Lawsuit Claims Nice Cars Inflated Its Worth

Our investigative team has been digging into the financial problems of Nice Cars, formerly owned by the Lyles family of Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia.

Employees and businesses who work with the company have not been paid for two pay periods. The used car lot sold to a Texas company but is in millions of dollars of trouble.

After multiple attempts, we finally obtained a 50 plus page federal lawsuit filed in New York City. Manchester Incorporated wants big money out of the Lyles family.

Late this morning, several contracting businesses approached the new company, wanting their money.

One repossession agent told the Manchester executives, "That's what we've asked of Nice Cars for three weeks. Give us an explantation, give us a time. They wouldn't even give us an explanation except Manchester made a bank routing error. And we're waiting on the funds to be transferred to the payroll account."

That company, an auto detail and auto repair company came to Nice Cars corporate offices in Fort Oglethorpe looking for answers. We learned through our sources that the new company Manchester Incorporated of Dallas, Texas would be poring through Nice Cars financial records.

Manchester took over last October but left Raymond Lyles, senior and his family in control. We found his house inside Battlefield Golf and Country club. But no one would come to the door to answer our questions.

Meanwhile, Manchester's Vice President of Operations told us his number one priority was making payroll. To date, 67 employees have not been paid. The executives with Manchester say they just found out about this yesterday. In addition, they have to deal with companies Nice Cars has failed to pay.

Those companies say they were told it was a bank routing error dating back two Friday's ago. One company is out almost $10,000.

Dave Hofer, owner of Automotive Diagnostics Center, said, "We just assumed there was a bank routing error. And we went on like normal continuing to repair their cars and spending our money, fixing their cars. Monday at three o'clock when they said the problem had not been resolved, we just stopped all work on Nice Cars at that point until the problem is resolved."

Manchester executives told us they plan to meet with employees today and tomorrow to fix payroll problems.