The FBI conducted multiple raids near the offices of Specialty Towing on Oakdale Avenue, lasting nearly six hours on August 8, 2024.
If the company’s name rings a bell, it might be due to a viral video that circulated on Reddit in April, showing a Specialty Towing truck towing a car with a passenger inside in downtown San Francisco. However, the raid was unrelated to that incident.
Special Agent Cameron Polan informed KRON4 that the raids, which began around 7:30 a.m., were part of an ongoing federal investigation.
Footage shared on the Citizen app showed an ambulance and heavily armed law enforcement personnel outside the company’s offices during the raid.
Polan also mentioned that raids were conducted at additional locations, including the 800 block of Franklin Street and the 17000 block of Lane Street. No further details were provided, as Polan stated that Department of Justice policy prevents additional comments at this time.
Back in February, City Attorney David Chiu suspended Specialty Towing, along with two other companies, from bidding on or receiving city contracts. He accused them of illegally towing vehicles from private properties.
Abigail Fuentes and Jose Badillo owned the three companies—Auto Towing, Jose’s Towing, and Specialty Towing and Recovery. Chiu accused them of engaging in “predatory behavior” and prohibited them from city contracts for five years.
“Auto Towing deliberately deceived and scammed individuals by illegally towing their vehicles and making them difficult to recover,” Chiu stated.
On Thursday, U.S. Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey charged two individuals, including 31-year-old Badillo, with insurance fraud and money laundering related to his companies, Jose’s Towing LLC and Auto Towing LLC.
If convicted, the charges could lead to a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. Although this case from Ramsey’s office is separate from the FBI raids, law enforcement sources told KRON4 that the FBI activity is connected to the case unsealed in court on Thursday.
