Used FBI surveillance van sells on eBay for $18,000

CARY, North Carolina -- Update: The van has sold for $18,700.00

When Cary residents Ginter Senfeldas and Egert Abilon placed their bid on a used van at a government auction in Georgia, they had no idea what was hiding inside.

It was only after they peeked in the back of the 1989 Dodge Ram 350 that they realized they had purchased a retired FBI surveillance van.

Inside were two television screens, a panel full of knobs and buttons, loads of audio monitoring equipment, and a toilet.

There were even leftover tapes of people being spied on and suspect vehicles being followed.

"We never expected it to be a surveillance van," Senfaldas said. "We bought it as a work truck, and you know, we looked in the back and everything was there."

Now, the two have listed the van on eBay, where it currently sits at over $18,000 and climbing.

Only a few hours are left in the auction, which ends Monday evening at 7.

Senfaldas said the eBay page has reached over 150,000 hits, due in part to the nationwide media coverage it has received.

The equipment in the back of the van is still fully functional and all the paperwork proving its authenticity is present, including an FBI badge.

Despite its age, the van has just 23,500 miles. Perhaps it spent many hours on stakeouts.

Senfaldas is no stranger to interesting vehicles. He and Abilon are both immigrants from Europe, and Senfaldas owns an exotic European car club in the Triangle. He also runs the Triangle meetup for the BMW Car Club of America.

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