Orem business owner says he was scammed by Lehi man accused of bad check scheme
Feb 2, 2025, 10:11 PM | Updated: 10:26 pm
OREM — More victims of a Lehi man accused of defrauding dozens are coming forward, sharing how they were scammed.
Slangerup is now accused of scamming people in Utah, Tooele, and Sanpete counties.
Investigators said he writes bad checks to purchase big items, then he quickly sells them.
One of his alleged victims is Integrity Motors owner Shad Jepsen, who is now out $20,000 and five electric motorcycles. Documents state that Slangerup wrote two fraudulent checks to the victim.
Jepsen said Slangerup told him in October he wanted to purchase the Talarias, which were posted online, for his solar company representatives.
“I asked him to go to Mountain America and either present a cashier’s check, cash, or he can give them cash or Venmo me,” Jepsen said. “We can do a bill of sale on each.”
Jepsen said he called the bank and was told they received a cashier’s check and the funds were guaranteed. He said they appeared in his mobile app. He gave Slangerup the motorcycles.
A few days later, he received a notification of insufficient funds from the bank.
“I’m like, ‘well, oh, this is horrible,'” Jepsen said.
Jepsen said Slangerup answered his calls, said something must’ve gone wrong, and promised to make it right.
“His ploy, his game, he to had to have had money in there, taken money out screenshot it to tell everybody, ‘oh hey, I have the funds,'” Jepsen said.
Jepsen said Slangerup told him he would deposit another check, this one for $20,100 to cover fees. It also bounced.
“Insufficient, same thing. Mountain America, same process,” he said. “I feel like he knew that I then got really suspicious. And that’s when he sent me a picture of him in the hospital.”
Jepsen said he was sympathetic to Slangerup’s story. He said Slangerup told him he was getting a procedure done and sent a picture of his hospital wristband.
“I verified the dates on the wristband. I’m like, this is legit. I mean, this guy’s really got a lot going on,” he said.
He said the man never shied away from his phone calls and had believable excuses.
‘We’d connected on the belief that, you know, honesty is good, making things right, being honest with, in your dealings with your fellow man, that kind of stuff was the conversation,” he said.
Jepsen said the branch manager of his personal bank started digging and found Slangerup had a history.
“I never Googled his name to see the extent of what he has done, which was my bad,” Jepsen said.
Jepsen said he offered Slangerup multiple chances to make things right but was told the bikes were gone and the $20,000 couldn’t be paid back in full.
“I think that most people who got scammed got scammed the same way; being charismatic, putting together true facts like, you know, I’m going through this or I have that,” Jepsen said.
“In the end, I really feel like he understood and understands the little lapse in the banking system where he can do a counter check, make it, and get someone at the teller to say, ‘Oh, that teller, she looks like I could get her to save her guaranteed funds,’ but I’m guessing,” Jepsen said.
Slangerup has a scheduled court hearing for charges he faces in Tooele County at 1 p.m. Monday.