Fifteen suspects accused of using food trucks to rig more than adozen accidents are now sampling the cuisine at a Florida detentioncenter.

The case is part of a continuingcrackdown by Florida CFO Jeff Atwater's Division of Insurance Fraudand the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) to quell rampantauto-insurance fraud schemes that have plagued the state foryears—and siphoned funds from Sunshine State insurers andpolicyholders in the process.

During the course of a two-year investigation, authoritiestracked a Miami-based fraud ring whose routes put a new spin on theterm “the lunch rush.” According to Atwater's office, thedefendants allegedly used the trucks to orchestrate accidents forwhich they filed more than $800,000 in fraudulent property damageand personal-injury protection (PIP) claims.

It is also believed that the vehicle owners enlisted the help ofadditional participants posing as insureds to set up more than 12auto accidents between 2008 and 2010. The division recentlyannounced the arrest of 15 suspects in connection with the ventureand expressed optimism about the recent legislative developments inputting the brakes on these scams permanently.

“I am confident that reforms passed this session will help stopfraud at the source while giving us more tools to go after scamartists,” Atwater says in a press release. “I will not stand by andlet these organized crime rings steal [policyholders'] hard-earneddollars.”

Under CFO Atwater's leadership, the division has arrested 166suspects so far this year. In 2011, the unit apprehended 392 forPIP fraud, which signified a 44-percent increase from 2010.