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In February 2019, a burnt-out Tesla Model X was discovered on a frozen lake in Vermont.

The carcass was discovered by another Tesla driver who thought it weird that a car could be so burnt and not melt through the ice, and so posted about it on the Tesla Motors Club forum.

This gave rise to all sorts of theories as to how and why a car would be on the ice in such a bad state.

Some leaned towards a crash and then malfunction that made it burn on its own, while others, like Popular Mechanics, noticed something off about the damaged battery pack.

But now, after some digging, the rumours and speculation can be laid to rest.

According to an indictment filed by the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont, VICE reports that it turns out the entire story was a lie to cover up what was allegedly a basic Tesla theft scheme.

Michael A. Gonzales of Colchester, Vermont, is accused of having a very bad habit of buying Teslas, taking possession after making a small initial payment, and then not allowing the full payment to actually go through.

He then allegedly proceeded to sell the Teslas that were not actually his to both dealerships and private individuals, making very decent money in the process.

Here’s how he would have cheated the system, made possible largely because Tesla mainly dealt online:

To buy online, customers put a down payment of about $2 500 at time of purchase, then provide bank account details for either a wire or Automated Clearing House (ACH) transfer.

Then, the customer either goes to a store and picks up the car or it is delivered to them. The customer also receives a Manufacturer’s Certificate of Origin so the customer can register the car under their name with the DMV.

It appears Gonzalez noticed that Teslas could be picked up from the stores before the actual money is transferred.

So if someone were to, say, have insufficient funds in their bank account to buy a $150 000 car, they would have the car registered in their name and be long gone by the time Tesla figured that out.

The indictment mentions that Gonzalez scored his first Model 3 Tesla at $58 200 in September 2018, and then repeated the process outlined above four more times, except with the more expensive Model X.

He is said to have made up fake bank account numbers, roping in family and friends to help with the initial fee before transferring the car into his name.

He sold three vehicles – one to a car dealership, one on Craigslist, and one on eBay, while the fourth was repossessed for a failure of payment.

Combined, the sales landed him a whopping $607 000.

The fifth Tesla? Well, that one burnt on the frozen lake.

Image: D. Merrill

And true to some of the theories making their way around the internet, it looks like Gonzalez lit that Tesla on fire in an attempt at insurance fraud:

Gonzalez bought that particular Tesla in Tampa, Florida, using a Florida driver’s license. For whatever reason, Gonzalez was never given the Manufacturer’s Certificate of Origin, so he couldn’t register the car under his own name to re-sell it.

Image: Avery Thompson / Popular Mechanics

After the car burned to the ice, Gonzalez filed a claim for damage with GEICO. But, as anyone who has ever filed a car insurance claim knows, you need to have the car registered under your name to make a valid claim.

Gonzalez didn’t have that. So GEICO denied the claim. He bought another Tesla Model X three weeks later.

According to the US Attorney’s Office press release, Gonzalez could be up for 10 years in prison for each count.

[source:vice]