Vegas Highline: A True Story of American Greed (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798992771657)

Vegas Highline is a gritty, noir-ish crime saga set in 2011-2013, following Dallin Barnes, a 26-year-old Mormon student in St. George, Utah, who, with friends Brad Colt and Jaxon Reed, falls into a predatory car scam orchestrated by Cody Vance, Slater Kassab, and Ethan Kassab. Lured by promises of easy money renting luxury cars (Mercedes, Lamborghini, etc.), they sign fraudulent $480K-$800K loans, only to discover the cars are used in criminal schemes. When payments vanish, they embark on a chaotic mission to reclaim 196 cars from Vegas's underbelly-facing pimps, prostitutes, and Slater's thugs. Fueled by American greed, their heists spiral into drugs, hookups, and betrayals, with Jaxon's Fed-informant mistress Julie Broadwell tipping off investigator Bob Hodges. They recover 10 cars, lose two, and face bankruptcy. Feds raid Ethan's empire, arresting Cody, Slater, and brokers, but Ethan escapes. Charged with equity skimming, victims take plea deals, records clearing by 2019. Dallin and Brad sober up, find love, while many of the others spiral into drugs and prison. The saga, spanning seedy Vegas lots to Utah courtrooms, exposes greed's toll, teaching: "If it's too good to be true, it is." Media coverage (Utah Car Scam 2012) underscores the real-life fallout.