Grateful Hands

VII. Two Horror Stories

Senta Boyer e mailed me through my web site “GratefulHands.net.” She was distressed because her car was towed by Leo Glodzik and immediately priced beyond her range ($225 plus $50 per day). It was Late December and she had about a 4 mile walk to work (where she only made $9 per hour).

I am picky about who I may help. It became very apparent that she didn’t drink or do drugs and she had two polite children. So I offered her help in the most direct way possible. I picked her up and we went to LAG towing. As mentioned below, we walked through the open garage doors to look for her 14 year old car. It wasn’t there. We then searched the outside yard. It wasn’t there.

We bumped into Leo Glodzik. I held out my debit / credit card and offered the $3,200 payment for her car. His ONLY response was, “my machine doesn’t go up that high (his debit / credit card machine).” This of course is ridiculous. Any other response he claims to have mad is a bold faced lie. The car was not there (but he “made it reappear” a week later) after learning that Senta and I filed felony auto theft charges.

-          Once he received legitimate payment (debit / credit)… the car became stolen

-          In the E mail section, I have copied an e mail where I ask the City Attorney and Leighton to produce the car from the city contracted towing company. They refused to respond.

-          In E mail section, I have copied an e mail where I ask the City Attorney and Leighton to produce Senta Boyer’s belongings from her the car. They again refused.

Below I list excuses Glodzik has given for refusing payment (offered in person, in papers, and on radio)

1) “My credit card machine won’t go that high” (3,200 dollars). HE DID ACTUALLY SAY THIS.

2) “You will say the car is damaged.” (He was trying to use any excuse because he knew the car wasn’t there. Plus, this is a nonsense excuse because he could use it every day to NEVER show a car!)

3) “I have had problems with you Mark Robbins paying in the past. This is pure bunk as I immediately gave him $200 cash on June 1^st.  He said this to WILK radio.

4) “I can only release her car if her tags are current.” This is false.

        a)   He NEVER, EVER said this. Senta Boyer can back me.

        b)   I drove off with expired tags in June in front of Glodzik

        c)   When I returned to LAG due to damaged steering… and when 4 cops eventually showed – I drove off right in front of the Bill Harden, Dana Cope, Kenneth Jones and his partner. These were the cops bullying me. Yet I still drove off!

        d)   At worst I would have called a friend to tow Senta’s car one mile to her house.

5) “I can only release her car if she shows insurance. He NEVER, EVER said this. Senta Boyer can back me on this one as well. He is not the law. Plus, she could also have it towed away if worse came to worse.

6) I asked Glodzik to grant Ms. Boyer’s plight as a hardship. Do you know what he told the paper? He said, "I consider hardship if someone is in the hospital or in jail." He would grant favor to someone who is in jail but not somebody who is poor? Complete lunacy!

Where is the car? A lot can be said about this but I won’t elaborate because after Glodzik refused payment for the car… it became stolen. Its location doesn’t matter.

This is true whether the car is at “point A or point B”… whether the car is in “one piece or many”…

It’s stolen because Senta Boyer doesn’t have possession of it after a legitimate offer of payment and Glodzik, Mayor Leighton, and the city attorney refusing to “produce” the car.

CRIMINAL AUTO THEFT CHARGES BY SENTA BOYER

AFFIDAVIT OF PROBABLE CAUSE  (Senta Boyer)

DETAILS of AUTO THEFT CHARGES ARE INCLUDED IN PARTS OF THIS SECTION.

Theft of motor vehicle (Senta Tonica Boyer)

Filed against LAG Towing (Leo Glodzik) and Mayor Leighton  by Senta Boyer with help from Mark Robbins

Please see end for Leighton’s culpability

UPDATE:

NOTE: The following happened after Glodzik learned of felony auto theft charges against him (about Jan 8, 2012).

1) He offered to "negotiate" with Senta Boyer… yet never offered a price. The bigger point was that I, knowing Glodzik would never retrieve her old car at a fair price, went ahead and bought Senta a new car as part of my personal Christian ministry. She wasn’t going to buy a second car at this point!

2) After the charges were filed, Glodzik "produced" the car. It was still in one piece. I thought it may have been in pieces.

