Vegas Auto Shop Owner Loses Appeal in Scam Case

The Nevada Supreme Court has rejected a Las Vegas auto repair business owner’s bid to avoid paying $218,000 in fines and customer restitution for mechanical work that investigators found wasn’t needed or wasn’t performed.

Purrfect Autos owner Shafik Hirji maintained that he never knew about a scam that led to a 2006 civil lawsuit by the state attorney general’s office Consumer Protection Bureau.

The AG reported logging 500 complaints and collecting evidence with an undercover hidden camera sting.

The court’s Friday ruling upheld Clark County District Court Judge Mark Denton’s 2011 ruling for Hirji to pay more than $118,000 in restitution and $100,000 in civil fines.

The court also rejected Hirji’s challenge of Denton’s order preventing him from engaging in deceptive practices and concealing his business ownership.