Attorney General Dave Sunday and the Pennsylvania State Police announced charges against multiple persons in connection with a “chop shop” operation in central Pennsylvania that reportedly included vehicle title cleaning, fraudulent vehicle inspections, and identity theft.
The investigation by the Office of Attorney General and state police included presentations from the 52nd Statewide Investigating Grand Jury on two collaborating criminal enterprises:
- Angel Vidal and his “chop shop” location in Lebanon
- El Fuerte Auto Sales and El Fuerte Tire & Auto (both in Lebanon), which were run by defendants Yonathan Peguero-Rodriguez and Johandeiry Bonilla.
In recent days, 15 persons and two El Fuerte company companies were accused of a variety of charges, including but not limited to corrupt organizations, insurance fraud, bank fraud, identity theft, and forgery.
Investigators said the criminal groups profited by more than half a million dollars, and that many Pennsylvanians were affected, either by having their identities stolen, mistakenly purchasing vehicles from the “chop shop,” or seeing vehicles on the road that were not properly inspected.
”This complex scheme involved many different types of criminal behavior that directly victimized Pennsylvanians, or put drivers and passengers at risk by being in the path of vehicles that may have been unsafe,” Attorney General Sunday said. “I commend the investigators from our Insurance Fraud and Organized Crime sections, as well as the Pennsylvania State Police, for unraveling these convoluted criminal enterprises and bringing charges that bring them to a halt.”
“This operation undermined the public’s trust in a system that’s meant to keep our roads safe, as well as our faith in honest automotive businesses,” said Captain James Reinhard, director of the Special Investigations Division in the Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation. “The impact of these crimes is real, but so is our commitment to stopping them. We’re proud to work with the Office of Attorney General and other law enforcement partners to investigate these operations, shut them down, and hold offenders accountable.”
The Vidal criminal organization revolved upon a “chop shop” at Vidal’s home in Lebanon City that profited by stealing hired automobiles, dismantling and restickering them, and then selling them below market value in numerous sections of Pennsylvania and other states.
The majority of the vehicles were rented out of state by people using bogus identities, so by the time the rental company discovered the theft, they were chasing false leads.
Vidal is currently jailed at Northampton Jurisdiction Prison for alleged similar conduct in that jurisdiction.
The El Fuerte group contributed to the grand scheme by:
- Conducting improper vehicle inspections (commonly call “lick ’em and stick ’em” inspections)
- falsifying inspection records
- Misrepresentation of vehicle purchase prices
- renting of dealer plates
The cases will be prosecuted by Senior Deputy Attorney General Erik Olsen and Deputy Attorney General Jose Perez from the Office of Attorney General’s Insurance Fraud Section.
Criminal charges, and any debate surrounding them, are only allegations, and all defendants are deemed innocent unless proven guilty.
