Posted on 07/11/2008 8:15:13 PM PDT by Morgana
LONDON, KY (WSAZ)-- A federal grand jury has indicted two Floyd County men on charges they operated a chop shop in Floyd and Pike counties.
According to the US Attorney, the 104 count indictment was returned against 50 –year old Marty Keith Hamilton and 52-year old Gary D. Keathley. Both men are from Betsy Layne.
The indictment alleges that between February of 2001 and August 2007, Hamilton, stole approximately 50 vehicles while he worked as a detail specialist for an automotive group in Pike and Floyd Counties.
The indictment further alleges that Hamilton kept duplicate keys from the cars brought to his garage to be detailed or used his key-cutting machine to create an extra key for himself.
Hamilton is then accused of placing a sticker on the back of cars so he could identify them, and then use the duplicate keys to steal the vehicles.
The indictment also alleges that after Hamilton stole the vehicles, he and Keathley would purchase similar donor vehicles from dealerships and salvage yards so they could take legitimate VIN plates and place them on the stolen vehicles in order to conceal the fact these vehicles had been stolen. They then sold the stolen vehicles to unsuspecting third parties
If convicted, both men face a maximum 15-year-prison sentence and a $250,000 fine.
The indictment of a person by a grand jury is an accusation only, and that person is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
I’m confused. This guy had duplicate keys made of certain cars that he worked on over those six or so years. He would mark them with a sticker so he could recognize them and then he would heist them AFTER the owner got them back?
Number one source of employment in London ,Ky this is very old news. London has been the site of numerous chop shops since the late eighties.
Except if they like you...then they rip off the other guy, and pass the savings on to you!
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