An Oregon man sold a red Jeep Wrangler his late father left him five months ago. The dealership quickly found a buyer but still hasn’t paid him.

When Jeff Peck’s father died in June, his will read that Jeff would inherit his treasured Jeep Wrangler. Living in Portland, he turned to Central Oregon Motors in Prineville – three hours from his home in Portland – to sell it on his behalf.

The dealership’s owner, Mike Smetzer, took in Peck’s Jeep and was able to find buyers for it fairly quickly. Smetzer told Peck the buyers were in Arizona. Peck believed it was meant to be.

“[Smetzer] said it’s sold to a retired couple from Lake Havasu (Arizona), and they were looking for a red Jeep. Just so happened, my dad passed away in Lake Havasu,” Peck told KTVZ.

Peck expected to receive $24,000 after originally asking for $33,000. He felt happy to sell it to a deserving buyer, but worry took over him after weeks passed without a check.

“I’m feeling very violated,” said Peck. “‘He kept telling us, ‘I would never rip you off, I would never scam you, that’ll never happen.'”

He told the outlet he pressed Smetzer about his payment. Smetzer blamed the financing company for the mishap. When Peck asked for proof, he became more suspicious.

The dealership owner is a one-trick pony

Smetzer apparently used that excuse with other clients who complained of the same thing: selling a car but never seeing a check.

“We found out that his texts to us were copies of the same texts he sent to everybody else,” he said. “The more we kept digging, the more we were just amazed at how deep this actually went, and then we started finding more people that he had done this to”

Peck continued to pressure Smetzer, who told him to contact the finance company for payment and keep his name out of the conversation. The company was unaware of such a transaction.

“He told us to contact his bond company, but not to let them know that he told us to contact them,” Peck continued. “And at that point, I’m like, ‘Okay, there’s something fishy going on here.'”

Peck’s suspicion drove him to do his homework, and that’s when he discovered the truth.

The Jeep never made it to Arizona

Peck said when Smetzer confirmed the sale in July, he’d signed the Jeep’s title over to the dealership on consignment. His research revealed the Jeep never made it to Lake Havasu. Instead, someone sold the Jeep to a dealership in Missouri and backdated the paperwork to late June.

Peck tracked the VIN and discovered the dealership sold the Jeep to a private owner, who drove it for a few thousand miles before trading it in for another vehicle.

He found it for sale online in Illinois. Peck decided to report Smetzer to the Oregon DMV, who initiated an investigation.

“Our Oregon DMV investigator was able to finally get them to cooperate, gave us a copy of the title, and the signatures were forged,” said Peck. “The police department has all that information.”

The company reportedly ripped off more customers than just Peck. The outlet reported that two different loan companies were suing Smetzer for breach of contract and alleged misappropriation of proceeds of “one or more items of collateral.”