Dallas firms settle in US suit over illegal import of vehicles

A group in Dallas has agreed to pay civil penalties to settle Clean Air Act violations involving the illegal import of vehicles, the Department of Justice says. The companies -- Savoia, BMX Imports and BMX Trading -- and their owner, Terry Zimmer, allegedly imported the vehicles from several foreign manufacturers into the United States through the Port of Long Beach, Calif., then sold them on the Internet and from a retail location in Dallas, a Justice Department release said Monday. "Importers of foreign made vehicles and engines must comply with the same Clean Air Act requirements that apply to those selling domestic products," said Robert G. Dreher, acting assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division. "We will continue to vigorously enforce the law to ensure that imported vehicles and engines comply with U.S. laws so that American consumers get environmentally sound products and violators do not gain an unfair economic advantage." Zimmer's companies must either stop importing vehicles or follow a comprehensive compliance plan to settle Clean Air Act violations, the department said, and must also pay a $120,000 civil penalty.