$150,000 car missing after test, police say
Suspect charged with theft of Maserati
Atest drive of a $150,000 luxury sports car went bad after a salesman was duped into leaving the car and leaving its engine running, police said.
As of Friday, the 2016 Maserati Gran Turismo was still missing, according to Boca Raton police. However, the man accused of stealing it is not missing. Michael McGilvary II, of Deerfield Beach, is charged with grand theft.
Late Tuesday afternoon, McGilvary, 45, went to FerrariMaserati of Fort Lauderdale, 5750 N. Federal Highway, to test drive the car, according to a Boca Raton police arrest report. He told a salesman he wanted to drive to the Boca Raton Resort and Club in order to show the car to his girlfriend.
It is, indeed, a showpiece. In online advertising Maserati calls the Italian-designed GranTurismo “More than a car. A Masterpiece.” The company boasts about the 450 horsepower engine under the hood: “Emitting a deep growl at low revs, the engine’s roar is truly fearsome as the needle approaches the redline.”
According to the arrest report:
McGilvary parked the car at the resort at 501 E. Camino Real, but kept its engine running. He persuaded the salesman to accompany him to the resort’s dock because he “wanted to show him his dad’s boat.”
When the boat wasn’t there, McGilvary left the employee alone, saying he was going to get his girlfriend.
After about a half-hour, the salesman got suspicious and spoke with a resort valet who told him McGilvary drove away in the car at least 20 minutes earlier.
Because McGilvary had to show his driver’s license before the test drive, it wasn’t difficult for investigators to zero in on him. He met with detectives Wednesday at a Starbucks on Federal Highway in Boca Raton.
He admitted going to the resort and said he knew the valet there, but stopped answering questions when asked about the stolen Maserati. At that point, McGilvary was arrested.
Later, investigators played a surveillance video of his visit to the dealership, but McGilvary denied that it was his image on the video.
When reached by phone Friday, a man who identified himself as a manager at Ferrari-Maserati of Fort Lauderdale said he was unable to comment about the case.
McGilvary has been moved out of Palm Beach County Jail and into federal custody due to violating his probation on federal charges in Connecticut, said U.S. Marshals Service spokesman Barry Golden.
More details about the initial chargeswere unavailable.