RALEIGH, N.C. —

A Raleigh man has been arrested and charged with selling vehicles with altered odometers out of his home.

Officials with the NC Division of Motor Vehicles License and Theft Bureau say Francis Marimo had been under investigation for months after a customer reportedly purchased a 2005 Honda Odyssey through an ad on Craigslist. The victim later discovered that the vehicle mileage had been changed.

During the investigation, agents learned Marimo would travel to different states to purchase the vehicles, then return to Raleigh where he would allegedly change the odometer cluster and then place the vehicle on Craigslist for sale.

On Tuesday inspectors seized four Honda odometer clusters, $17,200 in cash, keys to different vehicles, motor vehicle titles, and paper work pertaining to the sale of vehicles.

Marimo was charged with two counts of odometer fraud, two counts of obtaining property by false pretenses, and one count of acting as a motor vehicle dealer without a license. He was placed in jail under a $3,000 secured bond.

Bureau officials say they continue to look into how long Marimo had been making such sales and says more charges are possible. Anyone who thinks they may have been a victim of the fraud is asked to call the Bureau at (919)816-9194, ext. 2.

Posted by Gary Mitchell