BUTLER COUNTY — More charges were filed and three more victims came forward with complaints against a Butler County mechanic and his business.
“We live in this area,” said William Acker. “My wife works in this area. We drive past his business, and he’s still working on cars. He’s still doing business, and I know there’s still people out there that are being taken advantage of.”
William Acker is talking about Keith Smith and his business. Acker says he took his car to Oilology in September 2021.
[ PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Owner of Cranberry Township auto shop facing new accusations, charges ]
“I was taken advantage of for a year plus,” said Acker.
He’s not alone. Each person in the parking lot outside of the courtroom in Cranberry has a story about Smith. They say they paid him to fix their cars. They say their insurance companies have paid him money. They also claim the work hasn’t been done or their cars are in worse shape.
Acker also met the woman whose car he had been driving.
“He gives you a car, and you think it’s a rental car or whatever, and you drive it,” said Acker. “The next week another car. The next week another car. Over the year, probably 16-20 different cars from him that I drove.”
According to a new criminal complaint filed this week, one woman found out her car wasn’t being serviced like she thought because she received bills from the PA Turnpike for tolls. That’s one of the Cranberry Police Department’s cases along with five others. At this point, State police have three, and there’s at least two more with other departments.
“This is deep,” said Acker. “Yeah, very deep.”
Acker says it’s not just about the cars or all the money anymore.
“It’s about getting the word out so people stop going to this business,” said Acker. “It’s a little overwhelming. And people are saying this is a small percentage of us. There are more people coming. So yeah, it’s upsetting.”
Smith pleaded “not guilty.”
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