Former pro MMA fighter from Richland named to WA insurance fraud ‘Most Wanted’ list
A retired professional fighter who lived in Richland is on the list of those most wanted for alleged insurance fraud in Washington state for a second time.
Bryan Caraway, 40, failed to appear for a pre-trial hearing in Benton County Superior Court on Oct. 3, prompting Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler to put him on the top of his "Most Wanted" list.
Caraway, a former mixed martial arts fighter, is charged with forgery, first-degree attempted theft, filing a false insurance claim and making a false statement on a vehicle application certificate of title.
The case stems from 2018 when Caraway allegedly forged the title for a 2015 Polaris RZR that belonged to his former longtime girlfriend, Miesha Tate, from Tacoma. She is an Ultimate Fighting Championship star and winner of the third season of "Celebrity Big Brother."
Caraway and Tate used to train in a Tri-Cities high school wrestling room when in town and were considered "celebrity coaches" for the students.
Caraway allegedly reported the vehicle stolen from his Richland home in December 2018, telling police he had just returned home to Richland and found his all-terrain vehicle missing. He also filed a claim with GEICO insurance agency, on a policy he bought just days before, according to court documents.
Caraway said the vehicle and its contents — including helmets, battery charger and spare tire — were valued at $18,500.
He said that when he and Tate broke up, she gave the ATV to him as a gift, according to court documents.
However, Tate told police that she had not sold or given the ATV to Caraway and that she had repossessed it two days before he got the insurance policy, according to court documents.
She believed he had forged her name to change the name on the title, according to police documents. She had repossessed the ATV two days before Caraway got the insurance policy, according to court documents.
Tate is accused of receiving a new title based on fraudulent documents, with the title canceled after a Washington state Department of Licensing investigation.
A Richland detective was notified by Las Vegas, Nev., police that Caraway was under investigation there for going to Tate's home in late February 2019 and taking the Polaris, which was caught on surveillance video. It was found in the garage of his then girlfriend, according to court documents.
Caraway went back two weeks later and took the vehicle from Tate's house for a second time, according to court documents.
He was briefly on the Washington state Office of the Insurance Commissioner's "Most Wanted" list in February 2021 when he missed a court hearing.
When he contacted the Benton County Prosecutor's Office to arrange a new court date then, his arrest warrant was quashed and he was removed from the "Most Wanted" list of alleged insurance scammers.
This is the second time he has been on the commissioner's "Most Wanted" list.
