Mike Abatecola, an exotic car owner, recently bought a Lamborghini from Vladimir “Val” Ranguelov, Dealer Principal of Bul Automotive in Albany, New York.
A short while after, Abatecola says, Ranguelov persuaded him to sell the car back to him for an upgrade — so he did. But the dealership failed to pay off the remaining loan balance.
By the time Abatecola realized what had happened, Ranguelov had already taken the car, leaving him $200,000 in debt.
Thanks to the FBI, Abatecola was reunited with his luxury vehicle in June.
But he’s still in shock.
“I’m still numb,” he told WNYT NewsChannel 13. “I don’t make that kind of money to be robbed.”
After Abatecola approached the FBI and shared his story online, more than a dozen other buyers responded with similar complaints. Ranguelov had two dealerships, Bul Automotive in New York and Karma Automotive in Jacksonville, Florida, which abruptly ceased operations in June.
After the FBI got involved, Abatecola’s Lamborghini was recovered. However, the tangled web of unpaid loans and potential second-buyer claims remains under investigation. Affected customers are now exploring a class-action lawsuit.
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Abatecola’s ordeal comes amid a nationwide slowdown in vehicle theft and related fraud. The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) found U.S. auto thefts totalled 850,708 in 2024 — down 17% from 2023.
The District of Columbia led with the highest rate of 842.40 reported thefts per 100,000 residents, followed by California, with 463.21 thefts per 100,000 residents.
Though theft rates have decreased recently, auto criminals have grown more sophisticated in recent years. From title washing, which involves wiping anything perceived as negative — like salvage status or flood damage — from a used vehicle’s record to VIN cloning, which masks stolen or damaged vehicles with legitimate identification numbers, it’s difficult to know what you’re really buying.
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