Ex-auto dealer in Valley pleads guilty to three felony charges

By PETER H. MILLIKEN VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER

Gregory Harvey and his brother had dealerships in Boardman and Canfield.

YOUNGSTOWN — A defendant in an alleged automobile dealing fraud scheme has pleaded guilty to three felony counts of theft.

Gregory A. Harvey, 37, of South East River Road, Berlin Center, entered his plea Wednesday afternoon before Judge John M. Durkin of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court.

Robert E. Bush Jr., chief of the criminal division of the county prosecutor’s office, agreed to drop 24 more theft counts and 11 title offense charges against Harvey.

Bush recommended that the judge consider placing Harvey on probation, with the condition that the defendant would continue his cooperation with investigating authorities.

Harvey remains free on a recognizance bond pending his sentencing at 9 a.m. Feb. 12, at which Bush said victims will give victim-impact statements. A year ago, Bush estimated there are more than 60 victims and the total fraud is hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Harvey could be fined $5,000 and imprisoned for six to 18 months on each of the theft counts to which he pleaded guilty.

Harvey’s lawyer, Ron Yarwood, said his client has genuine remorse, is cooperating fully with authorities and committed sizeable sums of his own money to try to cover victims’ losses before the probe began.

Bush said Harvey’s cooperation with authorities includes testifying against his brother, Buddy Harvey, 42, also of Berlin Center, who faces all 63 counts in the indictment. They consist of 43 theft counts, 15 title offenses, three records tampering counts and one count each of defrauding creditors and passing bad checks. All 63 counts are felonies.

Buddy Harvey’s case is pending.

The indictment was filed against the Harveys on Dec. 6, 2007, and pertains to offenses that reportedly occurred between 2002 and 2006.

The Ohio Attorney General’s office has filed a civil lawsuit against the Harveys and their former Harv’s Cars dealership in Boardman, which earlier operated in Canfield, seeking restitution for the victims.

Any restitution not covered by the civil suit will be included in the sentence Gregory Harvey receives in the criminal case, Judge Durkin said.

Buddy Harvey was the “primary mover and shaker” in the fraud scheme, Bush said.

It is difficult to prosecute a complex fraud scheme without having an insider, such as Gregory Harvey, as a cooperating witness, Bush said after court, explaining his reasoning for making the plea agreement with Gregory Harvey.

Some victims told police they traded in vehicles at Harv’s Cars in Boardman for newer models. As part of the agreement, the dealership was to pay off the loan balances on the traded-in vehicles, but it failed to do so, forcing victims to make payments on both the old and newer vehicles, according to the complaints.

Other complaints came from those who bought vehicles at Harv’s, but contended they never received the titles.

Other people said they paid for warranties on vehicles purchased at the dealership and later learned that those warranties hadn’t been processed and weren’t valid.

The Harveys also took in vehicles to be sold under a consignment arrangement, in which the Harveys were to get a commission and give the remaining sale proceeds to the sellers. The Harveys would sell the cars and not give the proceeds to the people who brought in the vehicles, and purchasers would drive the vehicles without valid titles, police and prosecutors said.