[May 22, 2012] Owner of Modesto's Auction Park sued by car dealer Tweet May 22, 2012 (The Modesto Bee - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- The owner of The Auction Park -- a north Modesto business that sold cars, furniture and other goods for a quarter-century until closing in February -- is being sued for $149,250 by a former business associate. Jatinder Kullar Singh, owner of Goldie's Auto in Hayward, states in a lawsuit that Roger Ernst owes him that amount for 41 cars Ernst sold on Singh's behalf at auction. Singh's attorney filed the lawsuit this month in Stanislaus County Superior Court. Singh said he had done business with Ernst for about 15 years and said he never had a problem getting paid until recently. "I got hurt big time," Singh said Monday. "He almost put me out of business." Ernst declined to speak at length, but said: "It's a civil issue that we will settle in court. There is no sensationalism here." This is not the only problem for Ernst. Department of Motor Vehicles officials acknowledged Monday that they had received complaints about The Auction Park and have begun an investigation. But DMV spokeswoman Jessica Gonzalez cautioned that the probe "is still in the preliminary stages." She did not know the nature of the complaints. Ernst has acknowledged that he owes people money. In February, he said he was liquidating assets and planned to pay his debts. But Monday, two other auto dealers in addition to Singh said Ernst still hasn't paid them. Cary Hahn with Family Truck and Auto in Escalon said Ernst owes him about $13,000 for two cars sold at The Auction Park. John Khowjazadah with Brothers Auto Connection in Manteca said Ernst owes him for the sale of four cars. Khowjazadah declined to say how much is owed. The Auction Park, which occupied 22 acres on the south side of Kiernan Avenue between McHenry Avenue and Tully Road, was a barometer of the Northern San Joaquin Valley economy. Its business boomed as the real estate market crashed, bankruptcy filings soared and unemployment rose to levels not seen in nearly two decades. Ernst has given conflicting reasons for why his business closed. He said Monday that he has retained three attorneys to deal with the fallout. "There are just quite a few legal issues that happened to us that need to be worked out in court," he said. "Beyond that, I have no comment." Singh's is the only lawsuit filed against Ernst in Stanislaus County. Ernst has said he would reopen his auction yard, but Monday said he's unsure if that will happen, adding that he has turned in his dealer license to the DMV. "We haven't made up our mind on what we are going to do," he said. Gonzalez, the DMV spokeswoman, confirmed that Ernst's license no longer is valid. The attorneys representing Singh and Ernst did not return calls seeking comment. Bee assistant librarian Karen Aiello contributed to this report. Bee staff writer Kevin Valine can be reached at [email protected] or (209) 578-2316. ___ (c)2012 The Modesto Bee (Modesto, Calif.) Visit The Modesto Bee (Modesto, Calif.) at www.modbee.com Distributed by MCT Information Services [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]