Drivers upset after cars towed from Downtown Wilmington parking lot

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — A Wilmington towing company is under fire after towing several cars from a downtown lot.

Imagine this: you come back to your parking spot, and your car is towed. It’s a sinking feeling many drivers parking in one downtown lot today know first-hand. But they say they should not have been towed in the first place.

“I said, ‘Hey, what are you doing? There is no towing being enforced.’ He said, ‘PNC told me to go ahead and tow,’” said Paul Mediratta whose car was being towed.

A pregnant woman in her running car was almost towed as well.

“I noticed that my car kind of jolted forward, and after it jolted forward it started going up. And I’m like, ‘OK, what is going on?’ and when I looked back there was a tow truck actually towing my truck while I was sitting in it,” Chiquita Harris said.

The drivers say they have a right to park in the lot at the corner of Third and Princess Streets, because the spots were not properly marked, and the PNC bank is closed.

But an empire tow truck driver who would only identify himself as Christopher said he was just doing his job towing from the lot, and says the lot was marked.

“There’s a sign posted on each entrance on parking regulations,” tow truck driver Christopher said.

There were signs. Now, they’re gone. WPD made the company remove them.

Empire Towing told police they were never notified that their contract was up when the bank closed.
WPD Sergeant Curt Stansbury says six to eight cars were towed at $135 apiece.

“Since the parking lot’s not legally marked anyone who has been towed out of this parking lot since the bank has closed is subject to getting their money back from Empire Towing,” Stansbury said.

If you think your car might have been improperly towed from this lot, you’re asked to contact Wilmington police department’s taxi and wrecker Inspector Blueford.