For the record, Senta Boyer and I are 100 % positive the car wasn't at LAG Towing when we went to pay for it. We know this because Glodzik left his garage open and we walked around for 10 minutes. The car was not outside either.

Obviously the car was not there because who would refuse $3,200 for a $1,000 car?

Exactly where he hid the stolen car is largely irrelevant anyway. Once he refused our legitimate Debit or Credit payment... the car became stolen. This is so whether the car was at a car lot or the bottom of the river.

Brenda Meehan   

My basis for assuming the car was chopped up was due to the experience of another person. Brenda Meehan’s dead father’s car was taken from the curb and taken to LAG Towing (inspection sticker).

Within 48 hours the following was stolen from the car: four tires, the battery, much of the dashboard electrical panel, and the electronic trunk closer. The daughter (Brenda Meehan) came to LAG and paid $480 before she saw the car. Glodzik, who is a bona fide misogynist, told Ms. Meehan, “if "she said one word" that the price would double. Despite his hate of women, Glodzik said this so he wouldn’t be asked questions about the car’s condition. The daughter had to have someone else tow it home. Can you guess what happened next? THE CAR WAS TOWED AGAIN! I swear this is the truth.

You think I am making this up? Talk to Brenda Meehan (can provide number upon request)

Brenda gave up. Everyone gives up. Especially the poor ones. This is why I can’t.

CONSIDERING CIVIL COURT? Glodzik has that pretty well covered too. Glodzik caused $560 in damage. Here is what I was up against:

1)      Glodzik who lies and said the damage was pre-existing. 

2)      His lawyer who obviously lies on his behalf. 

3)      A cop who lies. The one who was against me said to the court the he saw that the tow hook-up was proper. Why ridiculous. This would mean that the cop literally would have to slide on his back under the car to watch. Have you ever seen a cop do this? Why would he bother? 

4)      Put up $85 and wait 2 ½ months

(The result? Very strange. The Magistrate was have a senior moment (dementia?) and it became embarrassing to watch. I said it wasn’t worth it. I talked to Leo outside (in the one “spiritual” moment we had) and he paid for most of it. I thought that maybe I “had reached him” but the same tricks continued… hence Senta Boyer and others)

I would first like to express the significant and broad implications of this case. If Leo Glodzik is found not guilty, then precedent will have been set for Glodzik (or any other Towing companies) to steal cars by offering the pathetic explanation of “It is not illegal to not show a car (to its owner).” This is the statement that Lieutenant Olszewski (sp? Olshefsky?) made to me when I tried to retrieve my towed car and which was used as the reason the Wilkes-Barre police would not help me. Using this tortured logic, there would be nothing stopping Glodzik (or other companies) from using this reasoning ad infinitum to steal every car that comes into the lot.

Senta Boyer wrote in her complaint:  I am a single, African-American, mother raising boys ages of 19 and 13. On 10/28/2012 my car was towed by LAG towing after I was cited for the line item “Registration and certification of title required.” (see attached summons) The fine was $160. Leo Glodzik of LAG Towing wanted to charge me $250 for the tow plus $50 storage (even though it hadn’t been a day). The total of everything was $460 total for a mother making $9/hr.

The initial $250 for the tow plus $50 storage (less than 1 day) was well above the stated towing fee of $175 which in itself is well above the contracted fee which is to be governed by the fees “according to the industry generally” (see attachment for contract). If the fee was according to the “industry generally”… I could have paid the fee and gotten my car back. I have since gotten quotes of $100/tow and $150/tow from Falzone’s and City Wide). The officer didn’t inform me of my rights. He didn’t tell me that at the time of the tow that I could choose who would tow my car. Here is a summary of the pricing I encountered when I called Glodzik.

 On Day 0 I was charged $250. This is at least $75 above the stated fee.      

On Day 28 it rose to $1,970

On Day 61 it rose to  $3,200

 (Note: We have Newspaper verifications and copies of receipts to prove that Glodzik always illegally gouges the customer.)

