What started as a shocking misuse of a vehicle in for service took another turn when the dealership reportedly asked the customer to drop the charges.
A service technician at a Mercedes-Benz dealership was arrested after allegedly taking a customer’s C300 out for a drink. According to a report by WREG News Channel 3 Memphis, the car had been brought in in for repairs after being filled with bad gas—but instead of staying in the shop, the owner received a GPS alert showing it parked at a local watering hole after midnight.
When police arrived, they reportedly found a dealership employee had driven the car to the bar. Kimberly Porter, the owner of the car involved, says she is a fan of the Mercedes brand, and her C300 is her fourth Benz so far. She may buy a fifth, but it likely won’t be from the same dealership. In the middle of December, she had the car towed to Mercedes-Benz of Collierville in Collierville, Tennessee. About a month later, the car was still in the shop for repairs. On the evening of Friday, January 16, she received a GPS notification that her car was moving at around 7 p.m., according to the news station; at 8:30 p.m. her GPS showed the car was at a restaurant, then shortly after midnight, the car's location was updated to the parking lot of a local bar. Porter told WREG that's when she decided to get out of bed and drive to the bar in her loaner car. She found her C-Class in the parking lot and called police, because she said she thought it had been stolen from the dealership; when authorities arrived, they reportedly found the I.D. of Derrick Nguyen, an employee of the Mercedes dealership, in the car. According to WREG, authorities say they went into the bar and spoke to Nguyen, who claimed he had permission to drive the car; however, Porter told the news station that a dealership service manager told police Nguyen wasn't supposed to be in her Benz. Collierville Police arrested Nguyen and took him to jail, where he was booked and charged with theft of property. To make matters worse, court records obtained by WREG indicate that Nguyen had been drinking; the arresting officer noted that “Derrick Nguyen was intoxicated when he was taken into custody as he had the odor of intoxicating beverages emanating from him.” But the story doesn’t end there. After having the car for over a month, Porter said the the dealership called her the very next day and said her car was fixed and ready to be picked up, and used some strong language to do so; she told WREG the dealership said that she needed to pick up her car immediately, and “If you don’t have our loaner vehicle back here by six o’clock, we’ll report it stolen.”She also said that an executive from the dealership asked Porter to drop the charges against Nguyen, because, as the executive reportedly put it, “He’s a really good kid.” She also told WREG that the general sales manager told her the customer-signed repair orders “authorize technicians to drive the vehicles to diagnose the problem, and it’s something they do all the time.” Porter has refused to drop the charges, according to WREG, and has also filed a civil lawsuit against Nguyen and the dealership. Her attorney believes that Portner may not be the only customer this has happened to. WREG reached out to the dealership for comment, but they reportedly said they would not speak about an active case.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Reimagining Leadership: Cultivating Extreme Positive Experiences for Employee Engagement and Customer LoyaltyThe article explores the decline in employee trust and customer loyalty, attributing it to a focus on fixing deficiencies instead of creating extremely positive experiences. It proposes a shift towards designing for 'love,' emphasizing the importance of control, harmony, significance, warmth, and growth. The text advocates for a focus on strengths, suggesting leaders should operationalize what works in exceptionally positive experiences.
Read more »
Chester County’s election director has resigned following election errors and employee complaintsKaren Barsoum has resigned from her role, effective in June. She'll assist with one more election.
Read more »
Meta's AI push ties employee goals to AI tool adoptionBusiness Insider tells the global tech, finance, stock market, media, economy, lifestyle, real estate, AI and innovative stories you want to know.
Read more »
Jeep Recalls Over 11,000 Wagoneer S EVs Over Liftgate IssueModel years 2024 through 2026 are affected, but it's an easy fix at the dealer.
Read more »
Woman whose son died from drugs bought on social media celebrates verdicts against Meta, YouTubeMax Osterman died in 2021 after he purchased the drugs from a dealer on Snapchat.
Read more »
The Greatest Mercedes-Benz SLs in HistoryWith its soaring gullwing doors, direct-injected inline-six racing engine, and slippery teardrop shape, the initial SL was already unlike anything on the road.
Read more »