Police: Beware of Auto Repair Scam

A team of con men operating in Rockland County is targeting young drivers and older drivers with an auto repair scam that has cheated several people recently out of hundreds of dollars, according to Clarkstown police.

Two Queens men have been arrested in connection with the scam, but Lt. Anthony Ovchinnikoff said detectives believe several other people are involved and that motorists should be wary of anyone who comes up to them on the street or in a parking lot offering to repair body damage to their car.

"They will take out some tools, pound on the fender and tinker, but they are not really doing anything," Ovchinnikoff. "They then demand money for the repairs they say they have made. The victims say the men have been quite intimidating."

Ovchinnikoff said an incident around 2:15 p.m. in a parking lot at Middletown Road near Route 59 in Nanuet was the third one recently in Clarkstown involving the same scam. He said several other incidents have taken place in other Rockland County towns, and police throughout the county have been alerted to the scam.

Ovchinnikoff said Friday's arrests came as a result of a Clarkstown police officer on patrol spotting two men working on a car in a parking lot.

Here's how the scam works, according to police:

- Two men in a car approach a driver on the road or in a parking lot, offering to make repairs to the driver's car.

- The victim is usually a young person or a senior citizen.

- The con men either take the driver to a parking lot or they are in a parking lot that is close to an ATM machine.

- The con men break out some tools and make themselves look busy, but don't actually make any repairs.

- They then demand money for their work and use intimidation tactics to obtain cash.

- If the driver claims he or she doesn't have the money, the con men intimidate the driver into going to a nearby ATM and they escort the driver to the ATM and then take the money.

"These guys look for whoever they think can be an easy mark," Ovchinnikoff said.

In Friday's incident, Ovchinnikoff said a 61-year-old Pomona woman was the target,  noting she was approached in a parking lot off Middletown Road as she was returning to her car from shopping. Ovchinnikoff said two men demanded $200 from her after they went into their repair act.

Arrested in that incident were brothers Archie Mitchell, 22, of Woodside, Queens, and Santino Mitchell, 22, of Jamaica, Queens, both charged with fraudulent accosting, a misdemeanor. They were arraigned in Clarkstown Town Court in New City by Judge Scott Ugell and were ordered held in the Rockland County Correctional Center in New City, with bail set at $2,500 for Archie Mitchell and $5,000 for Santino Mitchell.

Ovchinnikoff said Clarkstown detectives believe that others in addition to the Mitchell brothers are involved in the scam based on descriptions from victims. He said that anyone who is approached on the street with an offer of auto repairs should not stop accept such offers. Ovchinnikoff said anyone who is approached should contact Clarkstown police at 639-5800.