9 people indicted for illegal auto operations in Arizona
Nine people have been indicted on charges connected to an illegal operation that produced tens of thousands of titles for vehicles being sold in 42 states.
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9 people indicted for illegal auto operations in Arizona
Posted
Independent Newsmedia
Nine people have been indicted on charges connected to an illegal operation that produced tens of thousands of titles for vehicles being sold in 42 states.
Scott Bandy, James Johnson, Mary Fialko, James Edward Fialko, Lon Chaneyfield, Ivan Valenzuela, Oscar Valenzuela, Tamela Bandy, and Ashley Cwick were charged with conspiracy, fraudulent schemes and artifices, money laundering, control of an illegal enterprise, and fraudulent schemes and practices.
Mr. Bandy and Mr. Johnson were also charged with filing fraudulent Arizona Income Tax Returns, according to a release from the Arizona Attorney General's Office.
From 2015 to now, the defendants are accused of conspiring to fraudulently obtain Arizona car dealership licenses, and of consigning those dealership licenses to paying subscribers via an online membership service.
The defendants are alleged to have fraudulently presented these subscribers to AuctionACCESS as legitimate dealership employees. AuctionACCESS is an auto auction company that limits auction access to legitimate dealership employees.
Over 1,500 subscribers purchased thousands of vehicles in 42 states, and the defendants are accused of fraudulently titling more than 30,000 vehicles during the course of this scheme. The amount of illegal proceeds associated with this scheme is alleged to be at least $6.8 million.
The Arizona Department of Revenue’s Criminal Investigations Unit also examined the income reported on Mr. Johnson and Mr. Bandy’s Arizona individual income tax returns. Officials allege Mr. Bandy earned about $247,700 in 2017 from this illegal enterprise, while only reporting $40,210. In 2018, Mr. Bandy allegedly earned $358,366, but only reported $145,252 to the State.
Similarly in 2017, Mr. Johnson allegedly earned $891,683 but instead reported $17,989. In 2018, Mr. Johnson allegedly earned $787,251 instead of his reported loss of $4,338.
To date, this is the largest operation since the Arizona Curbstone Enforcement Joint Task Force was created in 2018.
Curbstoning involves selling vehicles in a way that violates the parameters set by a dealer’s license. Consumers can file a complaint on an unauthorized automobile dealer.
