Category Archives: Convictions

The Missouri Highway Patrol Just Cracked A Big Odometer Fraud Case — Here’s How To Check Your Car

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Odometer rollback schemes cost Americans $1 billion a year and is on the rise in Missouri. Like most big criminal cases, the odometer fraud ring that Missouri Highway Patrol Cpl. Nate Bradley recently busted started with one victim. “A gentleman came to my shop here in Lee’s Summit and he said, ‘Hey, I bought this car, and I think I got swindled,’” Bradley recalls. “So I started looking into it and sure enough, he got swindled.” Over a five-year investigation, Bradley eventually uncovered 48 victims of a rollback scheme around Kansas City, according to a grand jury indictment in a case that was recently unsealed. Charged are 48-year-old Wilfred Albanese and his girlfriend, 47-year-old Susan Cunningham. The couple “purchased high-mileage used vehicles and then used a variety of means to alter or reduce the mileage shown on the odometer,” according to the indictment. They would also disable the check engine light, conceal rust and other damage with paint and alter maintenance records, all to make the car look better to their victims. Wilfred Albanese is charged with odometer fraud in a 20 count federal indictment. Missouri officials say odometer fraud jumped almost five percent from 2017 to 2018. Bradley says Albanese went to great lengths to sell the scheme. He had “KC” tattooed on an earlobe, even though he is not from Kansas City. “And then on the side of his neck, he had the Marine Corps emblem, the globe and anchor,” says Bradley, even though Albanese never served in any branch of the military. “So it made him look a little bit more honorable than he actually was.” While charged in the 20-count indictment, neither Albanese nor Cunningham is in custody. Odometer fraud is spiking The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates 450,000 cars are sold each year … Continue Reading

Dealership Owner Gets Probation for Tampering With Odometers

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SIOUX CITY, IOWA (AP) — A Nebraska man has been given three years of probation for tampering with odometers sold at his vehicle dealership in northwest Iowa. The Sioux City Journal reports that 38-year-old Francisco Hurtado also was sentenced Wednesday to a suspended prison sentence of five years, fined $1,500 and ordered to pay more than $19,000 to seven victims. He’d pleaded guilty to two counts of fraudulent practice. Authorities say Hurtado lives in South Sioux City, Nebraska, and owns Siouxland Auto Sales in Sioux City. Iowa investigators say they found odometers in high-mileage vehicles had been rolled down to increase the vehicles’ value. Court records say Hurtado acknowledged replacing odometer clusters on some vehicles. The records say, however, that Hurtado had not followed Iowa law in resetting the replaced odometers to zero or to the original mileage, nor placing notices on the dashboards noting that the odometer clusters had been replaced. Original Article: https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/nebraska/articles/2019-04-11/dealership-owner-gets-probation-for-tampering-with-odometers

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Former Kennett, MO man sentenced on mail fraud charges

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A former Kennett, Missouri man has been sentenced on felony mail fraud.  CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KFVS) – A former Kennett, Missouri man has been sentenced on felony mail fraud. According to the Eastern District U.S. Attorney’s Office, Nicholas H. Brock, 36, now of Brookland, Arkansas, was sentenced to four months home confinement and five years of probation for mail fraud. Brock was also order to pay $78,180.98 in restitution. In his guilty plea in federal court on Nov. 5, 2018, Brock admitted to defrauding a lienholder for an over-the-road tractor trailer truck claim to the Missouri Department of Revenue that he towed a truck for a breakdown. He claimed the truck had been abandoned and tried to get a title for the vehicle through the Department of Revenue. Brock admitted in court that the fraud began on or about Feb. 10, 2017 and continued through or about June 13, 2017 in Dunklin County, Mo. The case was investigated by the Missouri Department of Revenue and the Missouri State Highway Patrol and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Paul W. Hahn. Original Article: https://www.kfvs12.com/2019/03/18/former-kennett-mo-man-sentenced-mail-fraud-charges/

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Father and Son Sentenced in Large Scale Vehicle Odometer Roll Back Scheme

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Jackson, Miss. – Mark Longgrear, 54, of Jackson, was sentenced today to 57 months in prison, and his son, Zachary Longgrear, 29, of Madison, was sentenced to 28 months in prison by United States District Judge Carlton W. Reeves for conspiring to reset and alter the odometers of motor vehicles, to giving or causing to be given false statements relating to odometers, and securities fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst and Special Agent-in-Charge Midwest Region, Kevin L. Porter with the U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.  The Longgrears were also ordered to pay restitution, jointly and severally, in the amount of $1.5 million. From 2014 through at least February 2018, Mark Longgrear, along with his son, Zachary Longgrear, both individually and under their company Southern Auto Buyers LLC, bought a large number of late model, high mileage vehicles from numerous sources, and thereafter illegally altered the odometers of these vehicles to show lower mileage. The Defendants forged and fraudulently created paperwork to secure new titles showing false lower mileage on these vehicles, and then sold the vehicles directly to individuals and automobile dealerships at much higher prices.  Some of these rolled-back vehicles were subsequently sold by the dealerships to consumers in the Mississippi area and elsewhere.  Over 200 vehicles have been confirmed with rolled-back odometers. The case is the result of an investigation by the United States Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Office of Odometer Fraud Investigation, with assistance from the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the U.S. Marshals Service.  It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Keesha Middleton. Odometer fraud is the disconnection, resetting, or alteration of a vehicle’s odometer with the intent to change the number of miles indicated. NHTSA estimates that more than 450,000 vehicles are sold each year with … Continue Reading

