Fraud Victim

Off Topic
1

I am selling my bike on the internet and today this e-mail arrived in my box (word for word):


thanks for getting back to me this time.i will pay the amount you want for the (BIKE) . but i will have to pay you with a CASHIER CHECK from an AMERICAN bank through my client who owes me the sum of $6,000 and he has agreed to send the cheque out in your name in which you will cash it and deduct your own $1,500 and help me send the rest back to my shipper through WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER.this remaining money will be used for the shipping of what am buying from you. i want you to get back to me if you think you can help me out with my proposal. if you are alright with my method of payment,i want you to give me the following informations that i will use in making sure the cheque gets to you on time:
YOUR FULL NAME THAT WILL BE WRITTEN ON THE CHEQUE,
YOUR ADDRESS WHE RE THE CHEQUE WILL BE SENT TO,
YOUR CITY AS WELL AS THE ZIP CODE AND COUNTRY
YOUR PHONE NUMBERS.
I want you to know that shipping of this {BIKE}is not a problem to me.i have my own shipping company that will handle this for me.all i want is if you can help me to cash this cheque and send the rest of the money to my shipper that will come and pick the (BIKE) for me,please send them.thank you and i will be expecting your mail as soon as possible.

I hate getting fucked over. Worse, I hate people that try to fuck me over and just plain suck at it.

Is there anyway to screw this guy at his own game? Could I propose that I only send payment if the check clears for 6 weeks?

I’ve recieved two emails like this and have reported one to the FDIC to see what they say.

This little fuck I’ve decided I’d atleast like to put an effort in to really screw over.

2

Anyone…

Anyone…

3

You could try to send the guy the info he wants, using a phoney name (Stance Larmstrong, perhaps??) and the address of your buddy next door (assuming you have a buddy next door). That way, the dude wouldn’t have any actual info on you.

I like your idea of telling him you need to hold the check X amount of weeks. What if you tell him that you’ll only accept a personal check, rather than a Cashier’s Check. That way, you’d have some re-contact info on him as well.

This is exactly why the internet is only for fitness training websites, and naughty porn you never knew existed (not necessarily in that order).

4

They use this exact same scam for car buying as well.

I’m not sure how you could get back at him. I’ve emailed them back calling them out on this scam and never heard back from them.

If you could get his info, you could pay him a visit. Maybe you can say, “I’m definitely interested and will have no problem doing that for you. Please give me your contact information so we can make the exchange.”

Then proceed to hunt him down and fuck up his day and his life.

5

Along the same lines, does anyone have any advise for buying something off Ebay? I’ve never done it before but it seems like I can save a lot of money on what I’m looking to buy. Any thoughts or Ebay experiences?

6

It’s a complete and total scam. I’ve sold many cars on Ebay and I get that same email on every one. I turn them all in to Ebay but that just makes another one pop up somewhere else. Just turn them in, delete and forget about it. It’s not going to stop anytime soon, just don’t fall for it.

7

I emailed back saying I’d hold the check for 6 weeks. Let’s see if he e-mails me back.

If I were to get the check and cash it what would happen if it bounced? They’d just ask me for money back right?

As long as I haven’t spent the money I’m in the clear?

8

[quote]lostinthought wrote:
It’s a complete and total scam. I’ve sold many cars on Ebay and I get that same email on every one. I turn them all in to Ebay but that just makes another one pop up somewhere else. Just turn them in, delete and forget about it. It’s not going to stop anytime soon, just don’t fall for it. [/quote]

Is there anyway to end up ripping them off?

9

[quote]TriGWU wrote:
I emailed back saying I’d hold the check for 6 weeks. Let’s see if he e-mails me back.

If I were to get the check and cash it what would happen if it bounced? They’d just ask me for money back right?

As long as I haven’t spent the money I’m in the clear?[/quote]

Sounds ok in theory, but are you still out a bike? Or would you hold the bike for 6 weeks, to make sure that ‘check’ clears?

10

[quote]TriGWU wrote:

Is there anyway to end up ripping them off?[/quote]

Not from what I can tell. They’re usually some place overseas…Once they get an email from you that shows you’re not falling for it, they’ll close that account and set another scam for someone else.

Ebay’s been a really good experience for me, buying and selling, so I can’t really complain. Just have to watch out and be careful of the scams. I wish there was a way to screw them over but I haven’t found it yet…I’ve even asked Ebay for updates on what they’ve done to those cases I’ve turned in and I get no response.

11

I’d keep the bike for the time being until the check clears.

12

Tri,

I’m curious what are the specs on the bike you’re selling? Reason I’m asking is I’m about to sell my 2004 giant tcr 0 including the polar power kit but wasn’t sure if 4000 was asking too much.

