- Thieves stole seven high-end vehicles worth $200K from a small dealership in North Carolina.
- While some of the cars have been recovered, the owner says insurance won’t cover the devaluation.
- North Carolina authorities arrested four men in connection with the theft last month.
When crime hits too close to home, the consequences are often far more than financial. The owner of an independent used car dealership in Farmville, North Carolina, has been forced to shut down the shop and file for bankruptcy after a group of thieves stole seven vehicles from the lot during a brazen heist on October 24.
At approximately 1 a.m., thieves pulled up at D&S Auto Source and broke in, destroying one of the security cameras. They then picked the lock on one of the safes and smashed open another, getting the keys to seven vehicles and making off with them. The vehicles had a combined value of roughly $200,000.
Watch: Man Accused Of Stealing 9 Cars Before Burning Down Dealership
The haul included a Ford F-150 Raptor, a Mercedes SL, two Porsche Cayennes, an Audi sedan, and a Mercedes GL SUV.
The owner of the dealership, Spencer Beamon, opened the facility with his wife a little over four years ago. While authorities have recovered some of the vehicles, Beamon says insurance is refusing to cover the cost of the devaluation of the cars now that they have ‘theft recovered’ titles. He also says insurance is not willing to make him whole on the vehicles that remain missing, prompting Beamon to launch a GoFundMe campaign and close the dealership for good.
“They took my cars and changed my livelihood, flipped it all over,” Beamon told ABC News 12. “I hope they find some way to do better in their life.”
Towards the end of November, local police revealed that four men had been arrested in relation to the thefts. Each suspect has been charged with felony conspiracy, breaking and entering, safecracking, larceny after breaking and entering, seven counts of larceny of a motor vehicle, and possession of a stolen motor vehicle. The Putt County Sheriff’s Office expects to make more arrests in connection with the theft.