Illinois Motor Vehicle Employee Known as “The Plate Plan” Sentenced for Vehicle Registration Fraud Scheme

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Department of Justice St. Louis, MO – Melvin Harmon was sentenced to 33 months incarceration and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $119,359.92 for conspiracy to defraud the United States and mail fraud by assisting Missouri residents in registering their cars in Illinois. According to evidence at trial, between January 1, 2015 and December 20, 2016, Melvin Harmon was employed at a Granite City, Illinois office registering vehicles for the State of Illinois Secretary of State. He used his employment to assist Missouri residents in obtaining fraudulent motor vehicle registrations for others in exchange for a fee. Some of the Missouri residents learned of his services when they saw flyers advertising Harmon as “The Plate Man.” In March 2016, investigators with the Illinois Secretary of State discovered that Harmon had been charging Missouri residents $350.00 to $700.00 in order to fraudulently register their cars in Illinois. Doing so enabled the Missouri residents to evade payment of Missouri taxes. In addition, Harmon altered the price of the vehicles in order to reduce any payments that would be paid to the State of Illinois as a result of the fraudulent registration. The alteration increased the amount he profited through the scheme. The State of Missouri lost in excess of $119,359.92 in sales tax revenue due to the fraudulent conduct. The precise loss of personal property tax income to the State of Missouri and local municipalities has not been determined. Harmon, 40, Belleville, IL, was found guilty on May 18, 2108 after a federal jury returned five guilty verdicts. He appeared before U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey. The case was investigated by the Missouri Department of Revenue-Compliance and Investigation Bureau and the State of Illinois Secretary of State Police. This case was handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Tracy Berry … Continue Reading

Kennett man pleads guilty to fraud charge

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CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. — The United States Attorney’s Office announced that Nicholas H. Brock, 36, of Kennett, Missouri, pled guilty to one felony count of mail fraud. He appeared before United States District Judge John A. Ross. Brock admitted that beginning on or about Feb. 10, 2017, and continuing through about June 13, 2017, in Dunklin County, Missouri, he defrauded a lienholder for an over-the-road tractor-trailer truck financed by North Mill Equipment Finance, LLC, for a 2008 Peterbilt over-the-road truck in which the lender retained a security interest. Brock prepared and sent, via the mail, a Form 4577, Missouri Department of Revenue, Vehicle Owner and Lienholder notification to the lender, falsely claiming that a 2008 Peterbilt over-the-road tractor-trailer truck had been towed by his towing company, Elite Tow & Recovery, from Pendleton, Oregon, on February 10, 2017, for a “breakdown.” The towing charge was $16,096 plus storage costs of $100 a day. Brock mailed the fraudulent Form 4577 for the purpose of obtaining a clean title for that vehicle from the Missouri Department of Revenue as an abandoned vehicle, based on the lienholder’s failure to pay the tow bill after receiving notice of the bill. Brock also prepared a Form 4576, Missouri Department of Revenue Abandoned Property Affidavit, in which Brock falsely represented to the Missouri Department of Revenue that the 2008 Peterbilt truck had been abandoned. Brock mailed that form to the Missouri Department of Revenue to obtain a Certificate of Title for the over-the-road truck, based on a bogus and false tow bill. On or about May 11, 2017, Brock caused the mailing of an Application for Missouri Title and License for the 2008 Peterbilt over-the-road truck to the Missouri Department of Revenue to obtain a Missouri Certificate of Title for the 2008 Peterbilt truck. Brock then obtained … Continue Reading

