BALTIMORE, Ohio -- Law-enforcement officials in one Central Ohio community believe they may have broken up an elaborate fraud ring involving hundreds of allegedly stolen vehicles.
NBC 4 reported with the FAST FACTS.
Fairfield County sheriff's deputies executed a search warrant on 50 vehicles in a field at 2630 Musser Rd. in Baltimore in Walnut Township Monday morning.
Investigators said the vehicles are part of a fraud ring and 100 additional vehicles could be involved.
The investigation began last week when a deputy stopped a vehicle with a fictitious dealer plate. It was discovered the Lancaster dealership was no longer in business and the driver could not prove ownership of the vehicle.
While questioning the driver, it was discovered that he had more than 50 other cars parked on his property.
Detectives were able trace back the vehicle VIN numbers to determine the alleged crime.
Pataskala auto-sales business Sommer Auto, Inc., at 15 W. Broad St., Pataskala, sold individual cars and collected payments but didn't pay the lender, according to Fairfield County Sheriff Dave Phalen.
Legitimate customers purchased a vehicle and made their payment to Sommer Auto, but Sommer Auto would pocket the money and not pay the creditor. The bank issued a repossession order. Sommer Auto repossessed the vehicle and hid it from the lender, telling the lender the auto wasn't found, according to authorities.
Sommer Auto also took in trade-ins and did not pay off the customers' loans. The business hid the vehicle, and when the lender came looking for the vehicle, Sommer Auto told the lender it never had the vehicle, according to authorities.
An agent for Sommer Auto fraudulently removed the lien holders from the titles and resold the vehicles, Phalen said.
Phalen said the operation was an elaborate scheme to defraud the banks and the sheriff's office thinks the scheme continued for a year and there could be hundreds of victims.
“We confirmed ownership with some of the lenders and also confirmed that they had been looking for these vehicles," Phalen said.
Many of the vehicles will be turned directly over to the banks who own them. The others will be impounded until the proper owners can be found, according to Phalen.
Phalen said the alleged fraud took place outside of Fairfield County, so the investigation will be turned over to other investigators with the State Highway Patrol theft section and Licking County.
NBC 4 tried to contact Sommer Auto, Inc. A manager we spoke to denied having knowledge on the investigation.
No charges were filed, but the sheriff's office expected to file charges in the future.
For additional information on this developing story, stay with NBC 4 and refresh nbc4i.com -- Where Accuracy Matters.
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