A Missouri tow truck company owner has been sentenced to nearly 13 years in federal prison for using forged paperwork to sell or scrap stolen vehicles, leading to several million dollars in proceeds.
According to federal prosecutors, Dennis Arthur Cleveland, 76, the former owner of Affordable Towing in the Springfield area, directed employees to submit fraudulent documents to the Missouri Department of Revenue to obtain mechanic’s liens and vehicle titles for cars the company had no legal right to sell.
The documents contained forged signatures that falsely indicated vehicle owners had authorized the transactions. Additionally, every vehicle involved in the scheme had previously been reported stolen…