Bruzilla
Well-Known Member
As many of you know, I've been trying to get a 440 swapped into my 74 Roadrunner since March 2013, and to date it still hasn't been done. The work was supposed to be done by Pure Performance and Dents, a company here in Jacksonville run by a consummate bullshit artist named Mike Harris. The final straw came a few weeks ago when Mike contacted me and said he needed to buy a crossmember for the car, and I told him no way. I sent him all the information on the Schumacher mounts and told him to order them and he said he would.
I went by last Friday to get an update, and he told me he was still waiting on the mounts to come in. Sensing more bullshit, I called the Schumacher guys and asked them to verify that they had been ordered. On Monday they sent me an email stating they had no orders in my name, his name, the business name, or even the Jacksonville area. Pretty conclusive proof.
As I was leaving the shop on Friday, I saw a truck parked at the entrance to the industrial park with all kinds of signs accusing Harris of being a thief all over it. I stopped to check it out and met the owners who told me they had been ripped off by Harris as well, had won a lawsuit against him, and that Ken Amaro, the consumer protection guy for one of the Jacksonville news operations, had just been there doing a report. This is it here:
http://www.firstcoastnews.com/story...07/30/we-want-him-in-criminal-court/30905985/
The car Amaro is standing next to at the start of the report is mine. One thing I learned from the guys who were there protesting is they all took civil action against Harris, and once a case is deemed a civil matter it can't become a criminal matter. They were wanting Harris arrested, but there's really nothing the cops can do because they all have civil cases. But now along comes me, who has not filed a civil action of any kind.
So here's what I've got now. First, I have a good case for theft over the disappearing 360 engine I wrote about a year or so ago. I also think I have a great case for Theft by Deception because he told me my 440 had been rebuilt and the 915 heads put on, and the engine was ready to install. When I get the engine back it's going straight to another shop to be checked to make sure it was in fact worked on, and if it still has 346 heads on it. If so then I can sell a judge on how he was hoping I wouldn't look under the valve covers and see he had ripped me off. Lastly, when I was there a few months ago and started talking about getting a refund, Mike told me "You can gorget about a refund. In fact I might put a (mechanics) lien on your car and sell it!" Of course, these liens are for doing work and not getting paid for it, not getting paid for work and not doing it, and misusing liens in this manner is a felony here in Florida. Best of all, I record every conversation and meeting I have with the guy, so I've got lots of evidence.
So today I'll be having the car towed back to my house and making arrangements to have the engine and trans taken to a new shop. What I'm looking at is either getting the $2,900 I've paid him back, or if he refuses I'll work with JSO to get him indicted, arrested, prosecuted, convicted, and then have a judge add $4,000 in restitution costs to his parole/probation arrangements. He may blow off paying civil judgements, but he can't blow off a restitution order or he goes back in the can.
I went by last Friday to get an update, and he told me he was still waiting on the mounts to come in. Sensing more bullshit, I called the Schumacher guys and asked them to verify that they had been ordered. On Monday they sent me an email stating they had no orders in my name, his name, the business name, or even the Jacksonville area. Pretty conclusive proof.
As I was leaving the shop on Friday, I saw a truck parked at the entrance to the industrial park with all kinds of signs accusing Harris of being a thief all over it. I stopped to check it out and met the owners who told me they had been ripped off by Harris as well, had won a lawsuit against him, and that Ken Amaro, the consumer protection guy for one of the Jacksonville news operations, had just been there doing a report. This is it here:
http://www.firstcoastnews.com/story...07/30/we-want-him-in-criminal-court/30905985/
The car Amaro is standing next to at the start of the report is mine. One thing I learned from the guys who were there protesting is they all took civil action against Harris, and once a case is deemed a civil matter it can't become a criminal matter. They were wanting Harris arrested, but there's really nothing the cops can do because they all have civil cases. But now along comes me, who has not filed a civil action of any kind.
So here's what I've got now. First, I have a good case for theft over the disappearing 360 engine I wrote about a year or so ago. I also think I have a great case for Theft by Deception because he told me my 440 had been rebuilt and the 915 heads put on, and the engine was ready to install. When I get the engine back it's going straight to another shop to be checked to make sure it was in fact worked on, and if it still has 346 heads on it. If so then I can sell a judge on how he was hoping I wouldn't look under the valve covers and see he had ripped me off. Lastly, when I was there a few months ago and started talking about getting a refund, Mike told me "You can gorget about a refund. In fact I might put a (mechanics) lien on your car and sell it!" Of course, these liens are for doing work and not getting paid for it, not getting paid for work and not doing it, and misusing liens in this manner is a felony here in Florida. Best of all, I record every conversation and meeting I have with the guy, so I've got lots of evidence.
So today I'll be having the car towed back to my house and making arrangements to have the engine and trans taken to a new shop. What I'm looking at is either getting the $2,900 I've paid him back, or if he refuses I'll work with JSO to get him indicted, arrested, prosecuted, convicted, and then have a judge add $4,000 in restitution costs to his parole/probation arrangements. He may blow off paying civil judgements, but he can't blow off a restitution order or he goes back in the can.
