The Ford Barn - Long Island, NY Model A Restorer charged with (allegedly) selling customers cars

My friend used this shop to restore his model A. Just an FYI to others

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/...fords_kep.html

The owner of a Long Island classic car restoration business was busted Thursday for allegedly selling a client's cars without permission and driving off with the profits.
Joseph Simeone, 71, is charged with unloading three vintage Fords he was supposed to store at his Glen Cove garage and then employing an elaborate ruse to cover up the sales.
Nassau County prosecutors said the victim had taken 10 cars to Simeone Classic Cars to be restored over the years and also stored several there.
But Simeone allegedly sold three of the antique cars - a 1934 Ford Roadster, a 1936 Ford Phaeton and a 1939 Ford Cabriolet - between 1997 and 2004.
Not only did he pocket the cash, Simeone continued to charge storage fees, prosecutors said.
Simeone allegedly netted $40,000 for the Roadster, $26,500 for the Phaeton, and $40,000 for the Cabriolet. In all, he is charged with bilking the customer - who was not identified - for $250,000.
To cover his tracks, Simeone allegedly bought shells for similar-looking antique cars and stored them under tarps in difficult to reach parts of the garage, making it hard to tell they were bogus.
He even painted half of one of the vehicles to make it look like the original.
The ruse was finally uncovered when the client grew suspicious in October 2010 and hired a private investigator to check it out.
"This defendant was playing a literal shell game to hide his crimes, dupe his victim, and pocket hundreds of thousands of dollars in stolen cash," said Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice.
Simeone, of Torrington, Conn., is charged with grand larceny and faces up to 15 years in prison.
A message left at his home was not immediately returned. A number listed for his business was disconnected.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/...#ixzz1QtBUq500