N.Y. VAT Law § 421

§ 421. Sale of motor vehicle, trailer or part thereof with changed\nidentification number. 1. Any person engaged in the business of buying\nor selling motor vehicles, trailers, or parts thereof, shall be presumed\nto have determined and to know the original vehicle identification\nnumbers and special identification numbers on any motor vehicle,\ntrailers or parts thereof purchased or sold by such person, both at the\ntime of purchase and sale.\n 2. Any person engaged in the business of buying or selling motor\nvehicles, trailers, or parts thereof, who sells or offers for sale a\nmotor vehicle, trailer, or part thereof, the original vehicle\nidentification number or special identification number of which shall\nhave been destroyed, removed, altered, defaced or so covered as to be\neffectually concealed, without having complied with regulations\npromulgated by the commissioner, shall be guilty of a class E felony.\n 3. Any person, other than a person engaged in the business of buying\nor selling motor vehicles, trailers, or parts thereof, who knowingly\nsells or offers for sale a motor vehicle, trailer, or part thereof, the\noriginal vehicle identification number or special identification number\nof which shall have been destroyed, removed, altered, defaced or so\ncovered as to be effectually concealed shall be guilty of a class E\nfelony. In any prosecution under this subdivision, the purchase of the\nmotor vehicle, trailer or part from a dealer registered pursuant to\nsection four hundred fifteen of this chapter, a vehicle dismantler\nregistered pursuant to section four hundred fifteen-a of this chapter,\nor a motor vehicle repair shop registered pursuant to section three\nhundred ninety-eight-c of this chapter shall be presumptive evidence\nthat the purchaser did not have knowledge of the destruction, removal,\nalteration, defacing or covering of the original vehicle identification\nnumber or special identification number.\n 4. For the purposes of this article, the term "original identification\nnumber" shall mean any number embossed, engraved, etched, affixed to a\nlabel, sticker or plate or similarly marked on any part of a motor\nvehicle, trailer or vehicle part which is assigned by the manufacturer\nfor the purpose of identification of that particular motor vehicle,\ntrailer or vehicle part and the location of which number is made\navailable to the public.\n