D.C. government inspectors Wednesday raided a series of auto repair shops and used-car lots in Northeast Washington in a coordinated crackdown on illegal businesses.
Organized by the Office of Consumer Protection, which is under the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, Operation Pit Bull was billed as the end result of a two-month investigation by a half-dozen District agencies into the businesses fronting a three-block stretch of Bladensburg Road.
“We’re finding some business that are not in compliance, and some vehicles that do not have the posted federal buyer’s guides in them, and we’ll take appropriate action,” said Bob Harris, manager of the Consumer Protection Office.
One business, an Aamco at 1001 Bladensburg Road, was immediately shuttered by investigators due to problems with its certificate of occupancy, said Karyn-Siobhan Robinson, DCRA spokeswoman. Most of the other shops faced fines for a variety of technical violations.
The goal was not to shut down businesses, Harris said, but to help them “come into voluntary compliance and bring fairness to the marketplace.” All vehicles on used-car lots are to be marked with a buyer’s guide in the window. Dealers and their businesses must be licensed, and the offices must have a valid certificate of occupancy and insurance. Fines range from $2,000 to $10,000 per violation.
While the initial enforcement keyed on licensing and zoning issues, officials said, the inspections could reveal more serious offenses, such as stolen cars or chop shops.
Inside a garage at 1250 Bladensburg Road, employees appeared to be illegally rebuilding the body of a car from the salvaged parts of multiple vehicles. But customer Ronnie Williams said he was nevertheless interested in buying an Oldsmobile for sale on the lot.
“I get a beautifully nice deal,” Williams said. “To support minority businesses, I will always come here.”
A neighbor of the same lot, meanwhile, urged officials to “shut them all down,” referring to the litany of businesses along Bladensburg she claimed were operating illegally.
In most cases, the owners of the businesses were not on the premises when Pit Bull enforcers came calling. Employees inside a small office at 1000 Bladensburg, listed as Northeast Motors Inc., said the owner had locked them behind the company gate without a key.
