Several classic Ford Mustangs are up for auction that once belonged to a lawyer accused of stealing VIN numbers from genuine Shelby vehicles and applying them to his personal cars that were then sent to auction. The vehicles in question may or may not be the genuine article based on this history, and the state of Oklahoma has given all of the cars new VIN numbers and titles, which further clouds what the actual value maybe – even if the car in question is a genuine Boss or Shelby model. The whole story is spelled out in greater detail here on the Fox News Channel, but you can check out individual cars like this 1970 Shelby GT500 Cobra convertible listed here on Proxibid. Thanks to Barn Finds reader Montana D. for the find.
While the auctioneer has multiple interesting classic cars up for grabs, the cars belonging to disgraced lawyer Kermit Millburn are what we’re focused on here. These were cars from his personal collection, but that doesn’t mean their authenticity can easily be confirmed. The report notes that some cars have odometers with zero miles on them, and other signs of significant tampering. The former owner and counterfeiter Millburn would later kill himself at a gun range as authorities closed in. Apparently, owners of genuine Shelby vehicles started to see cars being auctioned off with their VIN numbers, indicating Millburn was stealing VIN tags from genuine cars and applying them to cheap copies. Check out one his personal vehicles here on Proxibid, a 1970 Boss 302.
In my opinion, this is a good opportunity for someone to pick up a significant muscle car on the cheap (or at least a decent discount) but only if they have no intention of immediately selling it, or at least selling for a profit. How could you possibly untangle the web of lies that now surrounds these cars, especially with the state issuing new VINs and title documents? This is another 1970 Boss 302 listed here on Proxibid that certainly looks everything like a Boss should – but how do you know the owner didn’t just swap in the drivetrain, spoilers, wheels, and stripe kits to a base model example and then swap the VIN plates with a real-deal Boss? You don’t, unless you’re able to go in person and do some detailed sleuthing at the auction site and look for any key identifying clues.
Some of the cars in the collection were awaiting restoration – or possibly conversion into a VIN-swapped clone. This is an ordinary 1970 Ford Mustang convertible that was waiting for its makeover, and it raises the question as to whether the owner was keeping any of the cars for himself, or converting everything into a clone and being sold for top dollar. I don’t quite understand why he made the decisions he did at the end, as I doubt car crimes like this ever carry a massively heavy sentence – unless his enterprise was larger than realized. Either way, a sad end for the individuals involved and for the cars, which all look to be in fair condition despite the shadiness behind them. You’ll find the ’70 convertible here on Proxibid with bids to $1,600. Would you take a chance on these risky Mustangs?
Hope the crooked lawyer spends a lot of time in prison.Some very nice cars though.
Well he’s dead, so that might be hard.
He maybe spending a lot of time someplace a lot worse then prison👺
Maybe bury his remains in a prison yard?
You should read before commenting 😉
“It’s worse than that , he’s DEAD Jim!”
The crooked lawyer won’t be in jail, he committed suicide.
I think our jail entries may decrease slightly if we would keep people in jail for their entire sentence. Sentenced to 150 years… great! I am glad I am not your cell mate, because at some point it is going to get foul in there. Committed suicide to avoid prison? No worries, you can still serve your sentence in there. Once again, I’m glad I am not your cell mate! Once the decaying bodies start to build up, criminals will start to rethink their life choices! LOL
That is so sick.
Funny as hell, though…
And I thought lawyers already had a bad rep. Guy wasn’t too smart as the Shelby community is pretty tight knit, and it would only be a matter of time before he was discovered.
Where I grew up a group of lawyers were known as a “School of Sharks!”
He also did it to cars that can easily be verified by a Marti report.
The quote that make me The saddest Is:
“District Attorney Allan Grubb said they believe at least some of the cars may be authentic, but can’t vouch for their provenance”.
Hmm…scum following scum.
I need to shower Now with acetone…GROSS!!
I don’t understand the “scum following scum” part. The DA is being honest about not being able to confirm provenance.
