accident he caused by filing a fraudulent insurance claim to collect an undeserved payout. Tran was sentenced to 60 days in county jail, two years of probation, and ordered to pay more than $4,000 in restitution.
“Road rage doesn’t pay,” said California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara. “Crimes like these jeopardize public safety and increase insurance cost for consumers and businesses. I applaud the work of our detectives and investigators which is essential in protecting California drivers and holding offenders accountable.”
The California Department of Insurance urges drivers who believe they may have been victims of a road rage incident to insist on a police report and document as much information about the collision as possible including using a cell phone to take photos or videos of the post-collision damage. If a dashcam was being used, save any footage of the incident and be sure to ask the police officer at the scene to positively identify everyone involved. All suspicious collisions should be reported to your local law enforcement agency or to the insurance commission in the state of the accident.
The California Task Force opened an investigation after receiving a referral from San Jose CHP, who first investigated the collision and reported the incident on January 28, 2025. The initial investigation found Tran had filed a claim with his insurance company alleging the back of his white Jeep Wrangler Rubicon was damaged after being rear-ended by a semi-truck while he was stopped in traffic. In his claim, he also stated the driver of the semi-truck refused to pull over and exchange insurance information.
Witness comes to the rescue
During the investigation, Task Force members discovered an independent witness who placed a separate 911 call reporting they had to swerve out of the way of a white Jeep Wrangler Rubicon that was driving recklessly and “brake checking” a semi-truck on the 101 freeway in San Jose. According to the witness, the driver of the Jeep, Tran, began swerving in and out of lanes to keep the semi-truck behind his vehicle. Tran held the brakes several times before the semi-truck struck the back of his vehicle. The witness stated it looked as though the semi-truck would not have been able to prevent the collision.
The entire road rage incident was captured on the semi-truck’s dashcam. Investigators were able to obtain the footage and found evidence that Tran had initiated the crash because he felt he had been cut off by the semi-truck. The footage also corroborated the account of the witness who called 911.
Tran was found guilty by a jury on one count of felony insurance fraud, one count of felony vandalism, and one misdemeanor count of reckless driving. This case was prosecuted by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.
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RVT1269b
Cheers!
Not that I would, but if I was going to initiate a road rage encounter it certainly wouldn’t be with a semi!!!
As Bugs Bunny would say: “What a maroon!” 😄
Amazing isn’t it? I had a guy on a Goldwing motorcycle near Gallup New Mexico brake check and slow me so I presume his buddies could pass easily. He came around my 40’ RV pulling my Jeep, hit the brakes and had us doing 30 in a 65. We had some stuff slide instead of making him a hood ornament but it was more from luck than fantastic brake skills.
Thank you for sharing the story, RV Travel. Such events as this is one of the reasons that we have a dash camera mounted to the inside of the RV windshield. The camera usually has a 128-GB or 256-GB memory card inside. We can revisit drives and have room for all recorded “incidents” thereby. Have a great weekend and safe travels!
Dash camera, your news best friend. Perhaps a detailed information articile on the broad spectrum of Dash camers, from the cheap to the exotic.