Whistleblower: With key, theft was easy

Elizabeth Flores, Star Tribune

Tina De Lo Santos' SUV was stolen in August.

SUV was stolen and stripped after dealership made ignition key for a woman who didn't own the vehicle.

By LORA PABST, Star Tribune

Last update: November 15, 2009 - 8:27 AM

One night in August, Miguel De Leon Duenas was awakened by his fiancée's yells that someone was stealing their GMC Yukon Denali. When he ran outside, he was puzzled at the absence of any broken glass on the driveway.

Fridley police found the SUV a few hours later up on blocks, missing a set of tires and rims worth $2,400, De Leon Duenas said. The thief must have had a key, the police said. Some detective work by Tina De Los Santos, De Leon Duenas' fiancée, and her mother determined how that might have happened: A few weeks before the theft, a woman walked into Rosedale Chevrolet in Roseville, pretended to be the Yukon's owner and got a key made for it.

More than two months later, the Fridley couple are still trying to persuade the company that owns the dealership to replace the tires and rims and install new locks and an ignition. They also want to know how someone who didn't own a vehicle got a key for it from a dealership.

"Why did they make a key without my permission?" De Leon Duenas, 32, said this week through a translator.

Tom Grossman, who owns Rosedale Chevrolet's parent company, declined to discuss the dealership's actions in detail, but said "to my knowledge, we've done nothing wrong."

Last month, the company's insurer denied the couple's claim.

De Leon Duenas bought the 2000 Yukon from a friend this summer. He was told there was only one set of keys.

De Los Santos, 31, who co-owns the Yukon, said that after the Aug. 24 theft, she called GMC customer service and found out that a key had been made for her car at Rosedale Chevrolet in early August. When she called the dealership, De Los Santos said, a manager told her a key was made for a woman who presented an ID and a purchase agreement.

A spokeswoman for General Motors said dealerships have to get codes from the corporate office before they can make keys. The dealership is required to ask for government-issued photo identification and proof of ownership, such as a vehicle registration or title. They also need to make copies of the documents and keep them for two years. The online system used to look up key codes requires dealership employees to agree that they have abided by the requirements.

Fridley police Lt. Mike Monsrud said his department investigated the theft, but could not track down the woman whose driver's license reportedly was used to obtain the key. Fridley turned the case over to Roseville police, who are investigating what happened at the dealership.

Monsrud said it's an unusual way to steal a car. "I've never heard of anybody going this far before,'' he said. Monsrud said car dealerships should "check with vehicle owners before they go making keys."

Grossman said he would not comment about whether Rosedale Chevrolet employees followed proper procedures because he has not been contacted directly by De Leon Duenas or the police.

But an adjustor from the dealership's insurance company met with De Leon Duenas and De Los Santos last month. They had received a letter from the insurer saying it couldn't prove the tires and rims were stolen.

"There is no conclusive evidence of the loss. Accordingly, we must inform you that we are unable to make any payments for damages."

De Los Santos is still hoping that the dealership will change her locks.

"Why should I pay for something they did?" De Los Santos said. "There's a key floating around and no one is doing anything."

She borrowed a set of tires for the SUV, but she tries to limit where she drives the car. When she does take it out, she puts a piece of paper over the vehicle identification number and uses a wheel lock in case the thief still has the key.

Lora Pabst • 612-673-4628

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