Robert Salmo, a Valley used car dealer with a history of not providing vehicle titles and using bait-and-switch tactics has been arrested on theft charges.
Salmo was arrested by detectives with the Arizona Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General and is currently facing counts of Class 3 and Class 4 felony theft as well as several misdemeanor charges, including fraud schemes and selling on a canceled dealer’s license.
Robert Salmo, owner of the defunct Trade-In Auto Brokers dealership, had recently advertised a 1966 Pontiac Grand Prix online under the name of that business. An out-of-state buyer contacted Salmo and purchased the vehicle for $7,000. The buyer then sent an auto hauler to pick up the vehicle, but Salmo kept telling the buyer he didn’t have the title yet. After some research, the buyer discovered that the title was clear and in Salmo’s possession. He later found the same vehicle for sale again on the same website.
The case was assigned to ADOT’s Office of Inspector General by the Attorney General’s Office. ADOT detectives opened an investigation that led to Salmo’s arrest for theft of the buyer’s money without delivering the vehicle.
During the course of the investigation, detectives discovered that Salmo had pulled similar scams on a few other buyers. Unable to obtain a title, one buyer had to sell the vehicle he purchased, losing a substantial amount of money.
Salmo was arrested in July 2017 for failure to appear and pay fines on several prior violations.