Exotic car dealer and owner of the world’s largest Lamborghini dealership Viken Keuylian has plead guilty to federal charges of bilking $12 million dollars from a finance company. He is now out on $10,000 bond and has been cleared to head to Syria with his ailing mother. I wonder if he will partake in exotic car rentals while on vacation.
What is more surprising is that this is not the first trip for this high-flying dealer, there have been many. Keuylian’s case has been festering since May of 2009, during which he has traveled quite extensively, including trips to Massachusetts, Arizona and Nevada for business, and Alaska for pleasure. In October of 2009 Keuylian was permitted to “travel throughout the continental United States for business”, according to court documents.
Keuylian was once on top, selling exotic cars like Lamborghinis to a celebrity clientele base that included Kobe Bryant. He now faces a max of 30 years and a $1 million dollar fine for wire fraud. It seems that back in 2008, Keuylian sold five percent of all Lamborghinis in the world through his two dealerships, Platinum Motors (aka Lamborghini of Orange County) and Calabasas EuroAutoGroup.
The exotic car dealer became buried in debt from a vineyard and his properties, including a building on Pacific Coast Highway in Newport Beach and a Lotus dealership in Beverly Hills, and began to siphon funds that were legally to go to Volkswagen Credit Inc. He had borrowed the money from Volkswagen Credit to fund the purchase of 54 exotic cars, under the agreement that when the cars were sold, the debt would be repaid.
Keuylian pocketed the profits from selling the luxury cars, including Lamborghinis and Bentleys, and told VW that the cars remained on his lots. Classy. Did he not think that VW would have people to check on the status of that type of large investment?
I think you have a safer bet with a Los Angeles luxury rental car dealership until the above dealerships get worked out.
Sentencing has been postponed until July, and in the mean time Keuylian seems to still be enjoying the high-life.
Post by Imagine Lifestyles Luxury Rentals