Federal Judge Debates Acquittal Serra Nissan Controller Of Conspiracy Charges

We reported previously Serra Nissan in Birmingham, Alabama is under federal investigation for allegedly defrauding Nissan North American out of $64,800 in sales incentives. Now a federal judge is deciding whether or not to acquit Serra Nissan controller Kimberly Branch. Branch was found guilty by a jury on one count of conspiracy to commit fraud against Nissan North America, however, she was found not guilty on 15 counts of wire fraud. The decision on the part of the judge will represent the latest in a string of less than optimal headlines generated by Serra Nissan.

The negative press for this Nissan store began in 2014 when we reported seven dealership employees were indicted on federal charges from this same store in the same year. A number of employees, including former General Manager Randy Visser, pooled sales in March 2013 so that the Serra Nissan in Culman, Alabama could get enough sales to qualify for $64,800 in incentives. In addition to pooling sales from one store to another, Visser reportedly instructed employees to create fake paperwork and documents for sales that never happened.

Pertaining to the potential acquittal of Kimberly Branch, the question is whether or not there was a “meeting of the minds” between Branch and other dealership employees leading to a conspiracy. Branch’s job, according to AL.com was to keep a list of 15 sales that occurred at Serra Nissan in Birmingham, Alabama and pass them to another employee who created falsified deal jackets to show the sales occurred at the Cullman, Alabama store. Thus, in order to take advantage of automaker incentives, numerous employees apparently felt scamming the OEM was the answer. Instead of improving their sales process, being more transparent and perhaps working harder, their plan was to commit fraud, which ultimately has led to criminal charges and tarnished dealership and personal reputations.

How can automakers more closely monitor their sales incentives to watch for future fraud from employees who seek to defraud them? What preventative measures do you have in place at your store to monitor and prevent fraudulent activity?