Hacked car computers to falsify odometers

An Arrowtown man sold 16 luxury cars on Trade Me for inflated prices after hacking their computer systems to ‘‘wind back’’ their odometers and delete their full service histories.

Stephen William Cadby (54) continued his offending for four-and-a-half years until 2015, even after doubts were raised about the veracity of three of the vehicles’ odometers.

He was sentenced by Judge Bernadette Farnan in the Queenstown District Court yesterday on 17 charges of obtaining by deception and seven charges of using a document dishonestly to obtain a pecuniary advantage.

Judge Farnan said Cadby began importing luxury European vehicles with manipulated odometers from the United Kingdom in 2010 and sold them to individual buyers throughout New Zealand.

He made regular trips to the UK to buy the vehicles through a car auction website, and delivered them to shipping agents after manipulating their computer systems.

In New Zealand he advertised them online, describing them as being in "immaculate condition" with low odometer readings.

The total cost to the 17 victims — one of the 16 cars was traded twice — was more than $100,000.

Judge Farnan accepted Crown submissions that Cadby’s offending was highly premeditated, had been repeated over a long period, and caused significant financial loss and "anxiety and stress" to the victims.

Although the cars had been sold in private transactions in which there was an onus on buyers to do their own due diligence, they had believed they were dealing with a "genuine" person.

"A significant number of them feel betrayed by your behaviour."

The buyer of one vehicle had been ‘‘vulnerable’’ as she had specifically raised the issue of its odometer reading with the defendant.

Judge Farnan said Cadby had held a restorative justice meeting one of his victims, but the others had either declined the opportunity or been unavailable.

In determining his sentence, she gave him credit for his guilty plea, remorse and previous good character.

On each charge, she sentenced him to 10 months’ home detention, to be served concurrently, 250 hours’ community work and ordered him to pay a total of $100,690 in reparation.

The home detention came with a special condition that he not possess or consume alcohol or drugs for the duration of the sentence and for six months after the end date of the sentence.

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