Man placed on probation for involvement in odometer tampering scheme
Published 6:00 am Thursday, March 13, 2025
By JUSTIN STORY / The Daily News Donnie Wilson
One of two men who pleaded guilty to crimes related to an odometer tampering scheme at two area used car dealerships was sentenced Tuesday to three years of probation.
Donnie Wilson, 51, was sentenced in U.S. District Court after previously pleading guilty to four counts of odometer tampering, one count of conspiring to tamper with odometers and a count of wire fraud.
According to federal court records, Wilson worked for Randy Huff at South Side Auto Sales in Bowling Green for about four years and was determined to have aided and abetted Huff in a scheme in which vehicles purchased to be sold at the lot had their odometers fraudulently altered to show mileage readings that were lower than the true reading.
Wilson’s role in the scheme involved filling out fraudulent paperwork, including odometer corrections forms and title request paperwork filed with local authorities, and that the forms included forged signatures of victims, court records show. An investigation ultimately found that Huff sold 43 vehicles at South Side and at Huff’s Auto Sales in Beaver Dam from 2018 to 2023 that had fraudulently altered mileage readings.
Under federal sentencing guidelines that factored in the nature of the offense and any prior criminal history, Wilson faced a penalty range of 8-14 months in prison, but was also eligible for probation.
While the criminal case was pending, Wilson was ordered by the court to attend an in-patient drug treatment program, which he credited at his sentencing Tuesday for helping him to recover from addiction and to chart a course for his future.
“My plan is to spend the rest of my life making amends to the people I’ve hurt, directly and indirectly,” Wilson said in court. A sentencing memorandum filed last week by Assistant U.S. Attorney Raymond McGee noted that it intended to seek $39,214 in restitution from Wilson to be paid to the victims and that it intended to seek a higher amount from Huff, who has pleaded guilty to the same charges and will be sentenced May 21.
U.S. District Court Chief Judge Greg Stivers ordered Wilson to pay $10,000 in restitution, saying that the amount previously sought was too high given the scale of Wilson’s involvement in the plot.
“His role seems to be very minor and it’s my impression he was really not fully aware of what was going on,” Stivers said, adding that there was no evidence to show that Wilson received money or otherwise benefited financially from his involvement in the scheme. “Mr. Huff will have his day in court, but it seems like he’s the one who should be the primary person to be saddled with this obligation to repay these folks.”
According to court records, two of the used vehicles identified as having fraudulently altered odometers included: •A 2007 Jeep Cherokee sold at South Side with an odometer reading of 71,576 miles that was altered from 189,520 miles.
•A 2010 Nissan XTerra sold at Huff’s Beaver Dam dealership in 2020 that arrived at the lot with an odometer reading of 211,184 miles but was sold with the odometer reading 71,835 miles.
McGee’s sentencing memorandum said that many purchasers who were defrauded had “extremely poor credit” and that Huff’s car lots offered in-house financing in exchange for upfront cash down payments.
“In many cases, the down payment for a car with a rolled back odometer was higher than the price Huff paid for the car at auction,” McGee said in his sentencing memorandum.
WisDOT takes action against 11 Arlington-based wholesale dealers
Wisconsin Dealers licenses revoked
Release date: January 3, 2025
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) revoked the wholesale dealer license from 11 dealers, all based at 101 Skyline Dr. #1 in Arlington. The licenses from the following two wholesale dealers were revoked for rolling back odometers on vehicles, falsifying title documents and selling directly to consumers:
- Fancy Auto Sales Inc.
- GB Auto Sales Inc.
In addition, Super Cars Auto Sales LLC had its wholesale dealer license revoked for selling vehicles directly to consumers.
In recent years, Wisconsin has seen a dramatic increase in the number of wholesale dealer licenses and consumer complaints resulting in investigations. Wisconsin is one of the few states that offers wholesale dealer licenses to business owners. A Wisconsin wholesale dealer license allows businesses to only sell vehicles between dealer to dealer. A wholesaler may not sell vehicles to the public.
Due to the nature of the violations, the department took immediate action revoking each license effective October 18. The decision to revoke the license was upheld by a hearing on November 15. Dealers are given 30 days to appeal a revocation. Neither wholesale dealer appealed and the decision is final.
The following eight wholesale dealers failed to maintain a dealer bond and had their wholesale dealer license revoked:
- Mercedez Chicago Inc.
- Abdul Aziz Motors LLC
- Three Brothers Auto Sale LLC
- Deepway Auto Sales LLC
- Divinity Motors LLC
- Xclusive Auto Xchange Inc.
