Four Charged in Alleged Capping Scheme Targeting Spanish-Speaking Workers

Friday, April 25, 2025 | 0

Four people, including two applicants’ attorneys, are facing fraud charges for allegedly participating in a capping scheme that used a Mexican call center to target Spanish-speaking workers, according to the California Department of Insurance.

Attorneys Antony Gluck, 55, and Michael De La Garza, 41, were arrested Wednesday by Insurance Department detectives. Both were released on $500,000 bail.

Arley Franco, 42, was arrested earlier in April while attempting to enter the country, according to the department.

The department said that from January 2022 to September 2023, Franco sold 320 clients to De La Garza and his business partner, Juan Leal, 57, for $168,750.

From September 2021 to October 2024, Franco sold 798 clients to Gluck for $388,500, according to the Insurance Department.

The department said it launched an investigation after receiving reports that Spanish-speaking workers were being contacted by a call center operating in Mexico.

“The callers allegedly promised individuals they could receive money by filing a workers’ compensation claim,” the department said in a statement. “In many cases, workers were misled and unknowingly completed official claims paperwork, which was then unlawfully sold to attorneys in Southern California.”