Spokane, Washington – On September 4, 2024, a federal grand jury for the Eastern District of Washington returned an indictment charging Reynaldo Valdez Garza Jr., age 52, of Othello, Washington, with five counts of odometer tampering. Garza made his first appearance in Federal Court on September 9, 2024.
The indictment alleges that beginning in May of 2023, Garza carried out a scheme to acquire used cars with high mileage, tamper with or replace the odometers in the vehicles to make the cars’ mileage appear much lower, then advertise and sell the vehicles to unsuspecting buyers for an inflated price. According to the indictment, in some cases, Garza caused odometers to be rolled back more than 100,000 miles.
The indictment further alleges that in some instances Garza would wait for the buyer to sign their section of the Bill of Sale paperwork, then fill in the “seller” section with different information than what was represented to the buyer regarding the identity of the seller and mileage.
“The purchase of a vehicle is often one of the largest financial commitments people make. It is important that buyers have confidence in the information they receive when deciding which vehicle to purchase,” stated U.S. Attorney Vanessa Waldref. “My office is committed to protecting consumers from fraudsters who seek to cheat the system for their own gain.”
This case was investigated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Adams County Sheriff’s Office. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Devin Curda.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
