Ex-Whitehall car dealership owner pleads guilty to lowering odometers on cars

WHITEHALL, Ohio (WCMH) -- A former Whitehall car dealership owner pleaded guilty in federal court on Thursday to altering odometers.

According to federal prosecutors, Simon C. Nwaru Jr., 38, was the owner of S. Automotive in Whitehall and indicted by a grand jury in April, two years after the Ohio Attorney General's Office sued against the dealership.

Since October 2014, it was estimated that about 60% of vehicles he sold had their odometers tampered with or replaced. According to the plea agreement, between January 2021 and January 2023, at least 300 vehicles were sold with rolled back odometers, accounting for at least 31 million miles being removed from odometers.

Nwaru also listed false sales prices on documents submitted to the state, court documents showed, leading to a loss in tax revenue.

Odometer fraud is a federal crime punishable by up to three years in prison. A sentencing date will come later for Nwaru.