Fennville couple accused of vehicle fraud

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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A Montcalm County man is suing a Fennville couple for allegedly selling him a pickup truck that had nearly 150,000 more miles on it than its odometer showed. Anthony Woldring Roberts and his wife, Ashley Roberts, are accused of violating the Federal Odometer Act, fraud and reselling vehicles without a dealer license through their business, A&A Quality Services. In the federal lawsuit filed in Grand Rapids Tuesday, lawyers for Jarred Stratton say the couple bought a pickup truck from Chicago businessman Ramiro Padilla, who is accused of purchasing high mileage vehicles and often rolling back the odometers or swapping them out for ones displaying a lower mileage. The lawsuit accuses Padilla of buying the pickup truck from a Colorado auction, then getting a new title in Illinois, a state that does not disclose mileage in its titles. The lawsuit claims Padilla posted an internet ad to sell the pickup truck. Stratton’s lawyers say in the ad, Padilla stated the vehicle had around 299,000 miles but he had swapped out the odometer for one that showed 151,000 miles. The ad stated he could correct the odometer or leave it as is, according to the lawsuit. Stratton’s lawyers said Roberts purchased the pickup truck from Padilla but did not ask him to adjust it to the accurate mileage. He then got a Michigan vehicle title that did not disclose the vehicle’s mileage because it wasn’t listed on the “washed” Illinois title. The lawsuit claims Roberts advertised the pickup truck with 154,000 miles and never told Stratton otherwise when he purchased the vehicle for $19,500. Stratton said shortly after he bought the vehicle in November 2017, it started having mechanical issues that have continued to this day. He said he didn’t find out that the mileage was much … Continue Reading

Iowa DOT warning of cars sold with odometers rolled back

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SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KCRG-TV9) — A Sioux City car dealer was rolling back odometers on vehicles to show fewer miles and increase the vehicle’s value, the Iowa Department of Transportation says. The DOT says the fraud happened at Siouxland Sales in Sioux City from 2016 to 2018. The DOT says it got a tip in December of last year. An investigation found three victims and 14 vehicles that were tampered with. Authorities served a search warrant on Jan. 17. Siouxland Sales owner Francisco Hurtado was booked in the Woodbury County Jail April 26 on six counts of second-degree fraudulent practice. Anyone affected should call the Bureau of Investigation and Identity Protection at 515-237-3050 or email invbureau@iowadot.us with vehicle and contact information. Original Article: http://kcci.com/article/iowa-dot-warning-of-cars-sold-with-odometers-rolled-back/20172284?src=app

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Man pleads guilty to running license plate fraud ring

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HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) – A New York man has admitted to operating a crime ring that rented out more than a thousand fake Pennsylvania license plates. Rafael Levi, 51, of Brooklyn, pleaded guilty Friday in Dauphin County Court to 36 third-degree felonies, Attorney General Josh Shapiro’s office said. Levi was charged in April 2017 with more than 500 counts. Prosecutors said the ring charged $400 a month for fake plates that people used in order to avoid paying more than $1 million in parking fines and highway tolls in New York, Pennsylvania, and neighboring states. The ring dubbed “Operation Car Wash” also provided fake insurance cards, rolled back odometer readings on cars it bought and sold, and issued phony letters to PennDOT to get clean vehicle titles. Levi also pleaded guilty on behalf of nine businesses. Each will be ordered to pay a fine of $10,000 and a civil penalty of $15,000. Eight members of the ring also pleaded guilty Friday to crimes including theft and insurance fraud. Shapiro said his office is seeking restitution of more than $1.5 million from the defendants. As part of his plea, Levi agreed to forfeit numerous luxury vehicles including a 2015 Rolls Royce Wraith, a 2015 Ferrari, and a 2007 Ferrari F430. Original Article: http://abc27.com/2018/03/12/man-pleads-guilty-to-running-license-plate-fraud-ring/

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Mother-daughter employees of Central Texas tax office arrested

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CAMERON, Texas (KWTX) A mother and daughter who worked in the Milam County Tax Office were free on bond Tuesday after they were arrested on warrants stemming from an investigation of forged vehicle registrations. Lydia Cervantes, 55, and her daughter Laura Renee Cervantes, 26, were arrested at the tax office Monday by agents from the Texas Department of Public Safety, Milam County Sheriff David E. Green said. Green said both were booked into the county jail and were released after posting bond. Both were charged with forgery of vehicle registration and with filing false identities, jail records showed. “I don’t know much about the details of the case because the arrest was made by state police from the DPS computer crimes division,” Green said. In March 2016 Milam County Assistant Community Supervision Officer, Ronald G. Floyd, 50 of Cameron, pleaded guilty to theft by a public servant over $2,500, but less than $30,000, a third-degree felony. He was sentenced to three years deferred adjudication probation, ordered to pay a $2,500 fine, court costs and at least $8,180 in restitution, prosecutors said. Floyd was accused of encouraging probationers to bring their probation fees to his office in cash and then skimmed money off those fees and pocketed it. On Dec. 9, 2015, Milam County Tax Assessor-Collector Kolette Barrett Morgan was sentenced to probation after pleading no contest to a state jail felony charge of attempted theft by a public servant of more than $1,500, but less than $20,000. State District Judge John W. Youngblood placed Morgan on three years deferred adjudication probation and she was also ordered to pay a $2,500 fine, court costs and restitution in an amount to be determined. A criminal accused Morgan of unlawfully appropriating cash in an amount between $1,500 and $20,000 “pursuant to one scheme or … Continue Reading