dodge.pickup.olympus.cx

I post this as a warning to anyone buying vehicles in California (possibly other states as well). I bought a 1996 Dunes toyhauler trailer in July of 2007. This vehicle was very poor condition, windows were smashed, none of the appliances worked, roof & frame damage. I paid about one third the going rate for a toyhauler in good condition. When I went to register it I verified it wasn’t stolen, the registration was delinquent for a couple years so I paid several hundred in late and back fees. I was issued a title a month later. After spending several thousand repairing the appliances, windows, the roof, water system, electrical, and just about everything else I get this cryptic letter from the DMV (Fig. 2) late November of 2007. So I make some inquires to figure out who Jennifer Christine (Robles) Presta is, she was never an owner, doesn’t appear she has any family relations to any of the previous owners. All I know is she lives in Hemet California. Since the DMV won’t tell me anything and none of this adds up I ignore it. Mid May of 2008 registration comes up and I pay it. Early June I am paid a visit from about 8 Costa Mesa police department cruisers and 2 Hemet police, trying to arrest me for grand theft. I get my usual reception from cops, (grab your shit, sit you on the curb and accuse you of everything under the sun).

I explain to this Hemet police department cop (Jeff Dill):
Me: ‘I have a title and its mine.’
Dill: ‘No it’s stolen’
Me: ‘How exactly can it be stolen if I have a title?’
Dill: ‘That title is fraudulent’
Me: ‘It was from the DMV, how is that fraudulent?’
Dill: ‘It’s fraudulent.’

This guy finally coughs up some bs story saying this girl left it in storage and when she came back it was missing. So I ask the completely obvious question, so it was stolen for approximately 2 years (before I purchased it [per the title history]) and other 6 months (in the time which I owned it). Dill’s reply ‘Well she’s not a rocket scientist’. Let’s see how many things are wrong with this statement.
1. Thanks for being a dick.
2. This chick never bothers to register ‘her’ trailer until two and a half years after the fact. I think there’s a DMV statue that says you’re supposed to do this within 10 day of transfer.
3. This chick never held title and they let her report it stolen.
4. (assuming she was a legit owner) This vehicle was missing for two and a half years and she didn’t notice.

The cops have no interest in investigating this sort of thing, so they arbitrarily gave it over to her. The DMV won’t interfere in the matters of law enforcement. I spoke with a couple lawyers but none seemed to interested and figured it would cost me more to recover it civilly than its worth, If you happen to know a lawyer that would be interested let me know.

What really happened, Jennifer Presta didn’t want to pay the back fees on a trailer someone gave; had her friend pose as the previous owner and sell her trashed trailer with a transfer of title form and kept the title. After I pay the back fees and make repairs (six months later) go into the cops and cry, someone stole my trailer. Another six months later free refurbished trailer with current registration. Best of all it’s all perfectly legal.

Congratulations Jennifer Christine (Robles) Presta and your crooked cop buddy Jeff Dill (Hemet Police). You’re in a scammer class of your own.

Fig. 1: Request for Information
Fig. 2: The backfees I paid to get the registration current
Fig. 3: My legitiment DMV issued title for this vehicle