Former Auto Dealer Taken into Custody for Intimidation, Outstanding Warrant

VINCENNES, Ind. (We Are Knox County) - A former car dealership owner in Knox County was back behind bars Tuesday.

According to the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, James Banks threatened a person with a firearm and a motor vehicle.

Authorities told WAKC News Now that Banks went to a residence on Old Terre Haute Road in Vincennes searching for a trailer he claimed had been stolen.

Deputies say Banks threatened to shoot the property owner and then attempted to run them over with his car.

When deputies located Banks, they discovered he was also wanted on a failure-to-appear warrant for multiple fraud and forgery charges.

The Knox County Sheriff’s Office confirmed with WAKC News Now that the warrant is connected to a recent arrest tied to an investigation at Banks One Stop Auto in Vincennes.

Banks, who did business under that name, was arrested in May on 10 counts of fraud and 10 counts of forgery.

RELATED STORY: Banks One Stop Auto Owner Arrested Following State Investigation

An investigation by the Indiana Secretary of State’s Auto Dealer Services Division, which began in July 2024, found that Banks submitted several forged documents to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles.

As a result, James Banks and Tanna Banks are permanently barred from owning or managing a dealership in Indiana.

Banks was booked into the Knox County Jail on the intimidation charge before posting bond.

A new court date for the fraud and forgery charges has been schedule for August 26 at 8:30am.