Man Charged For False Carjacking Accusations In Union County

Three months after Darwin Edward told police and his insurance company his car had been carjacked at the time it hit multiple parked cars in Plainfield, the North Brunswick resident is charged for falsifying his insurance claim. 

According to the Union County Prosector's Office: 

A Middlesex County man has been arrested and charged with falsely claiming that he had been the victim of a carjacking in Plainfield prior to an accident, ultimately costing his insurance company approximately $60,000 in claims, acting Union County Prosecutor Grace H. Park announced Wednesday.

Darwin Edward, 29, of Dillon Court in North Brunswick is charged with second-degree insurance fraud and fourth-degree false swearing. His bail was set at $35,000 by state Superior Court Judge Regina Caulfield.

The case was referred to the Prosecutor’s Office by the New Jersey Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor and the Plainfield Police Division. Through an investigation by the Insurance Fraud Section of the Prosecutor’s Office’s Special Prosecutions Unit and the examination of physical evidence by the Union County Forensics Laboratory, it was determined that Edward was the person behind the wheel when his Lexus SC400 sports coupe was wrecked on April 7, 2013.

However, Edward later told police and the Progressive Insurance Company, which insured the vehicle, that he had been carjacked in Plainfield before his unknown assailant struck several parked cars and wrecked the vehicle.

Edward was arrested without incident Wednesday morning at his place of employment on South Second Street in Piscataway.

Convictions for second-degree crimes typically result in terms of 5 to 10 years in state prison, while convictions for fourth-degree crimes can result in imprisonment of up to 18 months.

These criminal charges are mere accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.