A vigilante filmed tow trucks picking up people’s cars from a store parking lot, helping investigators determine that they were not acting legally.

The towing company is so proactive about towing that a church leader put together a task force to protect the cars during services.

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DT2 Towing, owned by John Thurmond and David McElrath’s “King in Trucking” in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, attracted media attention after a Good Samaritan began documenting their driver’s towing operations.

Monte Mabra told The Public Investigator he noticed a black tow truck apparently searching for “illegally” parked cars in a shopping center.

Every other day, he said, he heard someone running out of a nearby store and begging a driver not to take his car.

He then decided to film the drivers of the two companies and the broadcasters began their investigations into the matter.

McElrath and Thurmond were aware of Mabra’s videos on Facebook and claimed that they were beginning to damage the reputation of both companies.

They also reported an increase in thefts on their company premises.

“We don’t touch any vehicle that wasn’t in the handicapped parking space, the fire access or something like that,” McElrath told the outlet.

For some drivers, however, the story was different.

Unique Johnson, for example, took her baby into a store and was only briefly shopping when she realized she had left something in her cart.

When she left the store and went to where she had parked her truck, he was gone.

“I thought I was being pranked,” she said.

A store employee helped her find the contact information on a single sign in the parking lot and was eventually able to locate her truck.

She was told she was towed because she parked too close to a handicapped parking space. She said this was not true.

She paid $430 to get it back – but then she realized something was missing.

Johnson claimed a driver stole $2,000 in cash from her truck and included a picture of broken money bands.

You can’t pay me to go to that parking lot because all you do is sit there bored and tow people’s cars for free.

Unique Johnson

McElrath said his drivers do not get into private vehicles, so it could not have been his driver.

However, Johnson has no plans to shop at stores affiliated with the company.

“You can’t pay me to go to that parking lot because they’re just sitting there bored and towing people’s cars for free,” she said.

Kyra Allen is part of the Evolve Church, which has a parking lot a few miles from the mall where Johnson was towed, but it is monitored by the same two towing companies.

She told the outlet that the towing incidents were so common that she had to hire people to watch churchgoers’ cars during services to make sure they weren’t towed.

She said an elderly lady’s car was towed with her front door key inside and a newborn mother’s car was stolen along with her breast pump.

Thurmond made it clear that attending church does not exempt drivers from following the rules.

“I’m sorry you’re in the church, but our job is to patrol your property 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” he said.

What to do if your car is towed?

Whether wrongly or not, recovering a towed vehicle can be tedious.

If your vehicle is towed for parking in a no-parking zone or for another legitimate reason, there are a few steps you need to take to get it back.

How to tow your car:

• Try to find out why your car was towed. Did you miss a “No Parking” sign? Did you miss a car payment? Did you return to a parking lot where you have unpaid parking tickets? Finding out the reason will help you narrow down the number of phone numbers you need to dial.
• Find the vehicle. Most states, cities or counties require towing companies to leave contact information, either on a sign or in the mail.
• Towing dates and times depend on the company that towed the vehicle, but these times will be posted on the website or can be provided by a representative.
• Pay the fees. Be as punctual as possible, as some tow yards charge daily storage fees.

If you believe your vehicle was wrongfully towed, you can appeal the decision by following these steps:

• Be on time – in many states, there is only a short deadline to file a complaint against the company that wrongfully towed your vehicle.
• Collect evidence: photos, emails, receipts, police reports, and witness statements if necessary. The more evidence, the better.
• Familiarize yourself with the laws in your area, as towing company laws vary from state to state.
• Try to speak to the towing company. Sometimes it can be a simple oversight and the matter can be resolved quickly.
• Contact the Justice of the Peace in your area as they may have more insight or resources that can help you. They are often used in towing cases.
• Talk to a lawyer. Many lawyers offer free case consultations, and depending on the case, it may be worth hiring a lawyer.

Source: Oregon Department of Justice, National General, Rak Law Firm

Thurmond and McElrath work together to monitor parking lots, but Jim Cooney, the city’s director of licensing, said McElrath’s company’s LLC registration has expired and it is not licensed to tow cars from private property.

Thurmond’s company is licensed by the city to tow vehicles without the owner’s consent, and McElrath’s drivers help move the cars.

However, in order for McElrath’s company to be able to move cars without permission, Kings would need its own license.

The outlet contacted the property owner, who spoke in a conference call with reporters and both business owners.

Both company owners were unaware that they were not operating within the exact parameters and stated that they would apply for the appropriate licenses.

The property owner said they were only working with Thurmond’s company, DT2, because he was not aware the two companies were working together.

The US Sun has reached out to DT2 Towing and Kings in Trucking Towing for comment and an update.