Ever get nervous about leaving your vehicle at a repair shop? If not, this case out of New Jersey might change your mind.
It sounds like the kind of situation every driver hopes to avoid. A New Jersey woman dropped her car off at a local repair shop, expecting routine service. Instead, after weeks of delays and unanswered questions, she learned the vehicle had already been crushed.
According to authorities, the incident took place in New Jersey. The owner initially contacted a neighborhood mechanic to address an issue with her car and was instructed to leave it at the shop so repairs could begin within a few days.
After some time passed without updates, she called for a status check. She was told the technician needed additional time. Days turned into weeks, and weeks stretched into months. Each time she followed up, she reportedly received the same explanation — the work wasn’t finished yet.
Eventually, the prolonged delay raised red flags. Sensing that something wasn’t right, the woman pushed for clearer answers. When those didn’t come, she contacted the Bloomingdale Police Department to step in and investigate.
Officers reached out to the repair shop, only to be told the car was no longer on the premises.
At first glance, that explanation made little sense. Stories occasionally surface about mechanics misusing customer vehicles, but a car completely vanishing is another matter. Investigators began tracing the vehicle’s path and eventually uncovered a connection to an out-of-state business specializing in scrapping and crushing vehicles.
That discovery led to a troubling conclusion: the car had already been destroyed.
Police later determined that a 49-year-old employee of the repair shop had allegedly removed the vehicle and transported it to a scrap yard. Authorities say she posed as the rightful owner and sold the car for an undisclosed amount of money.
Employees at the scrapyard were reportedly unaware of any wrongdoing. The vehicle was processed and crushed in the normal course of business. Afterward, the remains were shipped out of state, eliminating any possibility of recovering the car — even in pieces.
Law enforcement officials arrested the repair shop employee and charged her with motor vehicle theft and impersonation offenses. As for the owner, her best path forward may be through an insurance claim, though the case remains under review as the legal process continues.