Owner of Macedon company gets 2 years for $2.5M wire fraud scheme

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A Florida man convicted of wire fraud has been sentenced to two years in prison by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford.

Clark P. Rittersbach, 51, was the owner of Concours Classic Motor Cars, a company specializing in the restoration and sale of antique vehicles in Macedon, Wayne County.

It is not uncommon for restoration work and the collection of authentic parts to take place over the course of years, and many of Rittersbach’s customers were long distance or international, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Customers often relied on his assurances of what work was being done without seeing the work in person before paying him, prosecutors said.

Between 2018 and April 2022, Rittersbach made misrepresentations to customers, via email and text messages, about work and acquisitions he claimed to have completed to obtain money from these customers, prosecutors said.

His intent was to obtain money for the unfinished work he claimed was finished, and to stall his clients so he had enough time to complete the work, the U.S. Attorney’s office said.

For example, in 2019, Rittersbach falsely claimed over text message and email to one victim that he had completed work on a Duesenberg engine, and emailed the victim an invoice for $25,000.

The victim wired funds to the bank accounts controlled by Rittersbach.

Rittersbach sent emails to another victim overstating how much work had been completed on a 1964 Porsche in order to obtain payment for work he had not done but intended to complete in the future, prosecutor said.

Rittersbach defrauded victims of the scheme of a total amount of about $2.5 million. Wolford ordered Rittersback to repay the money to four victims.