Valleywide : Stings Lead to Charges Against Mechanics

A series of undercover stings by the California Bureau of Automotive Repair has resulted in criminal charges against operators of a pair of Valley mechanic shops.

Ramiro O. Acuna of Pacoima, owner of Advance Transmission in North Hollywood, pleaded no contest Monday to one count of theft. Acuna, 42, was ordered to pay $1,350 and perform 15 days of community service. He was also placed on three years probation.

Bureau agents purchased three transmissions from the Lankershim Boulevard shop that failed to meet state law standards, according to City Atty. James Hahn’s office, which is prosecuting the cases.

Boyd Jamieson Young of Winnetka, owner of Young’s Automotive in Panorama City, was charged last week with two counts of theft, failure to provide a customer with a written estimate, failure to provide a customer with a proper invoice and three counts of making false and misleading statements.

Michael Roy Drummond Jr. of Northridge, an employee of Young’s Automotive, was charged with one count of theft and two counts of making false and misleading statements.

Those charges stem from three incidents in which the Van Nuys Boulevard shop charged for unnecessary work or work that was not done, according to Los Angeles Deputy City Atty. Mark Lambert.

A bureau agent took a 1979 Chevrolet pickup truck equipped with a new clutch in need of a minor adjustment into Young’s Automotive for a transmission clutch diagnosis. Drummond allegedly recommended the installation of a new clutch.

In later alleged instances, one agent was charged for air-conditioning refrigerant that was not provided and another was charged for the unnecessary installation of a clutch master cylinder.

Young and Drummond, both 25, are scheduled to be arraigned Aug. 17 in Los Angeles Municipal Court.

The maximum penalty for making false and misleading statements is six months in jail and a $2,500 fine. The other counts carry a maximum penalty of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Bureau agents regularly monitor advertisements for “too good to be true” prices on automotive work and launched both investigations after seeing ads in an area publication, said Mike Qualls, spokesman for the Los Angeles city attorney’s office.