- Four Orem auto shop employees face charges accusing them of conducting fraudulent emissions tests.
- They allegedly used a "clean connect method" to falsify test results since 2022.
- Undercover operations confirmed technicians profited by bypassing necessary vehicle repairs, the charges state.
OREM — Four employees of an Orem auto repair shop are accused of giving fake emissions tests to vehicles that would have otherwise failed their emissions tests.
Benjamin Louis Nielsen, 52, of Pleasant Grove, Matthew Neil Lerud, 41, of South Jordan, and Christian Valdovinos, 27, of Provo, were each charged Wednesday in 4th District Court with five counts of violating the Air Conservation Act, a third-degree felony. Diego Alonso Lazo, 28, of Saratoga Springs, was charged with six counts of violating the Air Conservation Act.
According to prosecutors, in June, "it was brought to the attention of the Orem Police Department that the Utah County Health Department had discovered that Cleggs Car Care, located in Orem, was conducting fraudulent vehicle emissions tests dating back to as early as 2022."
Detectives collected information that four employees at Cleggs had conducted "numerous fraudulent tests" this year, charging documents state.
"It was discovered after reviewing many months of records from the health department emissions tests that the four technicians would fraudulently pass a vehicle's emission test by conducting what is called a 'clean connect method.' A clean connect occurs when a technician fraudulently connects the emissions analyzer machine to a third vehicle, but the technician will pretend that the analyzer machine was actually connected to the vehicle that was brought to Cleggs for an emissions test," according to charging documents.
Investigators say they have evidence of this by comparing the digital VIN number recorded by the emissions analyzer and the VIN number manually input into the machine by the employee, the charges state.
"The fraudulent tests showing a passing result at Cleggs would occur after the same vehicle had failed its test at a different emissions testing station, indicating that the vehicle would normally need mechanical repair. However, instead of the owner of the vehicle making the mechanical repair, the four technicians would complete a fraudulent passing test so that the needed repairs for an actual passing result could be bypassed," charging documents state.
In return, the four technicians "would ask for a cash amount from the customers that would be paid to them to disguise the process. It is believed the technicians profited a large amount of money over the past several years," according to prosecutors.
Lazo is believed to have conducted the most emission reports this year, followed by Nielsen, the charges state.
"During the investigation, an undercover operation took place, which confirmed that at least one technician at Cleggs participated in conducting a fraudulent test in exchange for a cash amount. In-person contact identification, along with multiple emissions records from the health department, verifies the allegation of all four suspects. All four suspects knowingly made false material statements, representations, or certifications, in a notice or report required by permit, or rendered inaccurate any monitoring device or method required or maintained by the Air Conservation Act," according to charging documents.
Correction: A previous version incorrectly stated the business name as Cleggs Auto Care. It is Cleggs Car Care in Orem.
