ROCKINGHAM — Investigators allege that a man sold his former roommate’s vehicle to a scrap yard.
According to the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, the investigation began Aug. 3 when the alleged victim called to report that his vehicle had been stolen from Dockery Road.
The unnamed owner of the vehicle had reportedly been a roommate of 38-year-old William Andrew Sanders and was moving out.
When he went to get his vehicle, it was gone and the owner reportedly told deputies that Sanders said he had it moved to a garage on Poole Road to get it off the property.
However, the owner reportedly couldn’t find it and called the sheriff’s office.
Investigators were reportedly contacted on Aug. 19 by an agent with the N.C. License and Theft Bureau who said he had found documents for a vehicle at a Hoffman scrap yard that had been reported stolen.
Investigators confirmed it was Sanders’ roommate’s vehicle by the VIN and reportedly learned that Sanders had sold it to the scrap yard on July 29. The amount of money he allegedly received was not disclosed in the press release.
Sanders was arrested Friday, Sept. 16 and charged with one felony count each of larceny of a motor vehicle and obtaining property by false pretenses.
He was booked into the Richmond County Jail under a $5,000 secured bond, but it appears he has since been released. Sanders is scheduled to appear in court Oct. 6.
Online court records show a William Andrew Sanders with the same birth date is also facing charges in Wayne County of: possessing, selling or buying property with an altered serial number; possession of methamphetamine; possession of a firearm by a felon; possession of drug paraphernalia; and carrying a concealed gun. His next appearance on those charges is scheduled for Jan. 1, 2023.
Records with the N.C. Department of Public Safety Division of Adult Correction show Sanders was first convicted in 2003 on a misdemeanor count of possession of a Schedule VI controlled substance, then in 2005 of misdemeanor larceny.
In 2008, Sanders was convicted of possession with intent to sell a Schedule VI controlled substance. His probation was revoked in 2012 when he was convicted on another count of the same charge, landing him behind bars for four months.
All defendants facing criminal charges are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
