OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today announced the arraignment and filing of felony charges against eight individuals in connection with the theft of 19 vehicles throughout the United States with a combined value of more than $800,000. The complaint, filed in Alameda County Superior Court, alleges 40 felony charges including conspiracy, auto-theft, possession of stolen property, and selling a vehicle with an altered VIN. The California Department of Justice (DOJ) received a complaint referral from the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), which investigated the ring of eight individuals involved in a complex VIN alteration scheme. As part of the scheme, defendants allegedly obtained stolen vehicles, altered the VINs, re-registered the vehicles through the Alaska Department of Motor Vehicles, and then sold the stolen vehicles out of their Bay Area business. 

“We will not stand idly by when bad actors undermine legitimate businesses, steal from our communities, and weaken the safety of our neighborhoods by operating criminal enterprises in the underground economy,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta. “Today’s complaint charges eight defendants with 40 felonies for their part in this complex auto theft scheme. The California Department of Justice will continue to do our part to protect Californians from organized criminal theft and combat the underground economy.”

"This case demonstrates the DMV’s commitment to protecting all used car buyers throughout California,” said DMV Director Steve Gordon. “These eight defendants took advantage of innocent car buyers, and they got caught. The DMV is focused on ending these scams for good." 

The case is being prosecuted by DOJ’s Special Prosecutions Section, which works to protect Californians by investigating and prosecuting complex criminal cases, primarily related to fraud, public corruption, “underground economy” offenses, counterfeiting, and human trafficking. Vertical teams of prosecutors, investigators, auditors, and paralegals collaborate with federal and local authorities on cases involving multi-jurisdictional criminal activity.

A copy of the complaint can be found here.  

It is important to note that criminal charges must be proven in a court of law. Every defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.