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May 17, 2005 7:24 pm US/Central
State Investigating Car Auction Company
HARVEY (CBS 2) ―
A busy car auction company could soon be out of business. Both the secretary of state and the Illinois attorney general are investigating deceptive practices first exposed by the CBS 2 Investigators.
As Pam Zekman reports, until they take action, it's bidder beware.
City Auto Auction in Harvey claims to be the largest auction in the Midwest with great deals on good cars. But the chief of the consumer fraud bureau for the attorney general's office says claims like that may be deceptive.
"They're holding these cars out as good cars. They're certainly anything but good cars. They're lousy junk cars," said Gil Fergus with the Illinois attorney general's office.
Mensha Hightower fell for the pitch and brought his sister along to City Auto.
"He works hard for his money and he tried to get his dream car, which is a Cadillac, and they ripped him off," said Mensha's sister, Zalika Hightower.
He bid $1,500 on a 1991 white Cadillac with a blue interior and put down a $600 non-refundable deposit.
"When we returned the next day and he went to the back the next day it was a totally different car. The car was two toned with red interior, body damage and rust," Zalika Hightower said.
And he also learned there were previously undisclosed fees that jacked up the price to $2,200, an amount he could not afford.
"So they switched the car on you and still wouldn't give you a refund?" Zekman asked her.
"Yes," Mensha Hightower said.
"What do you think they are doing here?" Zekman asked.
"I think it's a big scam," he said.
Now the Illinois attorney general's office is investigating his case and many others. Officials say the operators of City Auto may be violating court orders in previous consumer fraud complaints filed against them.
As CBS 2 Investigators disclosed Monday night, Adnan Abdeh, the manager of City Auto and the owner's son, and Waleed Shakir, the customer service manager, were charged with committing some of the same deceptive practices still going on at City Auto.
"It's disturbing, it's shocking and it should not be allowed to continue, and we are going to do everything we can to stop it," Fergus said.
In the meantime, Hightower still has to walk three miles to and from work because he lost his $600 deposit and can't afford another car.
"It was an outrage that things like this are able to happen," Zalika Hightower said.
State officials' action against the car dealer could include the filing of a new consumer fraud complaint that could put city auto out of business.
Representatives from City Auto refused to answer written questions or phone calls.
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