GASTONIA, N.C. — Gastonia residents say they were targeted by a known towing predator and forced to pay thousands of dollars after getting their cars towed from their driveways.
The Gastonia Police Department has now started investigating predatory towing in the city.
The man accused of targeting the Hillside Village mobile home community off of East Davidson Avenue has a lengthy criminal history. Christopher Cole, the owner of Affliction Towing, was arrested in February for violating towing ordinances in Spartanburg County.
In May, Cole allegedly towed Raquel Vargas’s car while she wasn’t home. Her security camera caught the entire thing.
Vargas said when she spoke with Cole, he told her that he towed the car for having expired tags and that to get it back, he wanted $750 cash. Vargas claimed she was not given any notice that her car was at risk of being towed due to expired tags.
"I said, 'Excuse me? Where am I supposed to get that money?'" Vargas told WCNC Charlotte's Julia Kauffman.
Vargas' neighbor Paola Soto had an even worse experience.
Soto told WCNC Charlotte that Cole towed one of her cars and charged $2,000 after holding it for one day. She claimed that Cole later came back and towed a second car when she didn't have the money to pick up her first car. Both women said they had to drive over an hour to Cole's lot near Spartanburg, South Carolina, to get their cars.
Soto said Cole wanted $4,000 for both of her cars. When she didn't have the money, Soto accepted a deal to give him the title to one of the vehicles and $600.
Soto claimed she called the police afterward but they told her they couldn't do anything since Affliction Towing had a contract with her community's property management.
Vargas shared that her boss loaned her money to get her car back but when he called Affliction Towing to get a receipt, Cole said he couldn't give him one. Gastonia city ordinances require towing companies to give a receipt upon request and to accept credit and debit cards as payments. Neighbors said Cole only accepted cash.
City rules also require towing signs to list maximum towing fees and the address of the tow lot. Affliction Towing's sign outside of the mobile home community does not include that information.
"I felt defeated, I felt cheated, it sucked," Vargas said.
Neighbors took their concerns about the towing company to property management. The manager’s email response to residents states, in part:
"The towing company, despite what has been found, does not directly interfere with what we have contractually serviced him to do … Please also be advised that the towing company is its own entity, they set their rates according to what the law legally allows.”
The property manager sent that email to residents on June 4. The next day, WCNC Charlotte's Julia Kauffman began looking into the issue and Gastonia Police went by the neighborhood to ask questions. That afternoon, property management terminated its contract with Affliction Towing.
WCNC Charlotte also tried contacting Affliction Towing but has not heard back.
Last month, several North Carolina state representatives, including Mecklenburg County's Laura Budd, filed a bill to regulate towing practices. The legislation would require towing companies to be permitted in the state. It would also establish a commission of eight people that would set the maximum fees for towing and booting each year.
Contact Julia Kauffman at jkauffman@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.