Federal Probe into Staged Louisiana Interstate Wrecks Nets More Defendants

Federal prosecutors have secured charges against five more people in an alleged years-long scheme to crash cars into big rigs and buses on New Orleans freeways for millions in insurance money.

The new indictment is the first in 18 months in the federal case. It brings to 52 the total number of people ensnared in the government’s sweeping probe. Dozens have pleaded guilty in a scheme that prosecutors claim was orchestrated by a few death-defying "slammers" who allegedly worked with local lawyers to pack vehicles and maximize payouts.

In several cases, prosecutors allege that participants underwent unnecessary surgeries to complete the ruse.