Used car salesman scams $1.5M from buyers of wheelchair-accessible vehicles
A used car salesman is heading to prison after he admitted to engaging in a $1.45 million fraud scheme involving the sale of wheelchair-accessible vehicles.
Authorities said in a statement announcing the sentencing of Edward Scott Rock, 50, that he stole money from over 100 victims in 40 states by accepting payments for the specialty vehicles, then failing to deliver them.
While the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) said Rock took in over $2.5 million over the three-year duration of his scam, he did refund some of his victims—often using new money he was taking in from the current people he was scamming.
To date, the agency said 75 victims are waiting to be paid back.
Rock pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud and one count of wire fraud in October 2025 and was sentenced this week, on June 3. A federal judge handed down a punishment of 41 months in prison.
A restitution fund was also established to get refunds to the remaining victims. In addition, authorities seized over $1,469,617 as part of a forfeiture judgment. The DOJ added that, once Rock is released from a federal penitentiary, he will be subject to three years of law enforcement supervision.
He was formally indicted shortly after his fraud scheme was shut down in 2023, with court documents claiming it all began in 2019, when Rock began advertising and accepting payments for wheelchair-accessible vehicles from his used car lot in Pennsylvania.
Forged ADA certifications
Prosecutors said the man also forged Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance letters to add legitimacy to his criminal enterprise, which he used to scam his victims—practically all of whom were disabled or elderly.
Some businesses were also named among those scammed by Rock, including nursing homes and medical transport companies who ordered wheelchair-accessible vehicles that were never delivered.
As for how he got away with operating what was ostensibly a Ponzi scheme, the DOJ said Rock would dole out lies to explain away delayed deliveries. He would also write checks that literally could not be cashed, sometimes using the bank accounts of family members to cover his tracks.
On some occasions, Rock also “sold” the same customized, modified wheelchair-accessible vehicle to multiple customers, each time having the bogus ADA certification to make it seem that the vehicles met the needs of his unwitting victims.
“For example, Rock agreed to sell the same wheelchair-accessible 2017 Ford T150 van to 16 different buyers over an 11-month period between February 2022 and January 2023,” the DOJ wrote. “He collected more than $330,000 in payments for this accessible van from various buyers, eventually delivering it to one purchaser without proper title, and leaving the other buyers without their vehicle.”
Multiple law enforcement agencies cooperated to arrest Rock, who resided in Philadelphia, including the city police department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Attorney’s office.
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