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Three San Jose Residents Charged With Conspiracy To Commit Wire Fraud In Automobile Resale Scheme

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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

Two Texas Men Plead Guilty in Odometer Fraud Scheme

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      Home » Office of Public Affairs » News JUSTICE NEWS Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, April 28, 2021 Two Texas Men Plead Guilty in Odometer Fraud Scheme Two Texas men pleaded guilty today, to for their roles in an odometer tampering scheme. According to court documents, Nepthali Luna, 61, of San Antonio, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to make false odometer statements and commit securities fraud, while his son, Devon Luna, 36, also of San Antonio, pleaded guilty to two counts of making false odometer statements and two counts of securities fraud. As part of their plea agreements, the defendants admitted that between 2016 and 2018, they engaged in a scheme to sell high-mileage, used vehicles with false, low mileage readings entered on the vehicles’ odometers, titles and odometer disclosure statements. According to court filings, Devon Luna purchased high-mileage vehicles through his company, Pioneer Auto Finance. The defendants then caused the vehicles’ odometers and titles to reflect false, low mileages, and they sold the vehicles for inflated prices to unwitting consumers. “The Department of Justice remains steadfast in its commitment to protect consumers against deceptive practices, including odometer fraud schemes,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Consumers are entitled to truthful information about the vehicles they purchase, including the amount of miles that a used vehicle has been driven.” In pleading guilty, the Lunas admitted that they caused at least 225 vehicles to be sold with “rolled back” odometers. The defendants admitted that the scheme resulted in consumer losses of more than $550,000. Both defendants are scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 3, 2021. Nepthali Luna faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison on the conspiracy charge. Devon Luna faces … Continue Reading

Utah County man facing numerous odometer fraud cases is charged again

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By Pat Reavy@DNewsCrimeTeam Aug 6, 2020, 10:09am MDT SALT LAKE CITY — A man who has several pending cases on charges of changing the odometers of vehicles and selling them has been charged yet again. Steve Stone, 25, of Lehi, was charged Thursday in 3rd District Court with fraudulently changing an odometer, a third-degree felony. On July 11, 2019, a man met with Stone to buy a vehicle he found online, according to charging documents. After purchasing the vehicle, the victim “checked the Carfax history and discovered a mileage discrepancy of over 90,000 miles,” the charges state. The victim then found an article that originally appeared in the Deseret News that talked about Stone being accused of doing the same thing, and recognized Stone as the person who sold him the vehicle, according to charging documents. For Stone, it’s the latest in a series of investigations involving odometer tampering. He and two family members were charged in April 2019 with five counts of communications fraud and five counts of odometer violation. A pretrial conference for that case was scheduled for Aug. 24. Stone was charged with similar crimes in April, July and October of 2018, and July 2017. A preliminary hearing regarding all of his pending cases was scheduled for Aug. 24. Original Story here

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‘High-Tech’ Thieves Hacked Into Newer-Model Nissans and Drove Away

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Stolen cars were sold to unsuspecting buyers, police say By Scott Gordon • Published June 11, 2020 • Updated on June 11, 2020 at 10:55 pm   Auto theft investigators say they’ve busted a “high-tech” ring of North Texas car thieves who hacked into newer-model Nissans, made their own electronic keys, and sold the cars to unsuspecting buyers. “It can happen so fast,” said Commander Brian Sudan of the Tarrant Regional Auto Crimes Task Force. “We’ve seen thieves who can hack these cars in less than three minutes.” The ring stole more than $1.2 million worth of cars from the streets of North Texas, some of them virtually brand new, police said. Sudan didn’t want to give too many details on how the thieves were able to drive off in new cars but said they worked with used car dealers to get clean titles. They do it by replacing the vehicle identification numbers so nobody knows it’s stolen, he said. The number on a stolen 2020 Altima, for example, really belonged to another Altima which was found on a salvage lot to be sold for scrap. Police have identified up to 62 stolen vehicles but suspect there are more. Only a small number have been recovered, Sudan said. Gustavo Torres, 33, the alleged ringleader of the operation, was arrested. Investigators searched three used car dealers in Dallas who took the stolen cars and sold them to unsuspecting buyers. “They have no clue they are buying a stolen car,” Sudan said. So two people claim to own the same car. “We run into some very sticky situations,” he said. “Somebody bought this car, paid a lot of money for it. And then there’s a person who lost this car and lost a lot of money.” Sudan said the courts will have … Continue Reading

