Business Guilty of ‘Predatory Towing’

The owner of a Valley towing company has been found guilty of illegally taking vehicles and charging owners exorbitant fees to recover them, the city attorney’s office said. Shervin Reza Nowrooz, 25, owner of State Towing Inc. in Van Nuys, was found guilty of one count of attempted extortion and two counts of unlawfully taking vehicles. The convictions stem from an investigation into “predatory towing” that found State Towing drivers were routinely towing vehicles parked legally in Reseda. The owners were then charged up to $230 to retrieve their vehicles, according to the city attorney’s office. Nowrooz was sentenced to 36 months probation, 120 days in jail or 60 days of Caltrans roadwork and more than $5,000 restitution. The company was also placed on 36 months probation and ordered to pay $8,120 in court fees and penalties.