Police bust allentown chop shop operator

ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A man from Easton has been arrested in connection with a chop shop operation that led to the recovery of 10 stolen vehicles, according to District Attorney Gavin P. Holihan and Allentown Police Chief Charles Roca.

Cesar Garcia-Martinez, 34, is charged with two counts each of owning, operating, or conducting a chop shop, a second-degree felony; disposition of vehicle or vehicle part with an altered vehicle identification number; and receiving stolen property, both third-degree felonies.

Garcia-Martinez was arraigned today before Magisterial District Judge Linda D. Vega and is being held in Lehigh County Jail on $75,000 bail. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for October 4 at 1:45 p.m.

The investigation, which involved multiple agencies including the Lehigh County Auto Theft and Insurance Fraud Task Force, Allentown and Bethlehem Police Departments, and the National Insurance Crime Bureau, began after Allentown Police used automated license plate reader technology on September 18 to locate a stolen Honda Accord. The vehicle had been reported stolen from Elizabeth, N.J., two days earlier.

Task Force detectives tracked the Honda to Allentown Auto Works and Recycling at 299 Cedar St., which is owned by Garcia-Martinez. Upon executing a search warrant on September 19, authorities discovered 10 stolen vehicles in various stages of disassembly, with parts chopped into small pieces. The vehicles had been stolen from New Jersey, New York City, Philadelphia, and Cheltenham.

The case is being prosecuted by Chief Deputy District Attorney David J. Mussel, Supervisor of the Auto Theft and Insurance Fraud Task Forces.

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