Missing men feared dead amid chop-shop dispute in Oakland

Missing men feared dead in chop-shop dispute in Oakland

Two men have been missing since May. Police and family members fear foul play as a result of a chop-shop dispute. The warehouse was repeatedly raided by investigators.

OAKLAND, Calif. - It's been seven months since Justin Wayne Lee, 29, and Esmeraldo Vivero, 34, vanished without a trace.

Now, KTVU has learned Oakland police believe the two friends may have been killed as a result of a dispute among car-theft suspects.

Notorious chop shop raided again

What we know:

Video posted on Instagram this week shows Oakland police and the FBI searching a well-known chop shop at the corner of 100th Avenue and Pearmain Street in East Oakland. Authorities went into the heavily fortified building believing human remains could have been buried inside.

Ultimately though, no bodies were found there, and the two men are still missing. Their families are in anguish.

Relatives of missing men speak out

What they're saying:

"It's not like him. I mean, I hope he's still alive, but my fears are that he's gone," said Lee's uncle, John Lee.

Vivero's younger sister, who didn't want her name used, told KTVU, "I'm pretty sure he's not living and walking right now."

Her voice breaking, she added, "Knowing my brother, he was never that type of person to not call me or not message me for anything. For him to go this long, it's not possible."

In January, the Alameda County sheriff's office raided the same chop shop, seizing stolen license plates, vests, ammunition, as well as eight stolen vehicles, including a tanker truck and BMW with red and blue flashing police lights.

Three suspects were charged with receiving stolen property. KTVU has learned two of them had apparently recruited the missing men to steal cars, only to have two of their own vehicles stolen by the men as a result of a dispute, witnesses told investigators.

One of the suspects even suggested burying mannequins in the warehouse to disguise actual bodies even deeper below, but that idea apparently went nowhere.

The chop shop was also raided in July.

Former CHP investigator weighs in

What they're saying:

"Auto theft has always been a gateway crime," said private investigator Marc Hinch, a former CHP auto-theft task force member. "And now they're getting real paranoid, so if this guy has some witnesses, and you know he wants to keep them quiet, I can see this happening.:

And that saddens Vivero's sister.

"Just because somebody sees something doesn't mean you have to take another person's life," she said.

Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on X @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan

The Source: KTVU reporting, Oakland police, Alameda County sheriff's office

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