- AMG1 Autos LLC
- Veritas Auto LLC
Wisconsin law requires wholesale dealers to carry a security bond to ensure if they commit illegal actions, such as rolling back an odometer or making an illegal sale, a consumer may file a claim against their bond to recoup money lost. Maintaining a bond is a standard business practice and an added security measure that is meant to protect consumers.
The decision to revoke the dealer license was affirmed by hearing examiner decision on November 19, 2024. Following a 30-day appeal period, the revocation became final on December 19, 2024.
WisDOT’s Dealer and Agent Section licenses, regulates and resolves disputes about dealership sales and warranty repairs. It also investigates complaints about odometer tampering and title fraud involving dealerships and private sellers.
For more information, contact:
WisDOT Office of Public Affairs
(608) 266-3581, opa.exec@dot.wi.gov
Florida Man Pleads Guilty to Odometer Tampering Charges
Friday, December 13, 2024
For Immediate Release
Office of Public Affairs
Drew Mitchell Schreiber, of Orlando, Florida, pleaded guilty yesterday in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida to three counts of odometer tampering.
Schreiber, owner of Central Florida Automotive Group (now-named Southeastern Credit Union Solutions), in Winter Garden, Florida, purchased high-mileage used vehicles from wholesale automobile auctions throughout Florida. The vehicles’ odometers were then rolled back as much as 428,000 miles and resold to unsuspecting used-vehicle dealers via auto auctions or by online direct sales. The rolled-back vehicles were then sold to victims throughout the United States enriching Schreiber with fraudulent gains. In all, Schreiber sold rolled-back vehicles. Because many of these vehicles were more than 10 years old, Schreiber obtained so-called “exempt” titles that did not reveal the actual mileage of the vehicles.
“Just because a motor vehicle may be exempt from mileage recording on a title does not give a dealer the right to roll back odometers,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “With vehicles remaining in use for longer periods of time, many Americans rely on older vehicles as their primary mode of transportation. Used car buyers deserve peace of mind knowing that the odometer reading in their vehicle is correct.”
A sentencing hearing will be scheduled at a later date. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Office of Odometer Fraud Investigation investigated this case.
Trial Attorney David Sullivan of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kara Wick for the Middle District of Florida prosecuted the case.
Additional information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts can be found Here.
Updated December 16, 2024
Othello Man Indicted for Rolling Back and Replacing Odometers
Monday, September 9, 2024
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Washington
Spokane, Washington – On September 4, 2024, a federal grand jury for the Eastern District of Washington returned an indictment charging Reynaldo Valdez Garza Jr., age 52, of Othello, Washington, with five counts of Odometer Tampering. Garza made his first appearance in Federal Court on September 9, 2024.
The indictment alleges that beginning in May of 2023, Garza carried out a scheme to acquire used cars with high mileage, tamper with or replace the odometers in the vehicles to make the cars mileage appear much lower, then advertise and sell the vehicles to unsuspecting buyers for an inflated price. According to the indictment, in some cases, Garza caused odometers to be rolled back more than 100,000 miles.
The indictment further alleges that in some instances Gaza would wait for the buyer to sign their section of the Bill of Sale paperwork, then fill in the “seller” section with different information than what was represented to the buyer regarding the identity of the seller and mileage.
“The purchase of a vehicle is often one of the largest financial commitments people make. It is important that buyers have confidence in the information they receive when deciding which vehicle to purchase,” stated U.S. Attorney Vanessa Waldref. “My office is committed to protecting consumers from fraudsters who seek to cheat the system for their own gain.”
This case was investigated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Adams County Sheriff’s Office. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Devin Curda.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Contact
Robert Curry
Public Affairs Specialist
USAWAE.Media@usdoj.gov
Updated September 9, 2024
Harrisburg Man Sentenced To Prison For Odometer Tampering
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that on July 10, 2024, Earnest Fry, 49, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 30 months’ imprisonment by U.S. District Court Judge Christopher C. Conner following his conviction for odometer tampering and forging vehicle titles. Judge Conner also ordered Fry to pay victims more than $47,000 in restitution, $700 in assessments, and to serve three years on supervised release following his term of imprisonment. Fry previously pleaded guilty to the offenses.
