http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/ ... =7&cxcat=7

Scam lands two in jail

By MIKE SACCONE The Daily Sentinel

Saturday, December 09, 2006

An alleged automotive identity-theft scam landed two men in jail Thursday afternoon after a local auto repairman noticed that a 2002 Dodge truck was not the truck it claimed to be.

Luis Venancio Hernandez, 36, of Commerce City, and Octavio Salazar-Espinoza, 36, of Las Vegas, were arrested after a mechanic at Integrity Auto Repair, 2891 Interstate 70 Business Loop, noticed inconsistencies between a truck’s vehicle identification number and its parts.

Shortly after Hernandez and Salazar-Espinoza brought an alleged 2002 Dodge truck into the auto shop for repairs, a mechanic noticed the truck was outfitted with 2005 parts.

The truck’s vehicle identification number was registered to a 2002 Dodge truck, while the vehicle itself had a Hemi engine, an engine that was not installed on Dodge trucks until 2003, according to the arrest affidavit.

Colorado State Patrol Trooper Tyler Tobias, who responded to the auto shop, discovered the truck’s vehicle identification number belonged to a salvage vehicle from Texas. The body of the truck, however, belonged to a car stolen out of Las Vegas on Nov. 24, the affidavit said.

Based on Tobias’ training, he wrote in the affidavit, “I know that salvage switching is a sophisticated auto theft scam that includes removing the (vehicle identification number) off a salvage vehicle with a good title and affixing it to a stolen vehicle of the same or similar model.”

During jail interviews Hernandez told the trooper he bought the truck six months ago, according to the affidavit.

Hernandez told Tobias that at one point he took the truck to a friend’s house for a paint job and repairs, and when the work was through, his four-wheel drive truck had become a two-wheel drive truck with a Hemi.

Both men were booked into the Mesa County jail around 2 p.m. Thursday.

Salazar-Espinoza bonded out of jail, but Hernandez has an immigration hold.


Mike Saccone can be reached via e-mail at msaccone@gjds.com.