I (Senta Boyer) knew at week two my car was gone because the cost was greater than the value of the car. Glodzik illegally set the two week fee so high that he boxed me out of my car and I am sure stripped it of its parts. I say this because I went to get my car on December 28 and it was gone (or it’s in pieces somewhere). I can produce another witness whose car was towed and stripped of parts by LAG Towing.

Before this I had found a web site critical of LAG (GratefulHands.net). I wrote the web site and a man named Mark Robbins replied. He offered to help me even though he never met me. He offered Leo Glodzik $3,200 on his debit/credit card (cash or credit). Glodzik refused to accept payment. We then asked to see the car and Glodzik refused. We then called 911. They said a cruiser would be sent. We waited 40 minutes and called 911. They gave us the police. Leo Glodzik did an “end run” on us. He called the police and canceled the cruiser himself. WB Sargent/Lt. Officer Olshefski (Olszewski?) said, “It’s civil. It is not illegal to not show a car.”

Summary (around 4 PM Dec 28)

I asked to see my car… Glodzik refused

Mark asked for a “hardship” help Glodzik said, “I don’t see her in the hospital.”

Mark asked to pay for the car by credit… Glodzik refused

Mark asked to pay for the car with cash/debit… Glodzik refused

We called 911 They said a cruiser would be sent

We called 911 again Glodzik had cancelled the 911 response. Police wouldn’t give us a minute on the phone

The last chance to get my car was on January 5^th (a Thursday) when Mark Robbins wrote this e mail below and texted Leo Glodzik. Neither Mark nor I received a response.

Dear Mayor (Thomas M) Leighton and Attorney (Timothy) Henry (01/05/12)

If Senta Boyer is not shown her 97 Red Ford Taurus by noon on Friday (Jan 6)... we will quickly pursue a civil complaint and criminal complaints for theft of an auto. The notion that you thought you could take advantage of a poor black single mom is despicable... absolutely reprehensible. You clearly represent the lowest that humanity has to offer. We and others are extremely angered with what this woman went through during the two month absence of her car. We look forward to vigorously pursuing justice. Mark Robbins along with Senta Boyer

Part of my E mail sent to Mark Robbins in December: HI MARK!!! I'm so to have found your web site “GratefulHands.net.” Every day is a struggle...I've cancelled my doctor appointments, my arthritis doctor appointments, and my son’s appointments. I'm begging for rides to work. The other day I had to walk to an appointment in freezing weather and I had to keep stopping because I was in so much pain. I had to rest my hip. I had my 13 year old with me who I had to keep leaning on by then because I was crying cause my hip was burning so I called my best friend to come find me and give me a ride back home. The next day at I had to go to Penn ave again for appointment with therapist who I didn't get to see because I was late trying to get there. I have to keep stopping to rest my hip. This is very depressing and stressful and I don't know what to do.

Why Thomas Leighton is to blame and is a player in this scheme:

1) He ignored my plea on January 5^th (see E mail above) regarding what happened to my car on his city contract.

2) He is responsible for the illegal pricing (see the “fees” part of contract attached) and takes kickbacks from Glodzik.

3) Leighton acts complicity with Leo Glodzik to allow Glodzik to dictate terms and to have power over the police.

        a) Glodzik made an end run around our 911 call & told the police what to do. They never sent a cruiser after 911 said one would be sent. Five cruisers were there to tow my car. Zero would help me retrieve it.

         b) Mr. Robbins on 06/01/11 had his car towed and damaged. Four cops showed (Kenneth Jones, his partner, Dana Cope, Bill Harden). They shouted at Mr. Robbins and cursed at him but they never spoke to him. “Zero for five” is a pattern and not an accident. Mr. Robbins even took a polygraph to document the events.

        c) The W-B police have been coached to say “It is a civil matter” regarding Glodzik. He has an absolute blanket of police protection around him. Five police total failed to respond to me or Mr. Robbins. I have been forced to file a personal criminal complaint because the police literally won’t file a complaint against Glodzik. The corruption is breathtaking. I feel like I am up against the Klan in the old South.

I ask that Mark Robbins be included on all correspondences. He has been my “guardian angel.” I don’t have a high school education and I’d be lost without him. His Christian ministry has bought me new insurance, tags, registration, plates, a car, and repairs to the car. He even gave me $220 to cover bills.