Wednesday's legal maneuver freezes assets and puts into place a temporary restraining order against Shalev.

It seeks accounting for millions of dollars in fees reportedly fraudulently assessed against those who participated in auctions to purchase vehicles.

It's alleged Shalev required auction participants to pay a $10 entry fee, and what he described as a refundable $200 deposit before bidding on a vehicle. But that money was reportedly never refunded.

The AG's office said Arie (Eric) Shalev's auction at 8335 North Freeway uses several business names, including A&R Distributors Inc., E.S. Auto Sales Inc., Best Buy Motors Inc., Giant Mart Inc. and Golden Aribah Investments, L.L.C.

Many of the consumers affected either spoke little or no English.