Well, the story wasn't all that detailed. What I got from it was that he had these engines in his garage and that they were from stolen Camaro's. It also mentioned that he was charged with felonies involving a chop shop.
What we really don't know for certain is exactly how he came into possession of these engines and ecu's. I really don't know what to say about the chop shop reference. I would think that if he were actually directly involved with that, that any good reporter would have focused on that more. Was that a statement made by the police, or was that an assumption made by either a police officer, a witness, or the reporter? I would think that if the cop was actually involved with the dismantling of stolen cars, that the last place he would hide the parts is his own garage, if I read that right.
Of course the other side of it is that regardless of how he came into possession of the engines and parts, he, like any of us, and probably more so than any of us should have done due diligence. In other words, if he bought these at a too good to be true price, he should have verified authenticity, and reported it if he suspected they were stolen. In this regard, his profession certainly does hold him to a higher standard. But you know, I'd bet there are a lot people that have bought stolen goods from classified ads, that may or may not have suspected foul play. But again, we don't know how he got them.
http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/201...en-auto-parts/
This report does make it sound like he was running a chop shop though. Guess we'll just have to see how this goes.
What if he pulled the engines from cars in the impound lot that the claims had been paid on, but before they got to auction. Still illegal, but not like he actually stole the cars, are bought them directly from the thieves. That's just a thought, as unlikely as it might be.