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Man Charged In Vehicle Title Scam; FHP Executes Search Warrant In Cottage Hill
November 19, 2020
A Cantonment man was arrested in a vehicle title scheme after a search warrant was executed this week at his Cottage Hill home.
Lawrence Trevon Lee, Jr., age 24, was charged by the Florida Highway Patrol Bureau of Criminal Investigations and Intelligence with felony fraud for obtaining goods etc. with a an invalid vehicle title, felony fraud for possession similitude of a driver’s license and felony fraud swindle for obtaining property between $20,000 and $50,000.
Lee allegedly financed a Mercedes-Benz C-Class using a false social security number in February 2020 but never made a payment before engaging in the title washing scheme.
In May, the finance company received contact from a towing and recovery company claiming a towing lien. A third party claimed he purchased the vehicle from a towing company in Alabama after it was allegedly found abandoned without an engine an other parts. He offered to release the vehicle back to the finance company for $4.500. That person, according to FHP, was Lee pretending to be someone else.
An attorney for the finance company contacted authorities, believing they were victims of a vehicle title scheme amounting to $30,000 plus finance charges.
A Florida Highway Patrol investigator found a picture of Lee with the Mercedes CL300 on his Facebook page. The photo was taken in front of the house he occupied on Soft Point Drive in Cottage Hill.
The investigator wrote in his report that the towing company filed a fraudulent tow and title storage application with the Escambia County Tax Collector’s Office. According to the FHP report, an individual at the towing company is currently under investigation for multiple fraudulent title applications.
Two other “lien washes” involving Lee and the man at the towing company were discovered by the FHP investigator, the report states.
This week, the Florida Highway Patrol served a search warrant at the home on Soft Point Drive with the assistance of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and other agencies. The search warrant produced evidence further linking Lee to the title scheme, his arrest report states.
Lee was released from the Escambia County Jail on a $10,000 bond.
Additional arrests are expected in the case.
Pictured: The Florida Highway Patrol and other agencies execute a search warrant at a home on Soft Point Drive in Cottage Hill. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Comments
13 Responses to “Man Charged In Vehicle Title Scam; FHP Executes Search Warrant In Cottage Hill”
He seems nice
Glad they caught this scammer. He appears to have cheated the system he probably hates. Many of these grateful types of people walking around these days. They believe anything they’re told or they view on the internet and for some reason, lack the ability to critically think. In a way, they are just followers believing the passed down stories that the system is out to get them but never actually tried to live a clean life. Oh well, it just makes more job security for law enforcement and the police state. Cant complain about a police state when crime is rampant… duuurrrr
Actually L, a simple Google search will tell you everything you need to know. He’s no stranger to the criminal justice system. It’s not really that hard to have nice things if you work for them, but he seems not to have learned that lesson.
This guy should be in the NFL right now catching passes but chose to walk an alternate, troublesome path.
Wow what idiots just because this happened doesn’t mean he didn’t earn any of his things. You know nothing about the man. The amount of stupid I’ve seen comment is really sad. Who really thinks backing in your car must mean you own it illegally.
I graciously stand corrected……regardless of,who did it,it got done by Law!!!
and that was my point!! Thank you very much for showing me this!!!
“Kudos to ECSO!!!!”
I certainly appreciate what the ECSO does, but they didn’t do this. Do you see ECSO anywhere in this story? Read it again (hint, they are not mentioned!). It was FHP.
Kudos to ECSO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for going the arduous paper trail to find this high end thief!!!!!!!!!!!
I know bonds are supposed to be reasonable and take many factors into consideration. I just feel that he is a flight risk being so savvy at scamming and covering things up. I would assume he has access to dirty money and can get out of town quickly. I’d never be his bond person. Thank God it is not my job. Maybe some day this fellow can earn a honest living.
Released on $10000.00 he will get a slap on the wrist and continue living the life of crime.
@JustSaying – A lot of people back their cars in and own or finance their vehicles legally.
The vehicles parked there could be “hot” too?, all nicely backed in.
White collar crime. Will be interesting to see what his sentence is. Looks like he was living the luxury life when he didn’t actually earn any of it. Big house, high end cars… glad they caught this guy living on his high horse.