Sheriff's office investigating local RV dealer

Part-time Foothills resident Richard Anderson and his wife contacted the Yuma County Sheriff's Office last month claiming a local RV dealer bilked them out of money when they had their motorhome sold on consignment.

Anderson said he took his motorhome to Your RV Wizard, formerly located at 9251 South Frontage Road, in January to have it sold on consignment. Then in mid-February, when he went to pick it up to use on a trip in the meantime, he said, he was told it had been sold.

"We did not give them permission to sell it without our approval," Anderson said, adding that the dealer never told him how much it sold for and also never paid him his portion of the sale money.

Capt. Eben Bratcher, of the Yuma County Sheriff's Office, confirmed Wednesday the Andersons are among an unspecified number of area residents who have made similar allegations against Your RV Wizard. He said the dealer is the subject of an ongoing investigation, but added he couldn’t discuss the details.

"There are some allegations that the dealer was receiving motorhomes and trailers on consignment, but was not paying a portion of the sales to the original owner," Bratcher said.

Bratcher said there have not been any arrests made or charges filed yet.

Anderson said initially he hired an attorney to file a lawsuit against the dealer, but before the suit could be filed, the dealer had already filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. When that didn't work, he turned to the sheriff's office for help.

"The deputies took my complaint and immediately began investigating the incident," Anderson said. "And immediately things started to happen."

The Sun attempted to contact Your RV Wizard in Yuma and in Tucson about the allegations in this article, but was unable to speak with anyone. The local number posted on a sign at the former site of the Yuma dealership was to a voice mail box that was full and wasn't taking any more messages and the number to a dealership in Tucson had been disconnected.

Anderson said he believes, based on what he has been told about his case from the various law enforcement agencies involved, that ultimately the investigation will reveal a rather large fraudulent scheme of bilking elderly RV owners.

While Anderson's motorhome has been recovered, Bratcher said it still can't be turned over to him yet because the individual who bought it is now a victim because it was sold fraudulently; the new owner is now out of the money he paid for it.

Anderson, who has a 23-year background in victims services, was so impressed with the way the sheriff's office handled the case that he wrote Sheriff Ralph Ogden a letter, thanking them.

"It's nice to hear positive feedback and get some recognition," Bratcher said. "It means a lot to know that the work we put forth to have a well-trained, well-dedicated team is paying off. It's the guys out on the street that do all the work. They are the face of the sheriff's office."

The letter in its last paragraph reads, "Again, thank you for your service to the community. Even though the investigation continues, I have nothing but the absolute best to say about the Yuma County Sheriff's Office. The good citizens of Yuma County don't realize how fortunate they are to have such a professional law enforcement agency serve their community."

Anderson also stated in his letter that as a victim of a crime, he couldn't have been treated more courteously or more professionally.

"To me, it was important for them to know that what they did was appreciated," Anderson said. "They are out there working hard and doing a good job."

The letter read, "Even though (the detectives) are literally buried in cases and complaints, they made us feel like we were their only victims. The detectives have kept us apprised of the investigation and have contacted us regularly."

Anderson went on to say, as a former law enforcement officer himself, he felt the sheriff's office displays the intent and spirit in which the creators of the victim rights laws envisioned years ago.

"I can't say enough about them," Anderson said. "This is exactly how victims rights is supposed to work."

The letter, which the sheriff's office received last week, specifically cites three deputies for their efforts in his case, Scott Bjornstad, J. Bier and supervisor Raul Garcia.

Incidently the week of April 13-19 happens to be National Crime Victims Week this year.


----
James Gilbert can be reached at
jgilbert@yumasun.com or 539-6854.