Complaint Review: Ethan J. PLatteborze Cavalier

The following article ran in the Oregonian on July 2, 2002:

Copyright 2002 The Oregonian
The Oregonian

July 2, 2002 Tuesday SUNRISE EDITION

SECTION: LOCAL STORIES; Pg. B05

LENGTH: 764 words

HEADLINE: TWO MEN ARRESTED IN RESALE SCHEME

SOURCE: MARK LARABEE - The Oregonian

BODY:
Summary: Operating out of Tualatin, Tigard and Wilsonville, the suspects sold retailers junk instead of overstock, officials say

Ethan J. Platteborze and Kenneth S. Kluss used the Internet to get customers for their business selling big-box overstock to mom and pop stores all over the country.

On their Web site they claimed Oregon-based Cavalier Salvage was a nationwide company with 27
warehouses and a fleet of trucks that moved "liquidated, shelf-pulled, overstocked, Grade A merchandise" from a variety of retail stores such as Sears, Kmart and Costco.

But according to a recently unsealed 23-count federal indictment, the men were running a scam out of apartments in Tualatin, Tigard, Wilsonville and Las Vegas.

They owned no trucks or warehouses, the indictment states. And the merchandise they were selling was not stuff retailers took off the shelves. It was junk that had been damaged in shipment or returned broken by customers. And that was if they delivered anything at all. Some customers sent their money and never got a
thing in return, according to the accusations. The indictment states that from December 1999 to February 2002, Platteborze and Kluss defrauded at least 50 small retailers across the country of at least $400,000. They used rented mailboxes in Lake Oswego, Tigard, Beaverton and Newberg as their offices. Customers would often wire money directly to accounts controlled by the men.

Customers who called up the Cavalier Salvage Web site saw pictures of huge warehouses stocked with goods for sale. Prosecutors allege the photos were shot at City Liquidators, a large warehouse store in Southeast Portland, and the Chrysler Parts Distribution Center in Beaverton. It also showed a loading dock, trucks and trailers. The FBI shut down the Web site in February.

"The indictment alleges that these guys used the Internet to beguile and defraud people," said Allan Garten, an assistant U.S. attorney. "It was a really nice Web site. It's easy to see how people could get suckered."

In one case, Platteborze sent e-mail messages to customers using the name "Jay Clark," a fictitious Cavalier Salvage employee, according to the indictment.

The pair is charged with conspiracy, wire and mail fraud and making false statements to the FBI. The investigation is ongoing.

Kluss, 54, pleaded not guilty Monday in U.S. District Court in Portland and was released pending a trial. He was arrested at his Newberg home Friday.

Garten told a federal magistrate that FBI agents found a marijuana growing operation at the home when they were searching for evidence related to the fraud allegations. Agents seized a computer and other items, he said. Kluss' trial was set for Sept. 4.

"He certainly denies any involvement, and he'll vigorously defend it," said his attorney, Eric Woodard. "We think all the facts will come out, and they will show he wasn't involved in anything he shouldn't have been."

Platteborze, 34, who lives in Las Vegas, was arrested Friday in Cleveland as he was getting off a jet coming from London. He will make an initial court appearance in Cleveland before being sent to Oregon for his arraignment. The FBI searched his home Monday.

Paula Blake was glad to hear the men had been arrested. Last summer, as she was getting set to open her store, Robbie's Discount in Big Stone Gap, Va., she found the Cavalier Salvage Web site and began talking business with Platteborze. Eventually, she spent $8,600 for what was supposed to be a truckload of Black & Decker power tools.

"They sent me a truck with a bunch of junk," she said Monday. "I called them personally. I thought they sent me the wrong load."

She said Platteborze promised to ship her the proper goods but dragged his feet. So she hired an Oregon lawyer to help her get her money back.

"I was just starting," she said of her store selling discount groceries and surplus goods. "I've been here a year. He was the second person I bought off of. His Web site looked so great I talked to him, and I thought this guy is
a good contact. We almost went under."

Blake borrowed some money to keep the business running. The FBI eventually contacted her, and she agreed to help. She is one of about a dozen alleged victims listed in the indictment.

"It's not right for him to do people that way, whether it's a little bit or thousands and thousand of dollars," Blake said. "I might be a little country girl from Virginia, but I wasn't going to let him walk all over me."

You can reach Mark Larabee at 503-294-7664 or by e-mail at marklarabee@news.oregonian.com.

The Oregonian on July 7, 2002 reports that their web-site listed above was shut down by the FBI in February. They are accused of defrauding at least 50 small retailers of at least $400,000. Ethan J. Platterborze was arrested Friday in Cleveland. He and Kenneth S. Kluss are facing a 23 count federal indictment.

They filed the following rebuttal to the above Rip-Off Report:

Their email: CavalierSalvage@aol.com
Their name: Cavalier Salvage Inc.
Their phone number: 1-877-772-5824
Their relationship to the company: Owner

Rebuttal:
Cavalier strives to make all our customers happy.
In the above post we find it rather "Odd", that the poster was unwilling to leave a company name, contact number, or E-Mail address. As we would suggest to ANY consumer, do your research BEFORE you buy. Salvage is just that..."Salvage", but it makes THOUSANDS of customers money everyday! The above post is rather "Odd"...I would not put much faith in a post where
the "Poster" seems to offer to help out, but refuses to leave any contact information...very odd indeed!

-Cavalier Salvage
1-877-772-5824
WWW.CavalierSalvage.Com