Some people might take ‘making a quick buck’ to extremes. This is one such case; the two college students in this article took their desire to make some quick money to such extremes that most people cannot believe it.
A college student in Taiwan is currently facing some very serious charges. The charges are for faking an insurance claim exceeding $1.3 million. What did they do to make a claim? Well, sit down before you read it because it is gruesome.
Chang, a male college student, was charged with committing insurance fraud by making a false claim that his legs had to be amputated due to a frostbite incident while riding his bike in the cold weather of Taiwan. The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) revealed what really happened.
Chang allegedly submerged his feet in a bucket of dry ice for 10 hours. The stunt resulted in severe frostbite, which led to his legs having to be amputated below his knees.
After he had his legs amputated, he applied for compensation from eight insurance policies. The total he was claiming was NT$41.26 million (US$1.3 million); he cited injuries he had gotten after he had ridden his scooter at night around the country.
However, his claims were immediately flagged before they were eventually denied. The insurance policies were denied on account of the policies being purchased very recently before the claims were filed, which alerted the insurnace companies that something might be amiss.
Chang alleged that a fellow student, Liao, told him that gang members were after him, which led him to fabricate the insurance claim.
The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office however did not believe Chang and Liao’s assertions and charged both of them with fraud and embezzlement.
Chang and Liao were classmates in high school according to local news in Taiwan. After they went to university, they lost contact but reconnected a little while after.
Chang apparently works in an administrative role at a school where Liao was studying.
According to official documents, on January 26, 2023 Chang and Liao rode their scooters to buy dry ice in New Taipei City’s Sanchong District.
The boys then went to Taipei City’s Zhongshan District to Laio’s home, where they used cable ties to restrain Chang to a chair. Then Chang submerged his feet in a plastic bucket filled with dry ice for 10 hours which resulted in severe frostbite and necrosis below his knees. He had his legs submerged in the bucket from 2 a.m. to 12:20 p.m. All the while, Liao took pictures and videos of the entire incident.
On January 28, Chang was sent to Mackay Memorial Hospital in Taiwan’s capital city. After a week of treatment, both his legs were amputated below his knees.
Chang was able to get over NT$230,000 ($7,222.30) through insurance claims; however, some other insurance policies he had purchased shortly before his stunt were not as convinced.
The insurance companies reported the case to authorities after flagging it. People who read the story could not believe that someone would voluntarily do that to themselves. “I handle dry ice on occasion. I can’t imagine the pain that caused.” While another added, ‘i’d rather have my legs and be broke.”