COLUMBUS — An Ohio car dealership owner pleaded guilty to federal charges in connection with altering the odometers on vehicles he sold.
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Simon C. Nwaru, Jr., 38, of Columbus, was indicted by a federal grand jury in April 2025 and pleaded guilty last week, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of Ohio.
Since October 2014, it’s estimated that approximately 60 percent of all vehicles sold by Nwaru at his dealership in Whitehall had their odometers tampered with or replaced to fraudulently reflect lower mileage.
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According to the plea agreement, a review of vehicle sales between January 2021 and January 2023 documented at least 300 vehicles sold with rolled back odometers, accounting for at least 31 million miles being removed.
Court documents also revealed that Nwaru listed false sales prices on documents submitted to the State of Ohio, causing a loss of tax revenue.
Odometer fraud is a federal crime punishable by up to three years in prison. Nwaru’s sentencing has not been scheduled at this time.
The case was investigated by the United States Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) Office of Odometer Fraud Investigation, and the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles Investigations Section.
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