06.16.06
Car Leasing Scam Used Classic Car Hulks
FREEHOLD — Paul J. Brennan would first locate the shell of a classic car like a 1967 Shelby GT or a vintage Mustang or Corvette, according to prosecutors.As an employee with ownership interest in two used car dealerships in Point Pleasant, Brennan would then write up phony car leases, saying the inoperable cars were worth anywhere between $20,000 and $75,000, according to Prosecutor Luis A. Valentin.
Once he received the car lease financing from Sovereign Bank or All Points Capital, a subsidiary of North Fork Bank, for the leased cars, he would keep some of the money and give some to co-conspirators who had agreed to have their names placed on the leases, according to Valentin. The value of those leases totaled $582,913.
The ultimate goal in the car leasing scheme, the prosecutor said, was for the co-conspirators to report their cars stolen and submit fraudulent claims to their insurance carriers for reimbursement.
Last week, Brennan and 15 alleged co-conspirators were indicted by a Monmouth County grand jury on charges connected to the theft of funds from Sovereign Bank and All Points Capital.
Brennan, 43, of Manasquan, specifically was charged in the indictment handed up June 5 with the theft of more than $75,000 belonging to Sovereign Bank and or All Points Capital between May 2000 and October 2002.
In total, 14 men and two women are charged with conspiring to commit theft by deception between May 2000 and October 2002. If convicted, they each face up to 10 years in prison and a maximum $150,000 fine.