Cumberland Township used car dealer pleads guilty to failing to send customers’ vehicles payments to PennDOT
A Cumberland Township used car dealer who failed to submit administrative fees and tax payments for more than 200 vehicles he sold from 2016 through 2018 pleaded guilty earlier this month to one felony count and thousands of summary offenses.
Samuel R. Calabris III pleaded guilty April 18 in Greene County Court to one felony charge of theft by failure to make required disposition of funds and 1,408 summary counts and was immediately sentenced by President Judge Lou Dayich to serve 90 days in jail and pay $28,900 in restitution.
Calabris operated Sam’s Auto Sales on Route 88 in Cumberland Township when he stopped making proper payments of vehicle transfer fees and taxes to the state Department of Transportation over a nearly two-year period shortly after taking over the business upon his father’s death in late 2015. State police said Calabris took more than $37,000 from the scheme, which left 227 customers without proper state paperwork for their vehicles, making them illegal on the road. The individual thefts ranged from $36 to $857, with most cases under $300.
Calabris was charged in June 2018 with more than 1,800 counts connected to the alleged scheme following a nine-month investigation by state police. He has been free on unsecured bond while waiting the resolution of his case.
Calabris, 60, of Morgantown, W.Va., will be incarcerated at the Greene County jail on weekends beginning May 5 until he’s done serving his 90-day sentence. The Greene County district attorney’s office asked all victims of Calabris to contact their office at 724-852-5273 now that the case has been closed.