Vancouver police arrest suspected Craigslist car scammer

Vancouver police have arrested a convicted car thief accused of stealing vehicles, replacing their identification numbers and using Craigslist to sell them to unsuspecting buyers.

Jonathan Duck, a 34-year-old Vancouver man, has been charged with three counts of fraud over $5,000, one count of fraud under $5,000 and two counts of possession of stolen property over $5,000, Sgt. Randy Fincham said Thursday.

Fincham said the scams came to light in April, when the victim of a car theft saw his Toyota 4Runner listed on Craigslist a week later.

The man called police, who recovered the truck and found it was registered with a false Vehicle Identification Number obtained from a junked 4Runner made in the same year.

“This guy goes out and buys the wrecks, and then he hunts for the perfect vehicle to match that,” said Det. Const. Phil Ens of the Auto Crime Enforcement Team.

Investigators exposed two other similar automobile scams this month.

Police recovered a stolen Toyota Tacoma that was sold on Craigslist and a stolen Mazda Protégé that was advertised on the popular online classifieds website.

Officials recovered the Tacoma and Protégé and determined they were given VIN’s from similar scrapped and totaled vehicles.

“These vehicles that he’s stealing [are] really affecting the core of our society,” Ens said. “It’s the blue-collar worker.”

Ens said investigators found the suspect after studying the pictures posted on the Craigslist ads and figuring out where they were taken.

Duck, who Ens said uses other aliases when completing the transactions, faces possible jail time – again. He was convicted of possession of stolen property in April 2012.

He’s being held in custody until his next scheduled court appearance on July 4.

“We know from information and from research and investigations that he’s sold other vehicles, not just the three that we’ve got,” Ens said.

Police are urging anyone who suspects they’ve purchased a stolen vehicle to check the VIN on the dashboard to see if it’s authentic.

“Look for telltale signs of corners peeling off,” Ens said. “See by the rivets if there’s glue.”

If the number appears tampered with, take the vehicle to an authorized dealership that can verify the true VIN – and if it doesn’t match, call the police.