A veteran Los Angeles cop got busted Tuesday after he was spotted skydiving while on full disability.
The Los Angeles Police Department’s Special Operations Division on Wednesday collared Christopher Carnahan, with officers arresting the 18-year LAPD cop who lives in Norwalk on two felony counts of insurance fraud.
Investigators say Carnahan, 43, exaggerated his claims of an on-duty injury to collected disability benefits while meanwhile engaging in recreational skydiving and other sports.
“This case is about honesty and accountability,” said Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman.
“Claiming to be temporarily totally disabled and collecting disability benefits intended for injured workers while engaging in physically demanding activities like skydiving is a crime,” Hochman added. “This is an officer who knows the law and understands the standards he is sworn to uphold.”
The alleged fraudster cop’s injury claims were submitted in 2023 and 2025, investigators say.
Carnahan purportedly injured his left elbow while on duty in May, 2023 and was subsequently placed on totally disabled status, collecting a paycheck while not clocking in.
Prosecutors allege that while on disability, Carnahan completed many skydives at Skydive Elsinore in Lake Elsinore, California and worked out at a fitness center, contrary to his claims of being temporarily totally disabled.
Photos dated May 2024 circulated by Hochman’s office show the accused phony injury cop leaping from a plane high above a forest, and pumping iron in a gym with his muscles bulging.
Carnahan was taken into custody and held on $100,000 bail. He faces up to five years in prison if found guilty.
An attorney for Carnahan couldn’t immediately be reached.