Fraud case took a dark turn when federal witness turned up murdered

It all started in March of 2015. A group of people in the New Orleans area got together to carry out what Rafael Goyeneche, president of the Metropolitan Crime Commission, called “one of the most significant,” cases of its kind.

Now, one of those people is dead, and more than 50 people have been indicted for their roles in the scheme.

Goyeneche joined WWL’s Newell Normand this week to discuss the case.

“I can’t think of a more far reaching and more impactful fraud case than this,” he said, adding that, “people that… are paying the expense of this is every automobile owner in the state of Louisiana that insures their vehicle.”

Just this week, the indictment of two people involved in the scheme – 39-year-old Jovanna R. Gardner and 35-year-old Ryan J. Harris – were charged with conspiracy to commit witness tampering through murder and witness tampering through murder, conspiracy to retaliate against a witness through murder and retaliation against a witness through murder, according to the United States Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of Louisiana .

Gardner and Harris face these charges for the alleged murder of federal witness Cornelius Garrison.

Per the court records, Harris, Gardner and Garrison were all part of the scheme. They would allegedly intentionally stage automobile collisions with other vehicles in the New Orleans metropolitan area, sometimes including 18-wheeler tractor-trailers. Following the staged collisions, participants allegedly lied as part of fraudulent insurance claims and fraudulent insurance lawsuits.

Garrison worked with Harris as a slammer, a driver who would intentionally drive into tractor-trailers, and as a spotter, a getaway driver or fraudulent eyewitness, according to the district attorney’s office. He also allegedly recruited others to participate in the scheme and tried to get passengers in the collisions to use the services of attorneys who were also part of the scheme.

In October 2019, Garrison began covertly cooperating with the federal government. Nearly a year later, in September 2020, he was charged in an indictment.

“He went home and four days later, someone rang his doorbell and he opened the door, and he was murdered in the hallway of his home,” said Goyeneche of Garrison. “So the government began to investigate.”

This week’s indictment identified Harris and Gardner as Garrison’s murderers. It said they were part of a scheme to prevent him from cooperating with the government. Goyeneche said it is the first time the public has been made aware they were involved in Garrison’s death or his cooperation with authorities.

“This witness was critical because… this was an intermediary between the persons that were recruited to get into the accident, get into the cars and stage the accidents and the people above,” Goyeneche explained. Garrison was also the person “that was responsible for identifying some of the professionals and attorneys that were involved in this scheme,” he added.

If convicted Harris and Gardner “face up to twenty (20) years imprisonment, up to three (3) years of supervised release, and up to a $250,000 fine or twice the gross gain to any defendant or twice the gross loss to any victims as to Count One. As to each Counts Two through Five, the defendants face life imprisonment, up to five (5) years of supervised release, and up to a $250,000 fine,” according to the district attorney’s office. “For each of the five counts, Harris and Gardner also face payment of a mandatory $100 special assessment fee.”

They made their initial appearance before United States Magistrate Judge Karen Wells Roby Monday and were remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

“I don’t believe that this is the end of the investigation,” said Goyeneche. “This is just the beginning of a new phase of this investigation. And I expect in the weeks and months ahead, we’re going to see more developments with respect to this massive fraud case.”