Greeley Car Dealer Charged in Organized Crime Scheme
Published on August 07, 2017
GREELEY, Colo. (Weld County D.A.) – A Greeley car dealer, already indicted on more than 30 counts in a human trafficking investigation, is facing additional charges for organized crime and illegal business practices.
45-year-old Noman Boroumand, the owner of 1st Choice Motors in Greeley, was charged Friday with 166 counts, including violation of the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act (COCCA), theft, forgery, tax evasion, filing a false tax return and computer crimes.
According to the affidavit, the defendant’s elaborate scheme – which included several scams – started in January 2013 and lasted until the state closed the dealership in May of this year.
In what investigators believe to be Boroumand’s largest scam, he allegedly duped several banks out of millions of dollars by falsifying sales. In this case, Cache Bank & Trust, Guaranty Bank and Advantage Bank lent Boroumand’s dealership money to purchase vehicles. In turn, the defendant was to sell the vehicles at a profit and pay off the loans to the banks.
On paper, it seemed the sales were legitimate, but according to the affidavit, he would pay a willing participant, known as a straw man, for his or her personal information. Boroumand would use that information to apply for a loan and pocket the money. He also failed to repay the original loan on the vehicle, essentially double-dipping. To entice a straw man, Boroumand would convince the person that their credit score would rise and give them money, according to the affidavit.
In another scam, the defendant encouraged buyers to purchase vehicle service contracts, which helps cover the costs of repairs or replacements. However, investigators say Boroumand took the purchaser’s money and failed to actually buy the service contract. Those buyers and service contract providers later learned of the scam when they tried submitting a claim.
According to the affidavit, he also compensated his employees to take part in the scams, forged financial loan documents and failed to accurately report his taxes.
In addition to these charges, Boroumand was also indicted by a grand jury in late June on 36 counts, including human trafficking, multiple counts of sexual assault, stalking and kidnapping.
The defendant’s bond for both cases is now $4.5 million. He returns to courts August 22 at 10:30 a.m. in Division 12.