Police charge Jerome Clarence Barnes, 3 others with faking emission tests on cars

Federal prosecutors charged four metro Atlanta people with faking emission tests on thousands of cars.

Investigators believe 34-year-old Jerome Clarence Baes recruited three others, who are also facing federal conspiracy charges.

They performed more than 4,000 fraudulent emission inspections and issued emission certifications falsely stating that the identified vehicle passed the emission test, according a federal grand jury indictment.

The federal grand jury accused the defendants of soliciting and accepting payment from vehicles' owners from $100 to $125. Georgia law prohibits inspections stations from charging more than $25 for an emission test. Investigators say the defendants would then enter the fraudulent information into a state database.

Attoey Bill Thomas, who represents Baes, says his client is innocent.

"Mr. Baes did not own any of these shops. There is no evidence that he conducted any of these tests," Thomas said.
Attoeys for the other three defendants, Seretha Franklin, Ieka Jones, and Jared Walker, also told the media that their clients are innocent of the charges.

Investigators believe the scheme spanned three counties, including Fulton, Cobb and Dekalb, including a shop on Covington Highway in Dekalb County.
Dekalb County Emissions Inspector Elijay Jackson says he does everything by the book but says the alleged scheme is not surprising.

"People that go the extra mile to cheat, they find a way to make it easy," explained Jackson.

Jackson says most cases of fraud are on older-model cars because inspectors just need a VIN, and they can preform the emission tests on an alteative vehicle that would pass the test.

"Sounds pretty easy?" Stockman asked.

"Yes," replied Jackson.

The defendants are facing conspiracy charges. They are also accused of violating the Clean Air Act. A judge has not yet set a court date for the trial.