Police arrest fraud suspect hiding in his basement

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Monroe police officers arrested Jovani Capozziello, 33, with assistance from Bridgeport officers, at his home Tuesday, where he was hiding in the basement, according to police. Jovani Capozziello Capozziello was charged with illegal tampering with an odometer, third-degree larceny, third-degree telephone fraud, criminal impersonation, and three counts of second-degree forgery. He was released on $25,000 bond for a July 24 court date, then released to the Bridgeport Police Department on its active arrest warrants for other incidents. On Feb. 26, a Monroe man filed a fraud complaint, telling police he inquired about a vehicle posted for sale on Craigslist on Feb. 25 and spoke to the seller, who went by the name of Carlos. After agreeing to terms, police said the victim met the seller at the Henny Penny gas station at 241 Roosevelt Drive in Monroe on Feb. 25, did a test drive and was satisfied with the vehicle, according to the report. Police said he paid the seller $3,000 in cash for the Subaru and received a copy of the Connecticut Certificate of Title and Assignment of Ownership (Bill of Sale) for the vehicle. But when the victim attempted to register and insure the vehicle, he discovered the title was fraudulent, the odometer had been altered and the Subaru was actually one year older than the seller originally told to him. After communicating with “Carlos” about these discrepancies, he received an altered New York Certificate of Title that was mailed without a return address, police said. During the investigation, Monroe police detectives used phone records to develop Jovani Capozziello as a suspect. Based upon this information and the victim’s statements, an arrest warrant was granted by the Superior Court. View original story:

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U.S. Attorneys » Southern District of Mississippi » News Share Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Southern District of Mississippi FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, January 22, 2020 Two Mississippi Men Sentenced for Roles in Automotive Fraud Scheme Two Long Beach, Mississippi men were sentenced today for their roles in a long-running odometer tampering scheme, the Department of Justice announced. U.S. District Judge Louis Guirola Jr. sentenced Oscar M. Baine, 42, to 36 months’ incarceration and ordered him to pay $619,200 in restitution. Jeffrey Lyn Savarese II, 36, was sentenced to 15 months’ incarceration and ordered to pay $320,000 in restitution. Both men pleaded guilty in July to conspiracy to alter odometers. Baine also pleaded guilty to odometer tampering. As part of his guilty plea, Baine admitted that he purchased high-mileage vehicles from wholesale automobile auctions, dealerships, and individuals, and arranged to alter the vehicles’ odometers to reflect false, lower-mileage readings. Baine admitted that he paid Savarese and others to change or alter odometers at his used car lot in Gulfport. Baine then sold the rolled-back vehicles to unsuspecting consumers for inflated prices. He also admitted that he and a co-conspirator caused at least 387 vehicles to be rolled back between 2011 and 2014, which resulted in consumer losses of more than $600,000. Savarese admitted that he began altering odometers for Mississippi and Louisiana used-car dealers in 2011 and reset the odometers on at least 200 used vehicles for Baine. “The Department of Justice has long been committed to prosecuting automobile dealers, wholesalers, and mechanics who defraud consumers by selling vehicles with unlawfully altered odometers,” said Assistant Attorney General Jody Hunt of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division. “Vehicle mileage is critical to consumers who rely on that information to evaluate the value and safety of a used vehicle.” “These criminals … Continue Reading

Huntsville Man Sentenced to 2 ½ Years in Prison for Tampering with Vehicle Odometers

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Huntsville – A federal judge today, sentenced a Huntsville man for tampering with vehicle odometers and bank fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town and U.S. Secret Service Acting Special Agent in Charge Robert Holloway. A federal jury convicted Randy Eugene Greene, 62, in April of 11 counts of tampering with vehicle odometers and 3 counts of bank fraud.  U.S. District Judge Abdul K. Kallon sentenced Greene to 30 months in prison, followed by three years supervised release and ordered him to pay more than $109,000 in restitution to the victims.  The judge also entered a forfeiture judgment in the amount of $28,000. “Greene violated the trust and confidence placed in him by the consumers and financial institutions,” Town said.  “The theft and misuse of funds will not be tolerated by those who operate these type of schemes.  They will be charged with federal crimes and will to go federal prison.” “It is very important that consumers and financial institutions know that the vehicle being purchased from any auto dealership represents the true odometer reading,” Holloway said.  “This type of fraud scheme can cause unwitting consumers significant financial hardship in repair bills from a vehicle they believed was in much better condition.” Randy Eugene Greene, d/b/a RJ’s Auto Sales on South Memorial Parkway in Huntsville, was convicted by the jury of 11 counts of tampering with vehicle odometers and 3 counts of bank fraud.  In the 11 counts related to odometer tampering, the offenses occurred between approximately October 1, 2014, and November 2, 2016.  The largest discrepancy in the changed odometer reading was approximately 218,678 miles.  The average discrepancy in the mileage on the odometers for the various vehicles was 122,046 miles.  In the three counts related to Bank Fraud, Greene engaged in a scheme to defraud Redstone Federal Credit Union.  The … Continue Reading

