Advertise
Resources
Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
Usually it's the banana peel that has the reputation of being slippery, not the hot dog.
But for Phoenix residents Tommy Masterson and Lesa Bonilla, the hot dog was a key prop in their allegedly staged slip-and-fall accidents, authorities say of the pair accused last week of insurance fraud.
The two were spotted on a shopping mall security camera, with Mr. Masterson purchasing a hot dog at a snack bar and then walking over to a store, where he met up with Ms. Bonilla, the Arizona Department of Insurance Fraud Unit said in a statement.
The video shows Mr. Masterson placing the wiener on the floor. Then Ms. Bonilla, along with a small child, walks around a rack of clothes and conspicuously “slips” on the hot dog.
After being treated by Mesa, Ariz., paramedics and taken by ambulance to a medical center, Ms. Bonilla filed a claim against the store and sought a quick settlement for her alleged injuries, authorities said.
The insurance office, which dubbed Mr. Masterson a “bad cat” in reference to the tattoo seen on his arm on the video, said the man has been linked to other alleged slip-and-fall scams in retail stores in Arizona which also involved a hot dog.