According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, just months after Fry was released from state prison for burglary and theft offenses in October 2018, and while he was on parole, he devised a scheme to purchase used cars, alter the cars’ true mileages by replacing or resetting their odometers, and then sell the vehicles online to unsuspecting customers who paid inflated prices for vehicles they might not otherwise have bought. In addition, Fry altered or forged the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania titles to multiple vehicles that he sold by causing the titles to reflect false, lower mileages. Fry altered the odometers on at least 55 used cars that he sold and rolled back more than five million miles on the vehicles. In some cases, Fry caused the odometers to be rolled back by nearly 200,000 miles. Fry’s offenses not only caused victims to pay far more for the cars than they were worth, but created the risk that buyers would incur additional losses due to likely increased maintenance costs, excessive insurance premiums, and other unanticipated expenses.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Transportation, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and the Pennsylvania State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christian T. Haugsby prosecuted the case.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that odometer fraud in the United States results in consumer losses of more than $1 billion annually and has established a special hotline to handle odometer fraud complaints. Individuals with information relating to odometer tampering should call (800) 424-9393, or email odometerfraud@dot.gov.
More information on odometer fraud is available on the NHTSA website, https://www.nhtsa.gov/equipment/odometer-fraud
Cascade Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Rolling Back Odometers
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Iowa
A man who was responsible for forty-seven cars that had lower, false odometers was sentenced to federal prison on April 8, 2024.
Randolph Forrest, age 69, from Cascade, Iowa, received the prison term after a January 17, 2023 guilty plea to one count of wire fraud.
Information from sentencing showed that from June 2012 through July 2021 Forrest conspired with others to roll back odometers on used cars to sell them for more money. Forrest and others involved in the scheme tampered with the odometers of at least forty-seven cars by having the odometers fraudulently altered to reflect lower mileages. They then sold the cars to unsuspecting buyers at higher sales prices than the buyers would have paid had the true mileage been disclosed. As part of the fraud, Forrest mailed forms to a repair business requesting that odometers be changed to reflect lower mileages. Forrest advertised the cars with the lower, false mileages on Facebook and Craigslist.
Forrest was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams. Forrest was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment and six months’ home confinement. He was ordered to make $140,178.55 in restitution to forty-seven victims of his offense. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that odometer fraud in the United States results in consumer losses of more than $1 billion annually and has established a special hotline to handle odometer fraud complaints. Individuals with information relating to odometer tampering should call (800) 424-9393 or send an email to odometerfraud@dot.gov.
More information on odometer fraud is available on the NHTSA website https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle-safety/odometer-fraud and tips on detecting and avoiding odometer fraud are available at this page: www.nhtsa.gov/staticfiles/nvs/pdf/811284.pdf.
Forrest was released on the bond previously set and is to surrender to the United States Marshal on May 6, 2024.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kyndra Lundquist and investigated by the United States Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Iowa Department of Transportation, and the United States Postal Inspection Service.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl
Illinois Man Pleads Guilty in Odometer Tampering Conspiracy
For Immediate Release
Office of Public Affairs
An Illinois man pleaded guilty today in connection with a years-long fraud conspiracy to roll back the odometer readings on hundreds of used cars.
According to court documents, Laith Ghzo, 37, of Oak Lawn, admitted that he purchased high-mileage vehicles at auto auctions and caused the odometers of those vehicles to be rolled back to false, lower mileage readings. Ghzo also admitted that he then altered the rolled back vehicles’ title paperwork to match the false and lower mileage readings, and subsequently submitted those altered titles to the Illinois Secretary of State to obtain “clean” titles reflecting the false, lower mileage. With the false and lower mileage titles, Ghzo then sold the vehicles to other unsuspecting car dealers, who then sold them to unsuspecting consumers.
“According to the National Highway Traffic Administration, odometer fraud causes more than $1 billion per year in losses to consumers,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Odometer fraud is a crime that predominately affects the economically vulnerable, who are simply looking for transportation to work or to school but who cannot afford to purchase a new car. We thank our partners for bringing this matter to our attention.”
Ghzo pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit securities fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 1 and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Office of Odometer Fraud Investigation and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Joshua D. Rothman and Thomas S. Rosso of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kartik Raman for the Northern District of Illinois are prosecuting the case.
Updated April 25, 2024
Kansas car dealer indicted for rolling back odometers
WICHITA, KAN.– A federal grand jury in Wichita returned an indictment charging a Kansas businessman with 27 counts of criminal misconduct connected to altering vehicle odometers.
According to court documents, Adam Newbrey, 31, of Derby operated three used car dealerships in Wichita including Ideal Motors, Midwest Wholesale, and Prestige Motors.
In 2020 and 2021, Newbrey allegedly purchased used vehicles in Kansas and Oklahoma, altered the odometers, and then used fraudulent documents to obtain titles from the Kansas Department of Revenue reflecting the falsified odometer readings. He is also accused of using the titles with the mispresented mileage to defraud customers who purchased vehicles.
