Durham group accused of staging car crashes for cash

Representatives of Nationwide and Progressive insurance companies became suspicious when they noticed the same people listed on three crash claims within one month. They found that group members had collected more than $14,000 in insurance for their alleged injuries.

Two people connected to the alleged scheme are still at large. Antoinette Henderson, 26, of 348 Kilarney Drive, and Lenora Jackson-Wilson, 41, of 3507 Century Oaks Drive, are each wanted on one count of obtaining property by false pretense, conspiracy to obtain property by false pretense and insurance fraud. Anyone with information about where those women might be is asked to call the North Carolina Department of Insurance Criminal Investigations Division at 919-807-6840.

Among the five arrested this week, two were already in jail on other charges. Ernest Bostic, 30, of 3439 Glasson St., and Walter Harris, Jr., 36, of 1512 Wabash St., face charges of insurance fraud and obtaining, attempting to obtain and conspiracy to obtain property by false pretense. Both remain in custody.

Lachuante Rankin, 30, of 300 Macon St., was charged with one count each of obtaining property by false pretense and attempting to obtain property by false pretense, as well as two counts each of insurance fraud and misdemeanor child abuse. Rankin was being held under a $30,000 secured bond.

In addition to charges of obtaining property by false pretense and insurance fraud, Natoyia Barbee, 29, of Wyldewood Drive, and Tomika Green, 33, of 1819-D Haverford Road, face charges of misdemeanor child abuse because investigators said they had their children in the car at the time of the staged wrecks.