Almost exactly a year ago, a tow truck driver hauled a two-tone silver Ford F-250 into West Coast Car Crushing where it was flattened into a mess of metal.

The 1992 truck belonged to David Uphoff and had been stolen the day before from the lot at his North Portland floral shop.

The pickup turned out to be one of more than 100 cars, trucks and SUVs that illegal towers snatched from outside homes, businesses or along freeways across the metro area over eight months.

The stolen vehicles ended up either at West Coast Car Crushing or its neighbor, A-1 Light Truck & Van Parts. The auto yards, owned by members of the same family, destroyed the vehicles without getting titles or other ownership documents and sold the metal and auto parts for a tidy profit, police say.

None of this should have come as any surprise to law enforcement or state regulators.

An investigation by The Oregonian shows that the state DMV and Portland police had evidence dating back at least eight years that the two car crushers were a dumping ground for stolen cars. But neither police nor the state did anything to stop them. In fact, the operation was such an open secret that police would send people to the two auto yards to check for themselves if their stolen cars had ended up there.

Oregon Driver and Motor Vehicle Services inspectors found repeated violations at the yards for buying cars without titles over the last decade, but issued only one $500 fine and failed to follow up on numerous recommendations for higher fines.

The state could have put the businesses on probation, which would have brought a heightened level of scrutiny, yet never did. Regulators also could have canceled West Coast Car Crushing's operating certificate for moving to a new location without alerting the state, but the DMV didn't do that either.

State inspectors rarely visited the two car dismantlers. Five years passed between state inspections at A-1. Regulators cited limited resources for the infrequent inspections. Seven DMV inspectors are responsible for regulating 320 auto dismantlers statewide, as well as 2,700 auto dealers.

Portland police didn't do much better than the DMV, records and interviews show.

Just as the two car crushers were ramping up their alleged car theft ring, the Police Bureau eliminated its auto theft task force in 2006. Investigating thefts such as this was no longer a priority.

Even when someone found their stolen car in one of the wrecking yards, Portland police didn't make an arrest until now.

A-1 and West Coast essentially ran unchecked until a detective newly assigned to the North Portland police precinct connected the dots and launched a full-scale investigation last year.

Indicted as part of a Portland police investigation into A-1 Light Truck & Van Parts and West Coast Car Crushing, two North Portland car dismantlers.

Today, 34 people face indictment – including eight charged with racketeering -- in what investigators are calling one of the largest car theft rings in the city. A handful already have been convicted and await sentencing.

A-1 owner Tony D. Schneider Sr., 51, and sons Tony D. Schneider Jr., 33, and Joseph "Joey" C. Schneider, 31, who both ran West Coast Car Crushing, are among those indicted on racketeering and theft charges. They pocketed nearly $1 million a year from the alleged scheme, investigators estimate.

When investigators started tracking down owners of cars they had filmed on videotape getting towed to the yards, they called Uphoff.

He was infuriated. The old Ford pickup had been his father's before he died in 2010.

"It was part of the family,'' Uphoff said. "It was in too good of shape to steal and crush like that. I'm just heartbroken over the whole thing."

REGULATIONS EVOLVED

Long before "Big Tony" Schneider, as he's known in his family, was arrested, he was considered the poster boy for why the state adopted regulations for auto dismantlers.

Other yard owners were concerned he was skirting accepted practices based on the volume of his business, the disorderly shape of his yards and a heavy reliance on cash transactions.

"We knew he was one of the reasons they pushed for the legislation,'' said Chris Ratliff, manager of the state DMV Business Regulation Section.

Ten years ago, the state had limited authority over dismantlers. The businesses simply needed to have a fence higher than 6 feet and be set back from the road.

"The dismantling industry used to be the fat old guy in the coveralls chewing on a cigar with two big old dogs ready to bite. ... They did whatever they wanted,'' Ratliff said.

The two businesses tried to keep operating until the DMV canceled West Coast's dismantler certificate in June and A-1's certificate in July, both because they had lost their bonds after police and prosecutors alerted their bonding companies of the criminal investigation.

Yet activity at the yards continued.

Angela Greene-Killam, who worked in the office and at the weight scale at West Coast, had gotten a state dismantler certificate in July from the DMV to run a new business, J.O.H Auto Wrecking, at the West Coast yard. Police, though, arrested her at the site this fall, accusing her of lying to obtain public assistance benefits and theft by deception.

Scott Schneider, Tony Schneider Sr.'s nephew, said he bought A-1 from his uncle, changed the name slightly to A-1 Auto Parts and registered the business with the Secretary of State's Office in July.

Ratliff of the state DMV said his office cannot deny the nephew a dismantler certificate because he has insurance, is bonded and has no past problems. Ratliff sent a DMV inspector to the place: "Tony was not there. There's no proof that Tony's involved at all,'' he said.

Scott Schneider, who is the former marketing director for A-1 Light Trucks & Van Parts, said he is running his business independently – and ethically.

"It's a clean slate for me,'' he told The Oregonian. "Here we have strict policies. If you don't have paperwork, you hit the road.''

Scott Schneider, though, said he's not convinced his uncle did anything criminal and that he consults with Big Tony frequently.

"I honestly truly believe he did not do anything wrong except be messy,'' the nephew said. "I think he just sucked at paperwork. He made me think he was getting tricked.''

Others who have worked for Big Tony said he's a generous man who helped pay for his employees' lunches, took them to dinner and helped those who were struggling.

Scott Schneider said he met with a DMV inspector for hours to understand the regulations, and he and three employees sat through a DMV class for auto dealers. There's no such class solely for dismantlers.

"It felt like something I could fix,'' he said. "At least I can save part of my uncle's legacy."

-- Maxine Bernstein