Newbrey is charged with:
• one count of conspiracy to commit odometer fraud,
• nine counts of odometer tampering,
• seven counts of mail fraud,
• nine counts of aggravated identity theft, and
• one count of wire fraud.
The defendant made his initial court appearance March 15, 2024, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Brooks Severson of the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas.
The Kansas Department of Revenue – Office of Special Investigations and the U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration – Office of Odometer Fraud Investigation are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Deb Barnett is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Former Fugitive Sentenced in Odometer Tampering Scheme
PRESS RELEASE
Wednesday, December 6, 2023
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Wisconsin
Gregory J. Haanstad, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on December 5, 2023, a Mexican national was sentenced in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin to 12 months and one day in prison for his role in a scheme to roll back odometers on used motor vehicles.
Israel Sanchez-Pulido, 41, of Mexico City, Mexico, pleaded guilty on September 6, 2023, to one count of odometer tampering, one count of making a false odometer statement, and one count of conspiracy.
As part of his plea agreement, Sanchez-Pulido admitted that, between 2009 and 2014, he purchased 146 high-mileage vehicles at Wisconsin auto auctions, rolled back the odometers, altered the mileage statements on the vehicle title paperwork, and then sold the vehicles with fraudulently low odometer readings to unsuspecting victims, who were primarily from Illinois. Sanchez-Pulido purchased the cars at auto auctions located in Wisconsin and drove them to a used car dealership in Evanston, Illinois. He then rolled back the odometers, reflecting a much lower mileage, and altered the vehicle title to match the false mileage, often by simply erasing the first digit of the mileage on the title or by writing over the accurate mileage reading. Sanchez-Pulido then represented to buyers the false mileage, which often exceeded 100,000 miles lower than the true mileage and sold the vehicles for more money than the vehicles were worth. The estimated fraud-loss of the 146 vehicles involved in this schemed exceeded $250,000.
On March 5, 2014, Sanchez-Pulido was arrested and charged by criminal complaint. During the subsequent detention hearing, he was granted release after posting a property-secured bond, and he was ordered to return to court for arraignment on April 14, 2014. Sanchez-Pulido never appeared.
He absconded and remained a fugitive for nearly ten years until June 2023, when local law enforcement stopped Sanchez-Pulido for a traffic violation in Illinois and discovered the outstanding arrest warrant from the Eastern District of Wisconsin.
Judge Lynn Adelman sentenced Sanchez-Pulido to 12 months and one day of incarceration. At the request of the government, restitution will be addressed on March 1, 2024.
“Individuals who engage in these types of schemes seek to line their own pockets at the expense of consumers who can least afford it,” stated U.S. Attorney Gregory J. Haanstad of the Eastern District of Wisconsin. “In addition, after being charged, this defendant absconded and avoided the consequences of his actions for the better part of a decade. I commend our hard-working federal and state partners who helped pursue justice for the victims in this case.”
This matter was investigated by the U.S. Department of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of Odometer Fraud Investigation, with assistance from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.
Trial Attorney Edward Dunn of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch, along with Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Koenig of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, prosecuted the case.
NHTSA estimates that odometer fraud in the United States results in consumer losses of more than $1 billion annually. Individuals with information relating to odometer tampering should call NHTSA’s odometer fraud hotline at (800) 424-9393.
More information on odometer fraud is available on the NHTSA website at https://www.nhtsa.gov/odometer-fraud and tips on detecting and avoiding odometer fraud are available at https://www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.gov/files/811284.pdf.
For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts, visit its website at https://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-edwi.
For Additional Information Contact:
Public Information Officer
Kenneth.Gales@usdoj.gov
414-297-1700
NOTICE
It has come to the attention of the Wyoming Department of Transportation that there is blank Wyoming Title stock unaccounted for. The Department has notified the County from which they were taken. Sometime after May 01, 2023 these Wyoming titles were stolen and some of the blank titles have been found to have been used for criminal purposes in the State of Colorado. The missing blank Wyoming title stock consists of one case of 500 titles. The control numbers on these titles are 8790001 through 8790500. The control numbers are located at the lower right side of the title in silver print with a security box around the number. On the lower left side of the title will be marked MV-301 (4/21) with a round silver security seal to the right of the text. The security seal has the letters WY. The control numbers are duplicated with the front green colored title that goes to the owner and the back copy that is white in color and is retained by Wyoming County clerks. These missing titles may be used for fraudulent purposes. If any of these control numbers are found please contact Investigator Shane Fox with the Wyoming Department of Transportation Compliance & Investigation section at 307-777-3840.