When I was broke a couple years back and my (now ex) girlfriend needed a car, I bought one on the cheap from someone who was moving out of state that I knew through work. I didn’t think about it at the time, but it’s always a possibility the car is stolen. It was an old Buick, sort of like in this story. I guess make sure you know the person you’re buying from whenever possible.
I am surprised that it does not happen more often.