Facebook Marketplace car salesman John Gary Ivanoff pleads guilty to fraud

A Facebook Marketplace and Grays auctions car seller has been jailed over a sneaky fraud.

A dodgy Brisbane Facebook car salesman who put speeding fines in customers names and fled from investigators when they flashed their badges has been jailed.

Rogue car seller John Gary Ivanoff, 71, faced Brisbane Magistrates Court on Friday and pleaded guilty to 18 frauds, 16 false declarations, acting as a motor dealer, unlawful possession of a motor vehicle and receiving tainted property.

The court heard Queensland’s Office of Fair Trading launched an investigation into unlicensed car dealers in September 2021.

John Gary Ivanoff jailed for fraud related to selling cars without a licence.

Investigators found Ivanoff, who does not hold a motor dealer's licence, selling a Holden Captiva on Facebook Marketplace in the name of Dino Valenti and arranged to meet up with him in Spring Hill.

Lawyer Robert Vise, on behalf of the OFT, said when officers arrived they saw Ivanoff with the car for sale.

“Upon OFT officers producing identification the defendant fled in the Holden Captiva,” he said.

In November Ivanoff sold a Land Rover Freelander to a member of the public for $8000.

Mr Vise said between January and July 2021 Ivanoff bought 25 cars on Grays online auctions site and sold four vehicles on the same platform.

After he was charged by the OFT in July 2022, Queensland Police continued monitoring Ivanoff and ultimately charged him with fraud offences.

Police prosecutor Jack Scott said Ivanoff continued purchasing and selling vehicles on Grays after being charged by OFT.

Police raided his home in March locating “ a very large volume of information relating to the purchases and sale of hundreds of vehicles over the last few years”.

Two mobile phones had fake Facebook account info stuck on them “ to enable the defendant to keep track of which fake entity was linked with which phone number.”

Ivanoff told police “all he knows how to do … is how to be a motor dealer.”

“He said that he doesn't understand why it’s an issue that he buys and sells cars for a profit because it’s not as if he’s hurting anyone,” Mr Scott said.

The court heard a number of the sold vehicles had “major issues” and Ivanoff did not respond to any calls or texts from the buyers who thought they were buying his daughter’s car.

Police also charged Ivanoff over “renominating speed camera infringements into the names of people who had, in most instances, purchased vehicles from him”. He did this on 16 occasions.

Ivanoff was on parole and serving a suspended sentence at the time of some of the offending.

He was previously a legitimate car salesman with successful businesses in South Australia and New South Wales, the court heard.

Ivanoff was permanently banned from holding a licence by a Queensland tribunal in 2009 which coincided with the beginning of his criminal history at the age of about 58, the court heard.

Barrister Paula Eviston said the catalyst for this was a mental breakdown after a long battle with the Australian Taxation Office.

He was previously jailed for dishonesty and drug offences and when released found himself homeless.

“By engaging in business it saw him to be able to try and get back onto his feet in those circumstances,” she said.

Acting Magistrate Peter Cooke said there was no option but imprisonment.

“You've just been dreadfully dishonest and you haven’t cared about anyone else except yourself,” he said.

Ivanoff was sentenced to 18 months prison with a parole eligibility date of today and the 150 days already spent in custody declared as time served.