WASHINGTON - D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty is targeting used car dealers on four commercial strips in the District along Rhode Island and Georgia Avenues and Benning and Bladensburg roads.

Fenty said the dealerships aren't selling cars and that they're storing cars to sell elsewhere, while blighting D.C. neighborhoods.

As used car lot owners and city inspectors confronted each other, D.C. tow trucks lined up in front and in back of Sammy's used car lot on Bladensburg Road in Northeast D.C. The mayor himself was there to announce it was one of 23 lots so far that D.C.is shutting down. "We're terminating the license of 303 individual salesmen…," Fenty said.

This is the latest episode of Fenty's ongoing battle with immigrant car dealers. D.C. Acting Attorney General Peter Nickles today said these car dealerships are not selling cars, but junking up D.C. neighborhoods storing cars.

The car dealers challenged the notion that they're not selling cars. "We selling car here everyday," said one car dealer from Yugoslavia. "We are here everyday, we have a license to sell car here.."

Most of the car dealers are from Nigeria and while they did produce permits and licenses, city officials didn't seem to be impressed.

Besides the 23 dealerships expected to close in the next two weeks, city officials say 17 more are under investigation and could be closed. Three other used car dealerships were closed earlier this month.

The city has tried to implement a plan like this before, but when car dealers took the city to court, a judge ordered the cars be returned to the lots. The city insists this new enforcement campaign will help their plan stick this time around.