How a reported hostage load moving scam stranded an Arizona couple's belongings

GREEN VALLEY, Ariz. - Imagine moving across the country and not having most of your valuables with you for months. That is the nightmare facing one Southern Arizona couple, and it turns out they are far from alone. 

FOX 10 investigated this pattern of potential moving fraud targeting victims across the country.

The Move:

"If I don't have all my stuff, you're not getting all your money. You understand that, right?" Davy Johnston said. "It's very disheartening because you put your trust, you pay your money."

When Johnston and his wife moved from Arkansas to Arizona earlier this year, they contracted with a moving and storage company out of Florida to move their belongings. That company, in turn, sent someone from a Georgia-based LLC to get the items.

"And they demanded more money then," Johnston said. "So I paid them, which I thought everything was good and above board."

Delivery Never Arrives:

But it was not. Johnston was told his belongings would be delivered in July, but that date came and went, and no one was answering his calls. He decided to start filing complaints in Arizona, in Georgia, in Arkansas, and with federal agencies.

In a Kansas Warehouse:

Then, in September, he got a phone call. It was from Kelly Cline, the landlord of a warehouse in Leavenworth, Kansas, where Johnston's belongings were sitting. Well, three belongings.

"This is not a new game. This is just a new area to play the game," Cline told FOX 10 in an interview.

"I recognized my safe," Johnston said. "That and a big propane burner that I had for camping and stuff like that. And half, my wife had a La-Z-Boy lounger and there was half of it there."

Cline and her husband had filed to evict Logistic Moving Services, another company now in the mix. 

Across State Lines:

Cline tells FOX 10 she has heard from landlords across state lines in Missouri, where some belongings were taken after the Kansas eviction notice was served, saying the Missouri landlords have served an eviction notice for the same issue.

"It's pretty much the same players and they just switched their first name and middle name," Cline said. "Sometimes they'll use their last name as a first name on their LLC paperwork. But if you cut one head off, three more come up the next day. It's scary."

The Goal to Reunite:

Cline's goal now is to get people their stuff back. She has started a Facebook group and is hoping people recognize their things, or what is left of them.

The backstory:

Cline says these companies have been tied to Howard's Van Lines in New Jersey. The company has nearly 200 complaints between 2025 and 2026, with a majority filed this year. They are now under federal investigation by the U.S. Department of Transportation. When FOX 10 called the number listed, no one picked up and it went straight to voicemail.

What they're saying:

According to the Arizona Attorney General's Office, this kind of scam is known as a hostage load.

"They will take your stuff and then refuse to deliver it or refuse to unload it unless you pay them more money," Richie Taylor, communications director for the Arizona Attorney General's Office, said. "That's against the law. Arizona has a law specifically against hostage loads."

The Law:

Taylor says a company that isn't licensed in Arizona may not be subject to the state's hostage mover law, but they are subject to similar federal laws.

"If you hired someone, and they brought your stuff to Arizona across state lines, then they're still operating in Arizona, and they would be required to give you your stuff based on that price," Taylor said.

Pay-to-Play:

The day before a FOX 10 crew met Johnston, he got a call from someone claiming they had the rest of his belongings and would bring them to him, but he had to pay $2,000 in cash.

A man claiming to be affiliated with the Georgia-based company showed up to Johnston's home around 7 p.m. on Sept. 22. But Johnston soon realized not all of his belongings were there. Once a Pima County Sheriff's deputy showed up on scene, the two men agreed to have a third of the payment made for a third of the items.

Dig deeper:

As for the rest ..."We've got pictures of our grandkids from the hospital to well, one of them is going to Ole Miss now, her second year," Johnston said. "Our marriage license, we've been married 53 years, we don't have a license anymore. My dad, he's passed away now. I've got his branding iron. Lord willing, and we pray that we'll get all this stuff."

Have You Been a Victim?:

If you think you have been the victim of any form of consumer fraud, you can reach out to the Arizona Attorney General's Office directly to file a complaint.

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