News

Oct 14, 2024

Miami federal jury convicts dealership employee of carjacking customer after autopay hiccup

Chris Gothner, Digital Journalist MIAMI – A man who worked at his family’s South Florida car dealership could face more than a decade in federal prison after a jury convicted him of carjacking a

Chris Gothner, Digital Journalist

MIAMI – A man who worked at his family’s South Florida car dealership could face more than a decade in federal prison after a jury convicted him of carjacking a customer, officials with the U.S. Department of Justice announced Friday.

Prosecutors said the whole thing stemmed from an autopay issue that caused the victim to miss a loan payment on a 2020 Honda Accord.

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The Miami federal jury convicted Erik Hadad, 58, of Aventura, on Tuesday, a DOJ news release states. Hadad worked at Guru Auto Sales, which was located at 2690 S. State Road 7 in Miramar. The business is listed on Google as “permanently closed.”

Authorities said the victim, a 24-year-old Haitian immigrant, bought the car from Guru in October 2023 and was not given a copy of the sales paperwork he signed.

“In making the purchase, the victim understood that he was paying a finance company,” the news release. “What the victim was not aware of was that there was an agreement between the finance company and Guru, and if the victim was late on a payment within the first two months of the loan, then the finance company could demand the approximately $13,800 it paid for the loan back from the dealership.”

Prosecutors continued, “That part of the agreement mattered because the victim’s first payment bounced after he set up autopay, with the victim paying the first installment late and with a late fee in late November 2023.”

Authorities said because of that, the finance company sent Guru a letter on Dec. 14, 2023, saying that the dealership needed to buy the loan back and owed about $13,000.

Prosecutors said the carjacking occurred five days later, even though the victim “was current on his account that day” and the dealership “was expressly told they couldn’t repossess the car.”

Nevertheless, authorities said Hadad followed the victim in a BMW near Miami International Airport.

Prosecutors said when the victim reached a red light at Le Jeune Road and Northwest 31st Street, “Hadad, whom the victim had never met before, got out of the black BMW in the middle of the intersection and approached the victim’s Honda, ripping off the paper temporary tag and aggressively yelling at the victim to get out of the car.”

“The victim was able to get away when the light turned green, but Hadad eventually caught up to the victim” at the MIA Tri-Rail station, authorities said, and Hadad “continued aggressively screaming for the victim to get out of the car.”

“Hadad lifted his shirt to reveal that he had a gun holstered in his waistband, which led the victim to surrender his keys,” the news release states.

The victim, “in shock,” called Miami-Dade police, who arrested Hadad, initially on state charges, and located the gun. The case later became federal as the Honda was, according to a federal indictment, “transported, shipped and received in interstate and foreign commerce.”

Hadad, an Israeli national, is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 9, prosecutors said.

According to the federal carjacking statute, Hadad could spend up to 15 years behind bars.

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