His business names changed constantly — Faith on Wheelz, Elevation Mechanics, God's Garage, Blessed Mechanics — but the pattern never did. Quote a Bible verse. Offer a free diagnostic. Collect the money. Disappear.
Derick Martin, believed to be Derick Dewayne Martin, operated a mobile mechanic scam across Oklahoma City and Houston, Texas that left a trail of victims spanning at least two states, multiple business identities, and thousands of dollars in stolen payments. This is not a story about one bad repair. This is a story about a serial con artist who used faith as a weapon.
The First Victims: Oklahoma City, Summer 2023
The earliest known victim is Carrie Wendlandt of Oklahoma City. Wendlandt, who is on disability and depends on her vehicle to transport her daughter to work and her grandchildren to school, paid Martin $350 in two separate Cash App payments for a transmission repair. The car was never fixed. Martin disappeared and blocked her number.
The Faith on Wheelz Facebook page was created on July 4, 2023 — apparently after the Wendlandt scam, not before it. The business identity was built after the fraud had already started.
More victims came forward quickly:
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Freda Hill (Oklahoma City) — Paid $1,200 in cash after Martin told her his payment machine was down. He fixed one of her two cars, then disappeared promising to return for the second. He never came back. Hill told KFOR: "He tricks and uses that as his bait to lure you in."
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Craig Reed (Oklahoma City) — Paid $450 for parts to work on his truck. After payment, Reed never saw Martin again.
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Multiple additional unnamed victims contacted KFOR and Ethical Mechanic with similar stories throughout July and August 2023.
The pattern was consistent every single time: respond to a repair request on Facebook, offer a free diagnostic to build trust, quote a price, collect payment via Cash App or cash, perform partial work or no work at all, then block the customer's number and move on.
KFOR Oklahoma City (NBC affiliate) broke the story in July 2023 and published four separate reports as the victim count grew. The Friendly Atheist published a detailed investigation on July 27, 2023, documenting the religious manipulation tactics in depth.
The Religious Manipulation Playbook
Martin's approach was calculated. Every business name invoked God. Every Facebook post quoted scripture. The branding was designed to make one thing clear: you can trust me because I'm a man of faith.
It worked because it was supposed to. Using religion as a trust signal exploits the assumption that someone who shares your beliefs won't steal from you. It targets communities where word-of-mouth and personal trust matter more than credentials. It's not just dishonest — it's predatory.
A business name that references God does not mean God is involved in the business. A Bible verse in a Facebook post does not mean the person posting it is honest. The name is not the verification. The verification is the verification.
KFOR's investigation found that Martin operated six different phone numbers across his various business identities. Four of those numbers were already out of service by the time reporters tried to reach him. The remaining two were still active on his Facebook pages.
He deleted negative reviews. He posted fake positive ones. He had no physical address for any of his businesses. He operated entirely through Facebook and Cash App — two platforms with virtually no consumer protection infrastructure.
Houston: The Scam Crosses State Lines
When the KFOR coverage made Oklahoma City too hot, Martin didn't stop. He went home.
In August 2023, Martin resurfaced in Houston, Texas — described in news reports as his hometown — operating under the name God's Garage Mobile Mechanics with the tagline: "The mechanics you can have FAITH IN!"
A Houston woman contacted Ethical Mechanic directly to report her experience. She had paid Martin approximately $500 to complete repairs on her vehicle. He performed only part of the job. She had to call another mechanic to finish the work she had already paid Martin to do.
But the money was not the worst part.
Martin was dropped off at her residence and later picked up — he didn't arrive in his own vehicle, which is unusual for any mechanic making a house call and a significant red flag. During the service, Martin made unsolicited sexual advances toward the customer. He inquired about her marital status and made multiple inappropriate comments, leaving her feeling violated and vulnerable in her own home.
The victim also provided Ring doorbell footage from August 8, 2023 showing Martin arriving in a God's Garage t-shirt — footage that was later referenced in KFOR's Houston follow-up report.
KFOR's fourth article specifically documented how the scam targeted women, with additional victims in both Oklahoma City and Houston coming forward.
The Business Name Shell Game
One of Martin's most effective evasion tactics was constantly changing his business identity. Each time victims started posting warnings on one Facebook page, he would shut it down and create a new one under a different name.
The documented chain:
- Faith on Wheelz Mobile Mechanics — Original name, Facebook page created July 4, 2023 (facebook.com/faithonwheelz)
- Elevation Mechanics / Elevation Mobile Mechanics — Same Facebook account, rebranded
- God's Garage Mobile Mechanics — New page (facebook.com/godsgaragemobile), used during Houston operations
- Blessed Mechanics — Most recent known name (facebook.com/profile.php?id=61550321604444)
In later operations, Martin began charging a $50 "service fee" upfront, claiming it was to verify the customer's legitimacy — an additional layer of extraction before any work was even discussed.
Note: A freight carrier called "Faith On Wheelz LLC" registered in Allen, Texas is an entirely separate and unrelated business.
Cash App Receipts and Evidence
Victims shared their Cash App transaction records with Ethical Mechanic, documenting payments made to Martin for work that was never completed:
Cash App, Venmo, and Zelle payments are not recoverable through a dispute process the way credit card charges are. Once the money is sent, it's gone. Martin knew this. That's why he insisted on these payment methods.
Ethical Mechanic's Direct Contact With Martin
On the evening of August 13, 2023, Ethical Mechanic had a direct conversation with Derick Martin — or whoever was on the other end of the line.
The dialogue was intricate and cautious. The person on the other end hinted at potential cases of mistaken identity, referenced new employment opportunities, and made comments about adjusting to post-parole life — confirming a prior incarceration, though the underlying conviction has not been publicly identified.
