Nutley Resident Tries To Sell Tesla Car, Gets Ripped Off: Police

NUTLEY, NJ — A Nutley resident was ripped off when they tried to sell their Tesla electric car for $65,000 over the internet last week, authorities say.

According to the Nutley Police Department, officers took a report of a fraud from an East Centre Street resident on Jan. 27. The victim said they were contacted by a prospective buyer after posting their Tesla for sale online.

“Several correspondences” later, the two agreed on a deal to set up an escrow account to transfer the $65,000 for the vehicle upon inspection.

The buyer came to the victim’s home and told them that after they had the vehicle inspected by an authorized Tesla dealership, the money would be transferred. The seller then handed over the keys and car to the buyer, police said.

However, the funds were still not transferred after a few days. When the victim tried to contact the buyer, they couldn’t get in touch with him, police said.

The seller then checked the buyer’s profile online, discovering that there were several articles and posting that warned about his “fraudulent activities.”

Nutley police attempted to verify the suspect’s identity, finding that he had warrants out of Virginia and Washington for allegedly committing similar offenses. Officers entered the car as stolen, then put out a warrant for the suspect’s arrest.

Police in Maryland later apprehended him and charged him with theft, authorities said.

Extradition is not authorized at this time, according to Nutley police, who didn’t release the suspect’s identity in an initial statement.

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