Former stuntwoman-turned-lawyer faces federal charges after alleged scheme to stage car crashes and file false insurance claims and lawsuits in New Orleansaccording to federal authorities.
Vanessa Motta, 43, her unlicensed attorney fiance Sean Alfortish and several “slammers” – professional drivers who intentionally crash into 18-wheelers and flee the scene – are among the eight who took part in the conspiracyaccording to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana.
Another getaway driver would have helped the “slammer” flee the scene, the feds wrote. Then the killer’s passenger would claim to have driven the vehicle that caused the accident. Other conspirators will act as witnesses and claim that the drivers of the 18-wheelers were to blame for the accidents, according to the press release.
Motta, who allegedly filed false claims and lawsuits after the accidents, wiped her eyes in court and pleaded not guilty Monday, Nola.com reported.
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Vanessa Motta, 43, faces federal charges for allegedly filing false insurance claims after staged car accidents. (MottalawLLC/Instagram)
“If these accidents were in fact rigged, my client was also a victim and was taken advantage of by others,” her attorney, Sean Toomey, told Nola.com.
Motta opened her own law practice, Motta Law, LLC, in 2017, according to her office’s website.
She, Alfortish and attorney Jason Giles, who also allegedly represented the plaintiffs in the bogus lawsuit New Orleans area collision, both had their law licenses suspended in December and were charged with conspiracy to commit mail and internet fraud, obstruction of justice and witness tampering.
The indictment against the attorney also named a number of other defendants who allegedly participated in or helped set up the crashes: Leon “Chunky” Parker, Diaminke Stalbert, Carl Morgan, Timara Lawrence and Ryan “Red” Harris.
Prosecutors said Harris, one of the alleged “hitmen,” shot his former partner in crime Cornelius Garrison to keep him quiet about the scheme, according to Nola.com. Garrison was cooperating with federal authorities in their investigation before he was killed in September 2020, the paper reported.
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Motta was a stunt performer in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Jurassic World and a number of other films before moving into law, according to her IMDb profile. (MottalawLLC/Instagram)
Jovanna Gardner, who has been charged in connection with Garrison’s death and said she was romantically involved with Harris, told the court that her then-partner admitted to killing Garrison and threatened to kill her if she told anyone, he reported sheet.
Garrison’s killing was a major stumbling block in a federal investigation dubbed “Operation Sideswipe,” which has indicted 50 people, according to Nola.com. Only one attorney, Danny Keating Jr., was convicted and is still awaiting sentencing.
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Cars are shown trying to enter New Orleans on Interstate 10. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Only Parker and Alfortish (57) are currently behind bars. Prosecutors said Alfortish was “involved in a months-long scheme to silence Garrison” before he was killed through offers to pay him off or transfer him to the Bahamas, the paper said.
Motta was released on $25,000 bail Monday, while Giles was released on $100,000 bail, according to court records. Motta was not immediately available for comment.
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The former stuntwoman worked on the films Jurassic World, Logan, Furious 7, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and other films, according to her IMDb profile.
Motta’s television commercials characterized her as “a stuntwoman turned badass lawyer” and featured her involvement in numerous stunts.
