Hudson Valley Man Accused Of Massive Auto Repair Scam

A Poughkeepsie man stands accused of orchestrating an auto repair scheme to the tune of $30 million. The New York Post reports Ibrahim Issa, owner of First Star Auto Repair, scammed the Postal Service while responsible for fleet maintenance.

Issa faces up to 25 years behind bars for bribery and theft. He's accused of falsely servicing US Postal Service trucks, but charging for the work anyway. Often times the vehicles were returned without any repair work being done at all. To keep the flow of work steady, he was bribing USPS workers with cash, dinners and tablets.

In 2013, the Office of the Inspector General sent two managers undercover to meet with Issa after complaints began to arise. At one dinner, he gave investigators $2,000 in cash in a napkin, picked up the tab on the $650 bill and gifted two very expensive bottles of Johnnie Walker Black (the good stuff). All in an attempt to gain more car repair work, that he wasn't going to do anyway.

First Star Auto Repair is located in The Bronx. Issa has shops in Florida, Michigan and Texas too.