As the conversation progressed, the lines of authenticity blurred. Was this truly a direct insight into Martin's situation, or a smokescreen deployed by someone close to him?
Below are screenshots from Ethical Mechanic's direct conversation with Derick Martin on the evening of August 13, 2023:
While Ethical Mechanic was unable to confirm whether this conversation was with Martin himself or someone speaking on his behalf, the references to parole and employment adjustments aligned with details that had already surfaced through victim accounts and news reporting.
During this same period, numerous additional victims stepped forward, recounting their experiences with a person named Derick or, occasionally, Daryl. A fleeting reference to an individual named Jose also emerged, although the details surrounding that name remain unverified.
Domestic Violence Arrest in Houston
Martin's documented behavior extends beyond financial fraud.
According to reporting by KPRC 2 (Click2Houston) and references in KFOR's follow-up coverage, Martin was arrested in Houston after his wife shot him when he broke into her apartment and choked her in front of their four children. He was charged with assault and violation of a protective order.
This is not a side note. A person who makes unsolicited sexual advances toward a female customer in her own home, who has a documented history of domestic violence, and who specifically targets women through his scam operation represents a danger that goes beyond money.
No Charges Filed for the Scam Itself
Despite multiple victims filing police reports, despite four separate KFOR news investigations, and despite a documented trail of stolen money across two states — as of this writing, Derick Martin has never been arrested or charged with any crime related to his mobile mechanic scam.
Not in Oklahoma. Not in Texas. Not anywhere.
The only criminal charges on record are for the domestic violence incident in Houston — assault and violation of a protective order. The fraud that destroyed people's finances, left a woman on disability without transportation, and targeted vulnerable women in their own homes has produced zero legal consequences.
Martin moved faster than the system. By the time victims filed reports in Oklahoma City, he was already in Houston under a new business name. By the time Houston victims came forward, he had likely moved on again. The combination of Cash App payments (no paper trail for law enforcement), constantly changing Facebook pages (no stable business identity to subpoena), and interstate movement (jurisdictional complications between Oklahoma and Texas) created a situation where no single law enforcement agency built a prosecutable case.
This is exactly the kind of gap Ethical Mechanic exists to expose. The system failed these victims. The police reports went nowhere. The news coverage came and went. And Derick Martin walked away with thousands of dollars from people who trusted him because he quoted the Bible.
What We Know About Derick Martin
Based on public records, news reporting, and firsthand victim accounts:
- Full name: Derick Martin, believed to be Derick Dewayne Martin
- Location: Originally from Houston, TX. Operated in Oklahoma City before returning to Houston. Linked to an address in Channelview, TX (77530) — a Houston suburb.
- Prior record: Confirmed prior incarceration and parole (underlying conviction not publicly identified). Arrested in Houston for assault and violation of a protective order.
- Vehicle: Does not own one. Was dropped off and picked up at job sites.
- Payment methods: Cash App, cash. Avoids any payment method with consumer protection.
- Phone numbers: At least six different numbers used across business identities, four of which went out of service.
- Online presence: Constantly created and deleted Facebook pages. No physical business address. No verifiable credentials.
Current Status: Unknown
No news coverage of Derick Martin has appeared since August 2023. His known Facebook pages have not produced new indexed content. No new victims have come forward publicly.
Given his documented pattern — change the name, change the city, start over — it is possible Martin is operating under an entirely new business identity that has not yet been connected to his history. The domestic violence charges in Houston may have interrupted his operations, though no public disposition of that case has been found.
If you have had contact with Derick Martin, any of his business names, or a mobile mechanic operation that matches this pattern, contact your local police department immediately and file a report with your state Attorney General's consumer protection office.
How to Protect Yourself
This case is a textbook example of how mobile mechanic scams operate:
- Never pay in full before work is completed. A reasonable deposit for parts is one thing. Full payment upfront is a red flag.
- Never use Cash App, Venmo, or Zelle for services. These are peer-to-peer transfers with no buyer protection. Use a credit card whenever possible.
- Verify credentials before hiring anyone. Check your state's business registry. Ask for a license number. Search their name alongside "scam" or "complaint" before handing over money.
- A business name that sounds trustworthy does not make it trustworthy. Religious branding, patriotic names, and community-sounding identities are marketing — not credentials.
- If a mechanic doesn't arrive in their own vehicle, that is a red flag. A mobile mechanic needs tools, parts, and transportation. If they're being dropped off, something is wrong.
- Document everything. Save screenshots of conversations, keep receipts, note the date and time of service. If something goes wrong, your documentation is your evidence.
Visit our Avoiding Scams guide for a complete breakdown of how to protect yourself, or browse our verified mechanic directory to find a mechanic you can actually trust.
Sources
- KFOR — "Oklahoma City mobile mechanic accused of taking money from several people and then leaving"
- KFOR — "Allegations piling up against Oklahoma City mobile mechanic"
- KFOR — "Reports of OKC mobile mechanic now in Houston allegedly taking more money"
- KFOR — "Auto repair scam targets women, more victims come forward"
- Friendly Atheist — "A Bible-quoting mechanic took clients' cash, then disappeared"
- Ethical Mechanic original reporting, direct contact with Derick Martin, and victim accounts (August 2023)
This article was originally published on August 11, 2023 on EthicalMechanic.org. It has been updated and expanded with additional reporting, victim accounts, and research findings. Ethical Mechanic is committed to tracking this case and will update this article if new information becomes available.
If you have information about Derick Martin or have been victimized by this individual, contact us through EthicalMechanic.org.