ROBSTOWN, Tx — The owner of a Robstown tow company has been arrested.
Israel "J.R." Galvan, owner of Galvan Towing, is in custody at the Nueces County Jail.
He is charged with two counts of theft of property.
6 Investigates began looking into fees charged by some Robstown towing companies following the decision by the council to stop using the city's impound lot earlier this year.
In July, that investigation turned to Galvan Towing after an intern with KRIS 6 News provided 6 Investigates with documents and recordings of her interactions with Galvan and connected us with a woman experiencing similar issues.
Both women had their cars stolen and eventually recovered by Robstown PD. These vehicles were then towed by Galvan Towing.
Those documents and recordings reveal the difficulty both individuals had in gaining access to their vehicles, and both were quoted fees beyond what was allowed by city ordinance.
Galvan also said that both of these vehicles were totaled and told one she should just abandon it at the tow yard. Statements that both women learned were not true.
6 Investigates spoke with Robstown Police Chief Mike Tamez and his department launched a criminal investigation into these allegations.
"They are operating well outside the bounds of that city ordinance," Tamez said in July. "We are not going to re-victimize victims of crime, and that's exactly what that's doing."
"If something like this happened to my daughter, right, how would I feel about this? It's, it's heartbreaking, it's tough," he added.
In response to KRIS 6 News' investigation, Tamez also immediately re-opened the city's impound lot, to help ensure victims of crimes were not re-victimized.
Robstown PD also immediately suspended its partnership with Galvan Towing.
