Three accused of insurance fraud after non-crash

Li Franc Safaite

Johnson Safaite

Ronald Samedifede

Three East Naples residents were accused Tuesday of insurance fraud after detectives said they cashed in on fake injuries from a car crash they were not in.

Johnson Safaite, 24; Li Franc Safaite, 55; and Ronald Samedifede, 41, each face two counts of making a false insurance claim.

The charges stem from a January crash in East Naples where a 2001 black Hyundai swerved to avoid hitting Li Franc Safaite's 1993 white Chrysler, according to a probable cause affidavit. The Hyundai then hit a utility pole.

When deputies arrived, Li Franc Safaite and three passengers in his car told them they were rear ended. Traffic investigators found nothing to back up that claim, however, and wrote in a report that "vehicle No. 2 (Li Franc Safaite) was never involved in this crash," according to the affidavit.

Detectives said both Safaites, Samedifede and another passenger claimed to be treated at a clinic and billed Geico for $3,940, $3,355, $2,230 and $1,700. An insurance agent denied the claims and referred the four to Florida's Division of Insurance Fraud.

A fourth passenger in Li Franc Safaite's car was listed as a suspect in the probable cause affidavit but as of Wednesday had not been arrested.