Fake Veterinarian Steals C8 Corvette

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A man in Yakima, Washington has been accused of stealing the identity of a veterinarian from Malibu, California to purchase and not pay for a C8 Corvette from a dealership. The 2021 Chevy Corvette was obtained allegedly through deception and the suspect tried getting a second one on the same exact day.

Here’s how to protect yourself against online car sales fraud.

It was during the second purchase attempt that a dealership employee noticed something was off about the whole situation, so that person called police. Officers were able to determine the man wasn’t the Malibu vet but instead was David Martinez Vazquez, despite having a California driver’s license with the other man’s info but his photo.

According to the Daily Record, the Malibu man had his wallet stolen a few years ago. We assume with his real driver’s license someone was able to make at least one fake copy with another man’s photo. We’d be concerned there are others doing the same thing.

Vazquez told police he had been selling cars for cash from “a syndicate of people.” The first 2021 Corvette he deceptively obtained was never found. We’re going to go out on a limb and guess the syndicate got it and Vazquez got out of town. He was released but didn’t show up to his court date, so now the guy has a warrant for his arrest.

Dealerships, just like individuals, are being increasingly targeted with ever more sophisticated theft schemes, both theft through deception like in this case as well as break-ins during the middle of the night. There are even people who steal cars in the middle of the day.

Not shockingly, the OnStar system on the stolen C8 Corvette didn’t work. Professional car thieves know how to disable factory features like that in no time, which is why we recommend using an aftermarket solution as well.

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