[yetibone]

Really, not much can be done except to put word out to others before it happens again. There's at least three monetary court judgments against him, including John Connolly of Aircooled.net which haven't, and likely can't be paid because he has no assets to collect. He doesn't own his shop, home, or any vehicles of significant value, and keeps only a small balance in a checking account for utilities. He obviously knows how to be evasive, and how to use the system to his advantage.

There are North Carolina laws used to protect a mechanic's investment in a job he's done by allowing the mechanic to file a lien against the title of the vehicle he's worked on, so if the owner of the vehicle defaults on payment for services done, the mechanic has a stake in the ownership of the vehicle, and the title can't change hands until the lien is signed off. The lien holder can even repossess the vehicle, and sell it for the money owed after 30 days (I think). Mario did this to a young fellow who he employed to work off a debt incurred during some repairs done to his Bug. After his short employment at Vintage Werks, Mario apparently tried to file a mechanics lien on the title of the car, and sent a tow to the young man's home, got the car, and locked it behind the fence at his shop in an effort to milk the fellow for $$ by saying his term of employment wasn't congruent with the debt that was owed. The Burlington police got involved, and after some wrangling, the young man got his Bug back, but got no restitution for the problems and inconvienence Mario caused him.

One member on this forum has had a couple of bad experiences with this Mario. I'll let him decide whether he wants to share his story.

So, if Mario hasn't got a pot to p!$$ in, then you can't take that pot away, and as long as there's some naivety among ACVW owners in NC, Mario isn't going away anytime soon, which is sad, but true.