Man convicted in car auction scheme says victims will get money back
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A man convicted of stealing thousands of dollars from people who paid him to supposedly purchase cars for them at auction avoided prison time for his crime, but could now face sentencing in two states.
The WREG Investigators have followed the story of Leandre Barner for the last five years. Consumers told WREG they handed over their hard-earned cash for what they thought was a deal on cheap rides. In the end, though, they wound up without the cash or the car.
Barner was the man at the center of what turned out to be a scheme.
On an early April morning, Barner sat shoulder to shoulder with dozens of other defendants in a packed DeSoto County Courtroom waiting to hear the judge call his name.
Court records showed Barner was scheduled for a possible plea deal, but the proceeding was moved to another day.
The April 2024 court appearance dates back to a case out of Olive Branch, Mississippi in 2020. Barner was charged with false pretense.
According to the indictment, Barner “willfully, unlawfully and feloniously with the intent to cheat and defraud” took $2,500 from a man with the promise to purchase two cars for him at auction.
In the associated police report, the alleged victim told officers never got vehicles, then found out he wasn’t alone. He told Olive Branch police he saw “a news clip involving Barner scamming other people.”
WREG began investigating Barner after a complaint from a Memphis man in 2018. He told WREG, “He told me he had a couple of vehicles for sale that someone left at an auction.”
That story aired in January of 2019 and the WREG Investigators continued to uncover details about more alleged victims and expose pending criminal cases. All of them said Barner claimed to be a licensed car dealer with access to cars deeply discounted at auction.
During this month’s court appearance in DeSoto County, Barner walked out for a short break and stared directly at our camera on the way out.
WREG checked to see if he had anything he wanted to share.
“Mr. Barner, I’m Zaneta Lowe, from Channel 3.”
“I know who you are,” Barner replied.
“Will you be able to talk to us?”
“I know who you are.”
Lowe responded, “Ok. I was just introducing myself, will you be able to talk to us?”
Barner then said, “You introduced yourself five years ago.”
Barner was referring to a day in February of 2019 when our crew covered a court appearance where he was set to learn his fate after pleading guilty to theft charges for taking nearly $30,000 from a Texas man he’d promised six cars from auction. The matter wasn’t settled that day because Barner was facing new charges for the same alleged scheme, including cases WREG had exposed.
Man at center of car auction scheme facing new charges
By the summer of 2019 Barner pleaded guilty to eight indictments for theft of property in Shelby County involving more than a dozen victims. A ninth indictment that included another victim was later rolled into the sentence.
Barner was convicted of stealing more than $90,000 after promising each person discounted cars that were never delivered.
He spent a few months in jail and was sentenced to nine years’ probation. As part of Barner’s probation, he was supposed to pay monthly restitution to each victim.
Cheap ride rip-off: Victims waiting on restitution after conviction
WREG asked him about that on the way out of the DeSoto County Courthouse earlier this month.
WREG asked “Would you like to say anything…to the folks in Shelby County that are…waiting on their money?”
After initially saying no, Barner responded, “Waiting on what money?”
“The cases that were resolved that you took the plea to,” answered WREG.
Barner then reiterated the word “resolved” and WREG asked again about the restitution which was one of several items spelled out and included in a court order.
A Shelby County judge pointed out the very same thing to Barner in July 2023 after he was arrested again. This time, police picked him up after prosecutors said he’d violated his probation. The state entered a request to revoke Barner’s suspended sentence.
The judge said to Barner, “The state of Tennessee has filed a warrant for your arrest saying that you violated probation … First you were supposed to pay probation fees and you didn’t pay those; secondly, it says you failed to adhere to the special conditions imposed by the court.”
The judge continuing by reading the names of each victim and the amount they were owned.
The WREG Investigators asked prosecutors months earlier why they’d given Barner multiple chances after he’d already allegedly broken the rules of his probation, as their most recent revocation request wasn’t their first.
“If the defendant remains in custody, the likelihood that the victims receive any restitution is quite remote,” said Assistant District Attorney Kirby May, who was handling the case at the time in 2022.
That petition to revoke Barner’s suspended sentence in Shelby County is still pending and he could end up serving the time he previously avoided. He’s set to go back to court on April 29.
Meanwhile back in DeSoto County, Barner had a message for his victims.
“Are they going to get their money back?” asked WREG
“Yes,” Barner said.
WREG clarified, “So you will give them their money back?”
“Yeah, they’ll get their money back. You said it’s the court order.”
Barner’s case in DeSoto County is set for court on May 6.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com.
