A McHenry man is accused of advertising a vehicle for sale on social media and scamming a would-be buyer out of thousands of dollars before reposting the car for sale, according to court records.
Ricky Evans, 32, of McHenry is charged with theft by deception of between $5,000 and $10,000, as well as altering, forging or counterfeiting a manufacturer’s statement of origin or title certificate, and possessing a stolen or altered registration, title or plates, according to criminal complaints filed in McHenry County court.
Evans made his first appearance in court recently, at which Judge Cynthia Lamb allowed his release from county jail with conditions including he not sell anything online.
Authorities allege that on Feb. 5, Evans advertised a 2012 Honda Accord Crosstour for sale on Facebook Marketplace for $4,500 and arranged to meet a would-be buyer at a bar in McHenry. Evans gave the man an altered CarFax report, as well as a fraudulent Nevada title and accepted $3,500, according to authorities.
He allegedly told the would-be buyer that he would deliver the vehicle to his home the next day in exchange for the balance of $1,000, according to the complaint.
However, authorities said, Evans did not deliver the vehicle as agreed and blocked the man from “further communication.” The man reported that he later saw the same Honda “listed again for sale under a different account” allegedly created by Evans, court documents show.
The allegedly fraudulent CarFax report included altered mileage, a false number of prior owners and an incorrect vehicle identification, or VIN, number, McHenry police said in the complaint.
Evans “presented the CarFax report as an authentic vehicle history report and used it to represent that the vehicle’s identifying information and history were accurate and legitimate,” police said.
In the alleged scheme, Evans also is accused of possessing and using “a purported Nevada Certificate of Title” for a 2012 Honda Accord Crosstour” knowing it was altered, forged or counterfeited, police said. The Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles later confirmed the title Evans presented was counterfeit, police said.
A man with the same age and name was one of the proprietors of House of Rage! in McHenry, which opened in November 2022 but has since apparently closed. It was a business described in a Shaw Local story as a place for “therapeutic” recreation, where visitors would wear safety gear from head to toe, including a hard hat and goggles, and with a club smash items such as wine bottles, computers and appliances. It was a way for people to have fun and “release emotional pain and anger,” the co-owner is quoted as saying.