Multiple communities warned about fraudulent vehicle sale scheme

Police are issuing a warning about a group of men posing as car buyers tampering with vehicles.

Police are warning multiple Alberta communities about a fraud scheme involving private vehicle sales.

Six men are accused of distracting sellers to damage the vehicles and purchase them for less than their worth.

Edmonton Police Service (EPS) says the group has done this in Edmonton, Calgary, Sherwood Park, Leduc and Thorsby.

To date, 13 victims have been identified.

EPS alleges the vehicles were later registered with forged documents and used in other criminal offences across Canada, although it did not provide details about those crimes.

How the scheme worked

Often, the purported buyers arrived in groups of two or three and would tell the seller they are siblings.

They’d get the seller to retrieve an item from the house or distract them in another way while they tampered with the vehicle, then point out a damaged head gasket or oil leak.

“They’ll be super animated with their English, a second language. In most of the cases, there’ll always be one person who is rushing to get somewhere and they need to make a deal right now. And there will be two people trying to be in (their) personal space, and trying to coerce (them) into making a sale, while one person has time to go under the hood and inspect the vehicle,” Const. Shiva Shunmugam said Monday.

“While they are inspecting the vehicle, they are actually tampering with the coolant.”

In some cases, the group argued with sellers for up to two hours, according to EPS.

In all cases, the issue with the vehicle had not been present before the meeting.

“We’ve seen anywhere from Ford F-150s to Dodge Caravans,” Shunmugam said. “(The vehicle) is listed anywhere between $10,000 or $15,000 and then they drop the price over their aggressive tactics to a couple of thousands.”

Charges laid

Police learned of the scheme incidentally, obtaining a search warrant for a southwest Edmonton home in October after multiple traffic complaints.

“A group of people who have arrived in Canada just a few months ago, why do they own so many vehicles?” Shunmugam recalled wondering.

Investigators realized the bills of sale had been fraudulently drafted.

Upon contacting the owners, they heard a similar story about a rushed or coerced sale over and over again. None were aware they had been defrauded.

“They were not comfortable making the sale, however, they felt compelled to make a sale at that point. They thought, ‘Good riddance,’” Shunmugam said.

“They were like, ‘Yeah, something was fishy about this entire sale.’”

In the end, nine vehicles connected with the address were seized.

Six men face a total of 33 charges:

• Constantin Dumitru, 26;
• Tiberius Grigore, 34;
• Cosmin Mustata, 26;
• Remus Rafaila, 32;
• Orlando Turcan, 24; and
• Florin Constantin, 39.

Constantin, Dumitru, Mustata and Turcan are wanted on Alberta-wide warrants.

Although EPS is not naming the criminal organization the accused are a part of, Shunmugam confirmed it is the same group known for using distraction techniques during jewelry thefts.

EPS says the group is based in eastern Europe.

Sellers advised to exercise caution

Shunmugam urged the public to heed advice about making private sales, such as writing up a proper bill of sale, which is provided for free by the provincial government.

He also warned about meeting with people whose Facebook profiles are only a few months old.

“You have the power to dictate the terms of your own sale. If you’re not comfortable making a sale with three people in it, you can call it off,” Shunmugam said.

He recommended confirming the number of people who would be attending a meeting on the buyer’s side, and meeting in a public location rather than a home address.

“You can come to a police parking lot. We have cameras there,” Shunmugam said.

He also advised against letting a buyer take a licence plate after buying the vehicle.

Anyone else who believes their vehicle has been tampered with or sold fraudulently is encouraged to call police.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Evan Klippenstein