• Orange Motors celebrating its 100th anniversary back in 2016. Above, from left, then-general manager Carl Keegan, who had been with the dealership for 45 years, Albany County Executive Dan McCoy, dealership owner Charles Touhey, and former Albany Mayor Gerald Jennings. 
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Orange Motors celebrating its 100th anniversary back in 2016. Above, from left, then-general manager Carl Keegan, who had been with the dealership for 45 years, Albany County Executive Dan McCoy, dealership owner Charles Touhey, and former Albany Mayor Gerald Jennings.  less
Orange Motors celebrating its 100th anniversary back in 2016. Above, from left, then-general manager Carl Keegan, who had been with the dealership for 45 years, Albany County Executive Dan McCoy, dealership ... more
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Orange Motor Co. at 430 Central Ave. in Albany back in 1933. (Times Union archive)
Orange Motor Co. at 430 Central Ave. in Albany back in 1933. (Times Union archive)
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Albany

The former owners of Orange Motors on Central Avenue are suing longtime general manager Carl Keegan over $724,176  that went missing before the car dealership was sold last year to DePaula  Auto Group.

A civil lawsuit filed last month in state Supreme Court in Albany County claims that the shortfall was discovered after the sale last May. DePaula now runs the Ford and Mazda dealerships that it purchased from Orange Motors, officially known as Orange Motor Co.

"As a result of the sale of its assets, the plaintiff noted certain unauthorized transactions and financial deficiencies," the suit states.

It says "a large number of transactions" between January 2014 and May 2017 were identified during a forensic investigation that were not authorized yet allegedly "involved the defendant" Keegan.

The suit also says the company's books were marked up "in such a matter to obscure the details" of the transactions.

Keegan, who lives in Slingerlands and worked for Orange Motors for more than 45 years, did not immediately return a call seeking comment Monday. The suit doesn't provide any detail on how the money went missing, although the suit claims that the shortfall resulted in the company having a lower market value when it was being sold.

James Towne Jr., the attorney who filed the suit on behalf of Orange Motor Co., did not return a call seeking comment either.

The Touhey family started Orange Motor Co. back in 1916 and owned the dealership up until the sale last year for an undisclosed amount.