District Attorney Jim Martin has announced that the Lehigh County Auto Theft Task Force has been awarded the George J. Acker Memorial Award. This award was established in 1999 in memory of George J. Acker, a charter member of the Northeast Chapter of the International Association of Auto Theft Investigators and a former member of the New York State Police, who was a past president and active member of the organization until his death in 1997.

The recipients of this award are selected for their outstanding efforts and work in the field of auto theft or fraud prevention, detection, or investigation, specifically in the area relating to documentation. The Lehigh County Auto Theft Task Force received this year’s award based on their investigation of a case which occurred in both Lehigh and Northampton Counties and which led to arrests.

On Dec. 13, 2017, an investigation began for a report of a motor vehicle theft from 16 E. Susquehanna St. in Allentown. The owner of a Toyota Tacoma reported that it was stolen sometime during the overnight hours from his driveway. After reporting the theft, the owner filed an insurance claim with Progressive Insurance, seeking $9,000 in compensation.

On March 9, 2018, the vehicle was recovered in Northampton County. Members of the Lehigh County Auto Theft Task Force responded to the recovery scene and canvassed the area. Several witnesses were interviewed. Through the course of the investigation, it was determined that the owner of the Tacoma arranged to have the vehicle stolen with the intention of reselling the vehicle with fraudulent title work. As it turned out, this discovery was just the beginning of a broader, more complex case.

As the investigation progressed, detectives discovered that an individual by the name of Robert Hunter may have acted as an accomplice in the attempt to obtain a fraudulent title for the Tacoma. When confronted by the detectives about the vehicle, Mr. Hunter provided the detectives with what he professed to be a court order for the stolen vehicle giving him legal possession of it. The court order was signed by a common pleas judge in Northampton County, appearing to order possession of the vehicle to Mr. Hunter as a result of his representation to the court that it was an abandoned vehicle. Thus, armed with a common pleas court order, Mr. Hunter would then be in a position to apply to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation for a vehicle title in his name. However, the detectives noticed numerous indicators that the court order Mr. Hunter gave to them had been altered.

As a result, on June 20, 2018, auto theft detectives went to the Northampton County Prothonotary’s office and obtained all court orders that Mr. Hunter filed with the court for the possession of abandoned vehicles. All court orders were examined in detail.

Auto theft detectives uncovered that Mr. Hunter did receive one legitimate court order signed by a judge giving him possession of a vehicle; however, he then took that authentic court order, erased the vehicle identification number and vehicle description, and inserted different vehicle information into the order. After doing so, he would make photocopies of the doctored order and file them with the Prothonotary’s office (which, at the time, accepted photocopies for filing). Once accepted and stamped by the Prothonotary, Mr. Hunter would then send the order to PennDOT requesting that a new title be issued in his name.

Ultimately, as confirmed by the judge whose name was on the original legitimate order but photocopied on the others, it was learned that over 80 vehicles had been titled to Mr. Hunter fraudulently, all by means of utilizing altered, photocopied court orders to circumvent the court. Several PennDot requests for title histories were examined, showing the defendant was filing forged title work with PennDot in order to gain title to and possession of multiple cars. A search warrant for Mr. Hunter’s phone was executed, which assisted in determining other vehicle crimes that had been perpetrated by him.

During the course of the investigation, the Palmer Township Police Department was also investigating the same individual for theft, bad checks, and fraud. Ironically, it was determined that Mr. Hunter was writing several bad checks to PennDot for payment on title processing fees.

For over two years, this defendant defrauded multiple victims of their vehicles, commonly selling or scrapping the vehicles and keeping the proceeds. Furthermore, Mr. Hunter had acquired his mother’s notary stamp and was using her stamp to finalize the fraudulent transfer paperwork. As of this date, the Pennsylvania Department of State is conducting an investigation on the suspect’s mother for multiple notary violations.

As a result of the Auto Theft Task Force investigation, three arrests were made: Robert Hunter, who pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two to four years in a state correctional facility; Cathleen Bacon, who pleaded guilty to False Swearing and was sentenced to six months’ probation; and a third individual, who pleaded guilty and was given Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition and had his record expunged.

The following charges were filed as a consequence of the investigation, totaling 45 felonies and seven misdemeanors:

- Dealing in Proceeds in unlawful activity, a felony of the first degree;

- Forgery, a felony of the second degree;

- Insurance Fraud, a felony of the third degree;

- Theft by deception, a felony of the third degree;

- Theft by unlawful taking, a felony of the third degree;

- Receiving stolen property; a felony of the third degree;

- Washing Vehicle Titles; a felony of the third degree;

- Possession of Instrument of crimes, a misdemeanor of the first degree;

- False swearing; a misdemeanor of the second degree;

- Unsworn Falsification, a misdemeanor of the second degree;

- Unauthorized use of auto, a misdemeanor of the second degree;

- False reports to police, a misdemeanor of the third degree;

- False reports vehicle code, a misdemeanor of the third degree.

“I am pleased that the Detectives of the Lehigh County Auto Theft Task Force received this prestigious award based on their excellent investigative work in unraveling extensive documentation and shutting down what otherwise would have been an ongoing crime spree that undoubtedly would have victimized additional vehicle owners,” said Martin. “Their efforts reflect the expertise and diligence of this task force.”

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