Westminster Man charged with Operating a Chop Shop

Last Friday morning, deputies with the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office arrested a Westminster man on charges of operating a chop shop. The Criminal Investigations Division received a tip on Aug. 6 that a reported chop shop was being operated inside the county. An investigation was opened and evidence was gathered. Based on the evidence collected, investigators obtained warrants against 47-year-old Verline Dewayne Whitfield on Aug. 13 charging him with two counts of removing or falsifying a vehicle identification number involving two separate motorcycles. Whitfield was also charged with one count of operating a chop shop in which, according to warrants, he possessed a motor vehicle or vehicle parts with the knowledge that the VIN number was altered in some way. Whitfield was released from the Oconee County Detention Center on a combined $30,000 surety bond.