Playa del Carmen, Q.R. — Two men accused of private vehicle sales fraud in PDC and Cancun have been arrested in Playa del Carmen. On Monday, State Attorney General (FGE) head, Raciel López Salazar, said Manuel Jesús “N” and Mario Arturo “N” are in custody.
During a Security Roundtable Conference he said “a criminal gang dedicated to fraud in the sale of vehicles was dismantled.”
Elements of the Investigative Police arrested Manuel Jesús “N” and Mario Arturo “N” in the vicinity of the Misión de las Flores neighborhood in Playa del Carmen. The pair were initially picked up on drug possession, however, they are now facing additional charges.
“During the operation, police seized a dried green herb resembling marijuana, a crystalline substance resembling methamphetamine and a Nissan March with license plates from the state of Yucatán, which is linked to an ongoing fraud investigation in Cancun,” he reported.
“Investigations indicate that both detainees are linked to at least two investigations for the crime of fraud, stemming from the sale of vehicles that were later reported as stolen.
“In one of the cases, a victim reported that on September 29, 2023, he purchased a Nissan March 2023 model vehicle for 192,000 pesos from Mario Arturo “N” who allegedly usurped the identity of another person to complete the transaction after having offered the vehicle on a digital platform for 200,000 pesos,” López Salazar detailed.
The delivery of the vehicle, as well as an alleged endorsed invoice, took place in the parking lot of a López Portillo Avenue shopping plaza of Cancun.
“As a result of the investigation, on March 27 of this year, members of the Investigative Police located the Nissan March vehicle, white in color, with the same serial and engine numbers but with different license plates, in the Misión de las Flores neighborhood in Playa del Carmen, which was driven by Mario Arturo “N” at the time of his arrest.
“In the same operation, Manuel Jesús “N”, identified as the former brother-in-law of the person listed as the vehicle’s owner, was arrested.
It should be noted that both detainees are related and that one of them had previously reported the supposed discovery of the vehicle to the 911 emergency number, as part of a fabricated crime.
“According to the investigations, the defendants simulated the sale of vehicles using forged documents and later reported the vehicles as stolen.
“Likewise, both subjects were recognized by another victim for their probable participation in the crimes of fraud, falsification and use of false documents after the sale of a Ford Figo vehicle for the amount of 85,000 pesos which had a theft report and alterations in its serial and engine numbers.”
Earlier this month, a group of Americans were stopped for driving a stolen SUV they had rented from a central Playa del Carmen car rental company. Police did not say if these stolen vehicle cases may be related.
