MADERA COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) — What began as an urgent 911 call reporting a violent carjacking ended with the arrest of a Vallejo woman for felony insurance fraud.
On the morning of May 23, Martha Gutierrez DeRomero claimed she was carjacked by two masked men while pulled over on a rural stretch near Avenue 21 and Road 26 in Madera County. She told deputies she had stopped to adjust cargo in her van, which she said contained $60,000 worth of merchandise she sells at swap meets.
The alarming report triggered a large-scale response involving Madera County deputies, CHP, and agencies from Merced and other areas.
Despite early suspicion, Sheriff Tyson Pogue said deputies took no chances:
“Robberies are violent crimes. What if the suspects had killed her or used the vehicle to commit another crime?”
However, as the investigation unfolded, Merced County deputies located the van and discovered the merchandise had been dumped in a rural area and later moved to a storage unit in Merced.
Eventually, DeRomero confessed to staging the entire event in a scheme with her boyfriend, Alfredo Delezma, to commit insurance fraud.
There were no masked suspects. It was all fabricated.
DeRomero was booked into Madera County Jail on charges of:
Felony fraud
Conspiracy
Filing a false police report
Delezma has not been arrested yet but is expected to face charges as well.