Your missing the point, he says they MAY be authentic. In actuality none of them are authentic anymore since the state is reissuing titles and new VIN’s therefore none of them will ever be true Shelby’s, Baldwin’s, Yenko’s…blah blah blah.
It’s theater of the mind intended to hook fish just like you.
It makes for an interesting provenance in itself. Just not one that’s anywhere near as valuable as a confirmed genuine car. It’s a “Maybe – We’ll Never Know” with a story.
At least they were issued new VINs and are able to live on – with tampered VINs this is a legal mess and a possible scenario could’ve been shredding of the whole lot!
I wonder how one of them was spotted at the Indianapolis auction. Was it a judge?
I agree Jeff, bad, bad thing. Confused about stealing the VIN? Taking the number and punching a new one? Man, even though you are a low life scumbag for stealing VINS, not worth commiting harry carry.
What an odd crime. I mean how many fakes can you pass off before one gets caught? Not exactly a smart endeavor but I’m guessing he felt the thrill when the first one sold that probably brought in beaucoup cash, so why not do another? I doubt the attorney did the actual work on these cars, who else is involved and where are they right now?
Greed catches up, every single time.
The cars will live on but forever be clouded as to originality. If bought for cheap, just enjoy but keep every slip of paper on the car that can be accessed.
I wonder though, after eventually passing through several hands in the years to come, if the titles won’t yet be laundered again. Weren’t there other (multiple) VIN numbers stamped in almost inaccessible places that could be checked for match?
Tough call on these cars. Maybe the black unmolested(?) convertible is the safest bid.
Does anybody know why the state had trouble determining what the cars really were? There are multiple VIN locations on every one of those cars, several hidden or not real easy to get to. And I’ve read the VIN numbers of all real Shelbys are well known.
Unless the lawyer knew every one of them and changed them all, it should not be a problem determining if the original VIN matches a real Shelby. My guess is the auction knows they’re fakes and threw the idea of “It might be a real Shelby” out there to boost the auction price.
Didn’t they say that they are duplicate VINs from actual Shelbys?
Bidding on the Shelby GT500 convertible is up to 67, 000 as of now, the second Boss 302 is well over 20 grand. You know, wherever a dollar is to be earned there’s always someone looking to steal it. All different kinds of ways too.
Glad these cars weren’t seized and deceased, like the lawyer, that would be a shame.
Fake cars or possibly fake cars!! Done by a lawyer!! Is there a shop involved or did he build these on his own??? Criminal activity that everyone here reminds us on a weekly basis done by some that studies and practices the laws of the land!! It’s sure a sad situation!!!
He had to have help from some conspirators. Nail them too!
A lawyer tries to cross a road, gets hit by a car and is killed.
A snake tries to cross a road, gets hit by a car and is killed.
What’s the difference?
There were skid marks in front of the snake.
I’ll see yours and raise you this one:
What do you call 1,000 lawyers at the bottom of the ocean?
A good start.
(I’m allowed to hack lawyers, my wife is one)
Lawyers have always had a bad rap. In Shakespeare’s “Henry VI,” (written in 1591), “Dick The Butcher” said “The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers.” He suggests one of the ways to improve the country is to kill all the lawyers. Dick is a rough character, a killer as evil as his name implies, and this is his rough solution to perceived societal problems.
Everyone hates lawyers until you need one.
Dibs on the black one.
If only Shelby owners could judge or juror afor those on trial In D C as there would be no bad hombres.
😉
Seriously I cant believe that some the bids on the clones here are in high sixties.
Sure a clone that looks good but resale of a revised vin car?
People are not bright trying to steal vins…
Ok, it’s obvious a crime was committed, but at this point, by the saving grace of the state of Oklahoma, the sins were erased, and the cars don’t go to the crusher. At this point you simply have clones. People build clones all the time, and save for the purists, there’s a market for them. Comments are being made right now about the one Shelby reaching $70 large, but how much would an original go for. They’re NOT being sold as authentic, new vin’s were issued, the cars do actually exist, so what do you do with them? One of these will be somebodies dream car on the cheap, with full disclosure of what they are.
