Three San Jose Residents Charged With Conspiracy To Commit Wire Fraud In Automobile Resale Scheme
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Northern District of California FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, May 5, 2021 Defendants Allegedly Rolled Back Odometers on Vehicles Before Reselling Them At A Significant Profit on Craigslist SAN FRANCISCO – A criminal complaint was unsealed today in federal court charging Seymur Khalilov, Ramil Heydarov, and Orkhan Aliyev with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, announced Acting United States Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds, Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Tatum King, and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Craig D. Fair. According to the complaint, between 2016 and the present, Khalilov, 32; Heydarov, 31; and Aliyev, 31, all of San Jose, conspired to purchase high-mileage vehicles, roll back the odometers, and falsify documentation to make the vehicles appear newer. The co-conspirators then allegedly sold the vehicles on Craigslist at significant profits. The complaint alleges defendants fraudulently sold at least a dozen vehicles in this way for a total of at least $300,000. In addition, the complaint states that the number of cars and amount of money at issue will likely change as the ongoing investigation into the scope and extent of the scheme continues. The complaint describes the multiple steps taken by the coconspirators to defraud purchasers of the cars. For example, the complaint describes how defendants purchased high-mileage or old-model vehicles and then, with the assistance of other co-conspirators, rolled back the odometers of the vehicles. Further, the defendants altered documentation related to the vehicles, including titles and registrations, to reflect the lower mileage amount and other fraudulent information. The complaint alleges the fraudulent alterations were made with the goal of increasing the prospective sale price of the vehicles. In addition, when selling the vehicles, the defendants portrayed themselves as the prior owners of the vehicles, including by altering California identification cards, … Continue Reading