Texas City plumber files lawsuit after Islamic extremists were seen using his old truck

Continue clicking to see photos of American weapons in the hands of ISIS. less A Texas City plumber says he is receiving threats after a photo of one of his old trucks was posted online showing the vehicle being used as a gun platform in the war in Syria. Continue clicking to see photos of ... more A Texas City plumber says he is receiving threats after a photo of one of his old trucks was posted online showing the vehicle being used as a gun platform in the war in Syria. Image 1 of / 15 Caption Close Texas City plumber files lawsuit after Islamic extremists were seen using his old truck 1 / 15 Back to Gallery

Nearly a year ago, a Texas City plumber's old 2005 Ford F-250 was seen in the hands of Islamic extremists in Syria - with the business decal and business phone number clearly visible. Last week, owner of Mark-1 Plumbing Mark Oberholtzer filed a lawsuit.

A Twitter photo was shared throughout social media of the business owner's truck and was even featured on the Colbert Report's final broadcasting, where nearly 2.5 million viewers tuned in.

From those reports, owner of Mark-1 Plumbing Mark Oberholtzer has reportedly received numerous death threats. With these threats, Oberholtzer has since started to carry a gun to protect himself, his family, and his workers, according to reports.

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"By the end of the day, Mark-1's office, Mark-1's business phone, and Mark's personal cell phone had received over 1,000 phone calls from around the nation," says a lawsuit filed in Harris County by his Galveston attorneys.

"These phone calls were in large part harassing and contained countless threats of violence, property harm, injury and even death. These phone calls included, but were not limited to, individuals who were: (a) irate and yelling expletives at whomever answered the phone; (b) degrading to whomever answered the phone regarding their stupidity; (c) singing in Arabic for the duration of the phone call or voice message recording; (d) making threats of injury or death against Mark-1's employees, family, children, and grandchildren in violent, lurid and grossly specific terms; and, (e) directing expletive-laced death threats to whomever answered the phone."

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Oberholtzer says that single photo ruined his life and business, therefore, he wants more than $1 million from the company he says disposed of the pickup, Autonation Ford Gulf Freeway in Houston.

The lawsuit maps out the transfer of the truck from the plumber's business to the hands of Islamic extremists in Syria. The suit says the vehicle was sold at auction in Dallas.

In October 2013, Oberholtzer took the truck to the Houston dealership as a trade in for a newer set of wheels. At the dealership, the businessman tried to remove the decal, but was told to stop, because "peeling the decal off would blemish the vehicle paint." Oberholtzer says the dealer told him they'd handle it, and he thought they did - until last December.

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The truck was sold at the Dallas auction on Nov. 11, 2013, according to an exhibit filed with the suit. From Dallas, the truck was returned to Houston to be shipped to Turkey on Dec. 28, 2013 and later ended up in Syria.

Oberholtzer is represented by Craig Eiland in Galveston and the defendat is Charlie Thomas Ford Ltd. of AutoNation Ford Gulf Freeway.

Attempts to reach the dealership were unsuccessful, and Courthouse News notes that "its sales manager did not respond to a phone message seeking comment."