CLEVELAND, OH – Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley disclosed the indictment of 39 individuals by a grand jury, accused of stealing and forging car titles from South Carolina and Georgia.
The elaborate scheme, active from January 2021 to March, involved 34 vehicles stolen across Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia, New York, and California.
These individuals altered the Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) on the stolen cars to match the descriptions on stolen and forged titles from Georgia and South Carolina, subsequently processed in Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles.
Once the vehicle titles and VINs matched, the culprits sold these high-end vehicles for significantly less than the sticker price.
The grand jury indicted 33 individuals for title fraud and six for receiving stolen property. The investigation into this extensive network of vehicle theft and title fraud continues.