Huntsville car salesman sentenced for odometer tampering, bank fraud

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HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) – On Thursday, a federal judge sentenced a Huntsville man for tampering with vehicle odometers and bank fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town and U.S. Secret Service Acting Special Agent in Charge Robert Holloway. [ Huntsville car salesman convicted of tampering with odometers, bank fraud ] A federal jury convicted Randy Eugene Greene, 62, in April, of 11 counts of tampering with vehicle odometers and three counts of bank fraud. U.S. District Judge Abdul K. Kallon sentenced Greene to 30 months in prison followed by three years supervised release. Greene is also ordered to pay more than $109,000 in restitution to the victims. The judge also entered a forfeiture judgment in the amount of $28,000. “Greene violated the trust and confidence placed in him by the consumers and financial institutions,” Town said. “The theft and misuse of funds will not be tolerated by those who operate these type of schemes. They will be charged with federal crimes and will to go federal prison.” Prosecutors say Greene was rolling back odometers at RJ’s Auto Sales on South Memorial Parkway. The 11 counts related to these convictions occurred between approximately Oct. 1, 2014, and Nov. 2, 2016. Prosecutors say the largest discrepancy in the changed odometer reading was approximately 218,678 miles, and the average discrepancy in the mileage on the odometers for the various vehicles was 122,046 miles. [ Federal investigators say Huntsville used car dealer rolled back odometers ] In the three counts related to bank fraud, Greene was convicted of engaging in a scheme to defraud Redstone Federal Credit Union. The fraud occurred when the credit union financed three of the vehicles on which the odometers had been changed. Greene was served with a notice of forfeiture related to the bank fraud counts, which includes but is not limited to … Continue Reading

Clocking is still affecting 6.49% of UK vehicles today

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A Rapid Car Check survey has found that 6.49% of vehicles have mileage issues. In a pool of 1 million, 64,986 were found to have issues, despite members of the European Parliament voting in favour of new legislation to combat mileage clocking in cars in 2018. The most common clocked vehicles were the Renault Grand Scenic and Renault Scenic, with a fail percentage of 32.66% and 32.14% respectively. The most common year of vehicle registration was 1998 with a 16.47% fail rate. Vehicle registered in the 1990’s made up six of the top 10, with no vehicles registered after 2003 present. Overall, rapid check estimates that 2,479,180 vehicles in the UK have mileage issues. Before passing legislation in 2018, German MEP Ismail Ertug said around 50% of used cars sold inside the EU, and between 30% and 50% of cars sold across borders within the EU, had been clocked. MEPs called new legislation that included national mileage registers to be made accessible across borders. Car buyers should be able to verify mileage readings regardless of the country it was previously registered. They also called for carmakers to set clear criteria for checking that odometers are tamper proof. Barry Shorto, head of industry relations at cap hpi, said at the time: “In Belgium and the Netherlands where readings are collected more frequently than elsewhere, odometer fraud has been almost eradicated. “We fully support calls for mileage alternation or clocking to be made a criminal offence. Even though clocking has a negative impact on road safety, only six EU countries recognise odometer manipulation as a criminal offence.” Original Article: https://www.motortrader.com/motor-trader-news/automotive-news/clocking-still-affecting-6-49-uk-vehicles-today-07-08-2019

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Car dealers linked to Columbia Count licenses revoked for odometer fraud

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ARLINGTON, Wis. – The Wisconsin Department of Transportation Division of Motor Vehicles has revoked the licenses for two car dealers with ties to Columbia County. An investigation by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s Dealer and Agent Section found that Best Motors and Manhattan Motors sold vehicles with mileage discrepancies, which is in violation of state law. The dealerships have licenses operated out of Arlington, Wisconsin. The licenses are linked to a business at 101 Skyline Drive in Arlington. Under Wisconsin state law, each licensee must have an office location and Best Motors and Manhattan Motors are registered to this location. It is possible that these licenses belong to dealerships operated in another state. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s Dealer and Agent Section licenses, regulates and resolves disputes about dealerships sales and warranty repairs, as well as educates the motor vehicle industry and public. The group also investigates complaints about odometer tampering involving dealerships and private sellers. Original Article: https://www.channel3000.com/news/two-columbia-county-car-dealerships-have-licenses-revoked-for-odometer-fraud/1105810604

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