A former Hadeed Motors employee has been convicted in a fraud scheme that involved falsifying company records, removing an SUV from the dealership, and later selling it for tens of thousands of dollars.

Dylan Simon, who worked at the company for more than two decades, was found guilty by Justice Stanley John on six charges, including electronic forgery, larceny by a clerk, obtaining money by false pretences and money laundering. He was taken into custody and is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 11.

Investigators said the case centred on a 2020 incident in which Simon entered bogus information into the dealership’s system to show that a Suzuki Vitara had been purchased with a cheque that never existed. That entry allowed him to produce documents used to move the vehicle off the lot, and he later collected a $600 commission as if a legitimate sale had occurred.

The SUV was sold about six months later to a used-car dealer for $55,000. Prosecutors said Simon received a vehicle valued at $22,000 and $23,000 in cash as part of the transaction.

The fraud unraveled after the company reopened from the COVID-19 shutdown and an audit revealed irregularities, including altered cheque numbers and missing payments linked to transactions Simon handled. He resigned after failing to explain the discrepancies and then attempted to transfer ownership of the stolen SUV at the Transport Board the following day.

Simon argued that others had access to his computer and claimed the transaction was paid for in cash, but his explanations were dismissed. An auditor called by the defence concluded that Simon had manipulated the records and exploited weak internal controls.

The conviction is his second in as many years; he was fined $100,000 in 2023 for unrelated electronic forgery at the same dealership.