A dealer is being punished for committing fraud that prosecutors said had involved more than two dozen auto-finance providers, resulting in more than $2 million losses.

Officials from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia said last week that a Virginia Beach man who owned an independent dealership was sentenced to six years in prison for conspiracy to commit mail, bank, and wire fraud.

According to court documents highlighted in a news release, Adrian Knight owned Ace Auto Sales in Chesapeake, Va.

From March 2019 to January 2023, officials said Knight engaged in a fraud conspiracy in which he and co-conspirators listed Ace as the seller of automobiles in buyers’ agreements or buyers’ orders that accompanied fraudulent loan applications to various financial institutions for automobiles that were not in Ace’s inventory.

Officials said Knight recruited the co-conspirators and was the leader of the operation. They continued that the conspirators provided false information, such as altered vehicle identification numbers and false income and employment data, to obtain the financing.

After the financial institutions provided funds to Knight and others, officials said Knight would retain a portion of the proceeds and share the remainder with his co-conspirators.

The conspirators would then default on the loan or claim the loan was filed through identity theft, and the banks or their insurers were left with the loss, according to the Justice Department.

Officials indicated no vehicles were purchased with these loan proceeds. Prosecutors added the fraud victimized two dozen financial institutions and resulted in more than $2 million in fraud loss.

“Adrian Knight conspired to profit from exploiting financial institutions that serve honest consumers,” said Lindsey Halligan, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “These schemes undermine legitimate lending and drive up costs for borrowers. We will continue to ensure that markets remain fair, transparent, and trustworthy, and that those who manipulate the system for personal gain are brought to justice.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Clayton LaForge prosecuted the case, according to the news release.