UPDATE MARCH 21: Thanks to the viewer who reached out to 13 Action News, a local business and our crews we have a story with a happy ending.
Hyatt Crystal reached out to us after his car went missing when he dropped it off at a local dealership. After about five months, he is getting his car back.
Crystal dropped off his Mustang at the dealership where he bought it, West Coast Autos, for repairs. West Coast Autos closed without notice and his car seemingly disappeared.
"For the next several months, I didn't know where my car was, I didn't know if it even existed anymore," Crystal said.
He called 13 Action News when the police told him they could not help and his attorney had not gotten results. Our crew saw a car that matched his photos sitting in the lot that once was West Coast Autos.
With a little research, 13 Action News found out it was his car. Then we connected Crystal with the dealership, and he got in touch with their general manager.
"My girlfriend actually was watching the news and saw the yellow Mustang, saw the next door, and said, 'did you hear about this?'" said Auto World General Manager David Ligotti.
Ligotti got to work trying to make sure Crystal could get the car back free of charge. He said even the bank handling the loan thought the car was stolen and the insurance was taking care of it.
"Him and 13 Action News have done more for me in the last few days than anybody's done in the past several months," Crystal said. "I get my car back today and that's the best news I've had in five months."
UPDATE MARCH 17: After the Mustang was spotted at a lot Thursday, Hyatt Crystal told 13 Action News that the company confirmed Friday the vehicle is in fact his after he provided proper documents.
He is unsure how or when he will get his car back.
ORIGINAL STORY
LAS VEGAS (KTNV) -- A Las Vegas couple says their car disappeared from underneath them after they dropped it off at the dealership for repairs.
They told 13 Action News they told police and hired a lawyer, but still don't have their car!
"I bought a car, 2005 Mustang GT, bright yellow, can't miss it, back in June of last year," said Hyatt Crystal.
The Mustang was not just Crystal's pride and joy -- it was also how he got to work. When the car broke down, things went downhill quickly.
"Out of that three months, I probably drove the car maybe a total of one month," said Crystal. "The rest of the time it was over at the dealership."
Crystal took the car back to West Coast Auto Sales, located near Nellis Boulevard and Owens Avenue, in September when it stopped running. Then he went to check on it about a month later.
"The lot was completely empty, nothing there. The gates were closed," Crystal said.
He said he filed a police report, but they told him it was a civil issue. He even hired a lawyer.
"It's been really hard, especially since we're still paying for it," said his wife Lauren.
"Since September we've been making $350 a month payments plus the insurance and that adds up," said Crystal. "That's money we could have used on something else."
13 Action News contacted the Department of Motor Vehicles, and they were able to tell us the car had a smog check back in February. But Crystal said the car was missing in February.
"Car dealers buy and sell cars all the time and they turn them over real fast," said Kevin Malone with the DMV. "It looked to us, if it got a smog check on it, that it was probably being prepared for sale again."
13 Action News went out to what was West Coast Auto Sales. Malone said the DMV had several alleged violations, but closed on their own late last year.
Behind the fence at the former West Coast Auto Sales was a Mustang that looked a lot like Crystal's. Turns out, the vehicle identification number for that car is the same as the VIN for Crystal's missing car.
A nearby auto dealer told us they're taking over the property and they got the Mustang for their new inventory. They promised us if Crystal can prove the VIN matches his missing car, they will give it back.
