Parisian Woman’s Rental Car Sold, Tracked to Morocco Before Recovery in France

Sarah rented out her Mercedes Class A on August 2 through a peer-to-peer website. The 10-day rental agreement was made with a certain Luka for an amount of 1,800 euros, reports La Dépêche. After the rental period expired, the young woman had no news from the renter. Worried, she filed a complaint for theft. A few days later, she managed to locate her car in southern France, near Montpellier. Questioned by the police, the driver of the vehicle claims to have bought it in Lyon. The vehicle registration certificate indicates that it was put into circulation on August 5, 2024. Without proof that it was Sarah’s vehicle, the police officer let the driver go.

The young woman did not give up. She geolocated her car again in Narbonne. A motorcycle patrol of the gendarmerie intercepted the vehicle, but the same scenario occurred. The gendarme let the vehicle go after checking its registration certificate. Determined to recover her car, the Parisian continued to locate it, noting that it ended up in Morocco, after crossing Spain. Then, no more signal from the vehicle. A few days later, Sarah locates her car again, which has left Morocco, crossed Spain and entered France, before ending its journey in Narbonne. The young woman seized the Narbonne public prosecutor’s office, arguing that she is the legal owner of this vehicle which appears to have been fraudulently sold to a third party.

The Narbonne prosecutor, Eric Camous, immediately ordered the re-registration of the vehicle in the signaling files. Thanks to this measure, the car was intercepted by the gendarmes on August 20. The woman at the wheel was questioned to determine the conditions of acquisition of the vehicle. The driver explains that she bought the car on an online sales site. She would have paid 19,000 euros to a certain Ethan and would not have bothered to verify the authenticity of the vehicle documents. The amount was paid in two installments: part in cash and the other into the account of a certain Luka.

The prosecutor doubts the good faith of the driver. "The young woman Sarah was the original owner of the Mercedes Class A vehicle. As a movable property, the time elapsed since the date on which she lost possession of it being less than three years, she remains the sole legitimate owner, with the driver having to turn against the seller," the prosecutor ruled, ordering the return of the vehicle to Sarah. She recovered her property in Narbonne on Friday, September 13. Investigations are ongoing in Lyon and Paris to unravel this fraud case.