These are not CLONES, these cars have FAKE VINs that are from real cars. He looked up real cars that had not been tagged recently and had VIN tags made with those numbers. Those FAKE VIN tags were left in these cars. That is the problem. The New VINs issued by Oklahoma are a sticker on the door.
I am a former editor of Hemmings Muscle Machines and wrote an article about a 383 70 Cuda made to look liked a Hemi. The guy had a fake fender tag showing E74, which meant 426 Hemi and a phony VIN on the dash. New York City police nailed him. This jack ass didn’t off himself and did jail time. The car was seized and given a new VIN. Greed is killing us. Do your homework people. I recently bought a 50 year old Corvette in NJ. I live in PA. To get it registered, I had to have a licensed state inspection mechanic verify my car’s with the NJ title. To me, that’s a good thing.
These cars should forever be referred to as Tribute Models.
25 years ago the Holy Bible of Ferrari sales was through a publication called the Ferrari Market Letter. Its owner Gerald Rousch had a strict rule. No conversations were ever advertised in his magazine. In the 1980s you could chop the top off an actual Daytona coupe and do it skillfully enough to fool even a judge.
His feelings which I concur with are that with the passing of time, history blurs.
Those Mustangs should actually be issued salvage titles so as to permanently reduce their values
These are not being sold as authentic, but when you have a listing that starts with “1970 Shelby GT500 Convertible NO RESERVE”, the title alone is misleading as it only MIGHT be a Shelby…further legitimizing the illegitimate for those who don’t pay attention to the small print…
I get saving the cars for their face value…a desirable classic muscle car we all could dream of owning. One plus may be the opportunity of owning what is perceived as one of those dream cars at a more affordable price. However, if the car can be determined, through the multiple VIN locations, to be a fake/clone, the new VIN and title should reflect that as a clone or some other distinguishing way as to be listed as a base model to safeguard the purity of the original car market. As far as paying $70k for a clone…I wouldn’t. That kind of money can buy a heck of a nice original car not clouded in mystery regarding true provenance. If you can’t mark the clone as a clone, turn the cars into soda cans.
I agree, they should forever be marked “clone or non-original” on the title. I don’t think they should be scraped, because people (like me) would actually like to drive one on a daily basis without the fear of losing my total investment money on an original. Don’t get me wrong, I would never buy a Boss 302 with a 289 in it or an automatic, but as close to……yes.
There are persons out there that know Shelbys and the Boss inside and out. They know where there are hidden stamps (even on the exhaust systems hangers) so it maybe hard to duplicate any of these high priced cars down to all the parts. I would hire one to check it out if I was buying. Further more, these transmissions, engine fresh air systems, and engine blocks are so hard to come by, the cost could equal just buying an original. Weird guy for sure…..
I have never seen any part of the exhaust system with the VIN stamped on it. I have seen them with a Ford casting number on them and some parts with the FoMoCo logo.
I never stated the “VIN” was stamped on the exhaust system. The part numbers are different (and stamped) on Shelby’s, Boss 302’s, Boss 429’s, and all different to fit. The Shelby’s were totally unique with routing, size and exit. If someone states its all original, but does not look right or fit right…its not right.
So let’s say there are a dozen VINs scattered among the bits on a genuine Shelby. I take six and put those pieces on a regular car. Now I have two “genuine” Shelby cars. I claim they’ve been “restored” and lost some original parts in the process.
If the cars are done right and are priced accordingly as clones and new titles. Full speed ahead in my book.
None of these stories make sense. There is something they are not making public. It is the easiest thing in the world to know what these cars are, where they came from and where their vins came from. I’m sure that is known by the DA and he should be more forthcoming
A dishonest lawyer ? I don’t believe it .