Crime & Safety
Man Busted In Valley Odometer Rollback Scheme
A San Fernando Valley man is facing 27 felony counts for allegedly hacking computers to roll back odometers for drivers leasing vehicles.
LOS ANGELES, CA — A Studio City man who allegedly operated a computerized odometer rollback business for vehicles that were leased from dealerships in the San Fernando Valley and Glendale is set to be arraigned Monday on 27 felony counts, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced Friday.
Serge Oganesian, 44, is accused of hacking the computers of 12 vehicles to change the odometers for people who were leasing the automobiles from local dealerships, according to the District Attorney's Office.
The dealerships' financial services companies suffered more than $76,000 in alleged losses, according to Deputy District Attorney Leonard Torrealba.
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Oganesian had allegedly been running his odometer rollback business since April 2015 in North Hollywood, Glendale and Studio City at various times, according to the prosecutor.
Oganesian is charged with 13 counts each of grand theft of personal property and computer access and fraud, along with one count of conspiracy to commit a crime.
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He was arrested Thursday in connection with the case, which was filed a day earlier. He remains jailed in lieu of more than $760,000 bail pending his appearance next week in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom, jail records show.
If convicted as charged, Oganesian could face up to 20 years and four months in state prison, according to the District Attorney's Office.
City News Service; Photo: (Photo by Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Getty Images)
