Bill Mercer, United States Attorney for the District of Montana, announced today that during a federal court session in Missoula, on January 17, 2007, before Chief U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy, WADE ROLAN RODGERS, a 35-year-old resident of Sidney, appeared for sentencing. RODGERS was sentenced to a term of:

RODGERS was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to conspiracy to alter vehicle identification numbers, buy, receive or possess vehicles or vehicle parts knowing the identification numbers had been altered, and/or commit wire fraud by giving up vehicles and filing false insurance claims.

In an Offer of Proof filed by the United States, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:

Beginning in approximately September of 1999, and continuing until at least April 2, 2002, RODGERS, Thomas Fitzpatrick, Cameron William Swift, Dustin Avery Spangle, Michael Joseph Stanisich, and other individuals were involved in a chop-shop conspiracy. Some of the individuals stole vehicles, usually from automobile dealerships, and provided the vehicles to RODGERS and to another co-conspirator. Other conspirators participated in "owner give-ups" of their vehicles by providing the keys to another person and then filing false police reports asserting that the vehicles had been stolen. In addition to the police reports, the individuals who engaged in owner give-ups also filed false insurance claims in order to fraudulently obtain the proceeds of their policy coverage.

RODGERS, who ran a body shop in a building located on land owned by one of the co-conspirators, received many of the stolen and surrendered vehicles from this individual and others, several of which RODGERS provided to Tom Fitzpatrick.

On November 9, 2002, Flathead County Sheriff's officers executed a search warrant at Fitzpatrick's M&T Auto Body property and another co-conspirator's residence. At this co-conspirator's property, in and around the shop rented and run by RODGERS, officers recovered the following vehicle parts:

The engine to a 1999 gray Chevrolet Tahoe that had been reported stolen by Thrifty Car Rental in Spokane on April 21, 2001;

The engine to the 2001 Dodge pickup that was stolen in the spring of 2001 in Kalispell; and,

Four doors from the 2001 Chevrolet Geo Tracker that was stolen in May of 2001 in Whitefish.

One of the co-conspirators was interviewed on several occasions by law enforcement and admitted to his involvement in the conspiracy. He described in detail his role in the theft and receipt of several vehicles and further described providing those vehicles to either RODGERS or Fitzpatrick. He relayed the details of several thefts during which he was accompanied by RODGERS, who usually fulfilled the role of a lookout. Those thefts include:

A 1999 Chevrolet pickup truck stolen on September 19, 1999. This individual and RODGERS traveled to Spokane, Washington, and used a copied key to gain entry into the vehicle. They stole the truck and transported it back to RODGERS' residence on Whitefish Stage Road near Kalispell.

A 2001 Dodge Ram pickup truck stolen in Kalispell between March 15, 2001 and April 30, 2001. RODGERS obtained a key for the vehicle and requested that the co-conspirator assist him in the theft. The co-conspirator agreed, accompanied RODGERS to the lot, and drove the truck to his property, where it was secured in the shop rented by RODGERS.

A 2001 Chevrolet Geo Tracker that was stolen in Whitefish on or about May 20, 2001. RODGERS requested the co-conspirator's assistance in stealing the Tracker and the co-conspirator agreed. RODGERS acted as a lookout and the co-conspirator broke into the lock box to obtain a key and drove the vehicle off the lot and over to the shop on his property rented by RODGERS. The co-conspirator later helped RODGERS dismantle the vehicle and dispose of unwanted parts, including dumping the engine at the Flathead County landfill. The Flathead County Sheriff's Office eventually recovered the engine from the landfill.

A 1999 Ford pickup truck that was stolen in Whitefish on October 24, 2001. The co-conspirator and RODGERS stole the truck and RODGERS "chopped" it up and provided the engine to the co-conspirator.

The co-conspirator also detailed at least one owner give-up involving RODGERS. Specifically, he described traveling with Michael Stanisich to Missoula on July 9, 2000, to "steal" a 1996 Ford Explorer that belonged to Stanisich. The co-conspirator provided that vehicle to RODGERS, who later provided it to yet another co-conspirator. The theft was reported by Stanisich's mother, who was driving the Explorer at that time, and she also filed an insurance claim on the vehicle.

Fitzpatrick, Swift, Spangle, and Stanisich pled guilty and have been sentenced.

Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that RODGERS will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, RODGERS does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy J. Racicot prosecuted the case for the United States.

The investigation was a cooperative effort between the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Flathead County Sheriff's Office.