Thursday, October 31, 2002
Dillon denies he was swindled
Bengals star says he's not victim in car scam
The Cincinnati Enquirer and The Associated Press
Bengals running back Corey Dillon said he is not involved in the case of a Stamford, Conn., car dealer charged with swindling more than $1 million from Dillon and six other buyers.
Peter van de Goor, 37, of Stamford, is accused of taking prospective buyers' money for Ferraris and other cars and then failing to deliver the automobiles, The Advocate of Stamford reported Wednesday.
After practice Wednesday, Dillon said he has his car.
"I've got a nice, lovely, Tour de France blue Ferrari Spider 2001 convertible sitting in my garage right now as we speak," Dillon said. "I'm not worried about it. I'm not involved, and I don't want to be involved. I'm not in it."
According to the Advocate, Dillon signed a contract with van de Goor to buy a Ferrari and wired the $200,000 purchase price to an escrow account, authorities said. Court records say van de Goor never delivered the Tour de France blue Ferrari and pocketed Dillon's money.
The allegations are contained in arrest warrant affidavits charging van de Goor with first-degree larceny, a felony. The state police Regional Auto Theft Task Force obtained seven arrest warrants for van de Goor last week.
Police said van de Goor ran Export Autos, which catered to high-end customers.
"Over 1,000 clients worldwide have relied on us to deliver their dream car ... If we can't get it, nobody can," the company's Web site says. The site said its customers include talk-show host David Letterman and former New York Yankees slugger Reggie Jackson.
Dillon responded to an advertisement posted in the duPont Registry, a magazine that caters to collectors of rare and exotic cars, court documents say.
Police said a limited number of Ferraris are imported into the United States each year, so it often is difficult for buyers to find one with the color and equipment they want. Brokers often are used to locate a specific car, police said.
Van de Goor, being held on bonds totaling more than $400,000, was scheduled to appear in Stamford Superior Court on Nov. 14. He faces more than 150 years in prison if convicted of all charges and could be deported to his native Holland.
Authorities began investigating van de Goor earlier this year after he allegedly stole a $95,000 deposit from an Ohio man for the purchase of a Ferrari, court documents say.
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