13

[quote]TriGWU wrote:
I emailed back saying I’d hold the check for 6 weeks. Let’s see if he e-mails me back.

If I were to get the check and cash it what would happen if it bounced? They’d just ask me for money back right?

As long as I haven’t spent the money I’m in the clear?[/quote]

I’d say ‘no’. My ex sold his car online, got a cashier’s check (supposedly a guaranteed thing, right?), deposited it at the bank, waited, bank told him IN WRITING that it cleared so he sent the car. Two weeks later, he finds a 16k debit against his account.

Somehow, the cashier’s check bounced and the bank debited it against his account (he’d already used it to pay off other things). For whatever reason, it doesn’t matter that he has a letter IN WRITING from the bank stating it cleared. He took this issue to the police, to the bank President, he even wrote the Senator (not sure why on that one). All agreed that he’s fucked. He’s now making payments on that bounced cashier’s check - plus all the fees involved.

Be careful. Be very careful.

14

Here is how it goes…From experience…These guys get ahold of real account #'s and info (IDENTITY THEFT) they then print out bogus checks with real info on them, they send to you, you deposit it, your bank verifies it’s a legit account and deposits it in your account…A few days or weeks later the real person see’s the debit from thier account freaks out and reports it, your bank has to repay thier bank and you get held responsible…

It has been done for years with payroll checks made on programs like quiken with actual account ‘s from business’ cashed at the little convenience stores for $200 bucks or so using a stolen ID…

That is why lots of people mainly big business stress direct deposits and online banking, and eventually there will be no more paper checks…

15

Wow, Tri!

Amazing how this person wouldn’t realize how obviously weird his idea is. It walks and quacks like a duck… What is this world coming to, so many weird frauds out there.

Suggestions? 1-Report it right away to the FCC, and email the letter and the info to the FBI, for their info. Then write back to the person and let them know you have contacted the proper authorities.

A scam artist contacted me a few years ago, a guy called me on the phone stating he was from a well known, reputable Jaguar dealership in town, stating I had just won a Jag and requesting my info and my credit card number for taxes and fees so that I could pick up my car the next day. He also requested telephone consent from me that the news media could be present when I was to be presented with the car, citing a well known newscaster’s name. I acted excited, screaming and hollering on the phone, saying I’d call him right back, I had to get my hunny’s credit card number (I didn’t believe him in the least, but I did get his infomation and telephone number). I then called the dealership (who knew nothing of a contest), the Better Business Bureau, the police and a popular television show here called “Action Line”. Apparently, there had been complaints by people who had sent him money to claim their cars and were scammed.

A few minutes later, I called him back and let him continue with his pitch. Then I said to him, “I’m so excited, you know why!!!” He asked excitedly “why?!” and I said, “because I gave your name and telephone number to the police department, better business bureau, the dealership who wants to catch your ass, AND…I’m going to be featured on Action Line, (the newscaster’s name) is on her way to my house right now and they’re going to feature your scan on this week’s news! AND my hunny is a cop and my cousin is a wite collar crime detective with the police department and both of them would love to kick your ass! Isn’t that great!!!” Silence…then “oh…really?” Me: “mmmmhmmm”…And then CLICK.

The television show covered my story, talking about how I handled the scammer and made him look like an idiot, and how I gave his information to the authorities who were going to agressively pursue him, and they even interviewed the dealership, BBB and police department on camera. Also, I didn’t know at the time, but the story talked about the many people who were scammed by the same guy, one was an elderly retired woman on a fixed income :frowning:

16

[quote]TriGWU wrote:
Anyone…

Anyone…[/quote]

Bueller? Some help?

18

Trig, DO NOT F*CK WITH THIS! this is a scam that is being run out of Nigeria and a few other African countries that don’t have extradition or enforcement of laws that apply to the U.S. In fact people have been killed for trying to recoup losses once the went to the country of origin. This has been happening for a few years now in the U.S. A lot of people have lost their life savings and more due to these scams, and the countries that they are being perpetrated from don’t even bat an eye. A local business that does internet sales got taken for over $20,000 last year, and there was nothing anybody in the U.S. could do to help her recoup her loss. Your best bet would be to contact the F.B.I.

19

Fuck these people.

Now the question is… am I helping out the FBI by having said peice of shit send me a check and then passing it off to a bank to let them know?

What a piece of shit.

Sorry to hear the people that got screwed over by these people. I wish there was something out there I could do to actually end up with the $6000 he was proposing. I’d buy you all a tub of Grow!.

20

Craigslist and Ebay are notorious for this kind of buyer. I have seen them from England, Thailand, Germany, Africa, Wales, New Zealand and so on and so on.

The unfortunate part, is there is nothing the FBI can do. On such a large scale these type of “buyers” have the market cornered. Some people are informed of them and don’t fall for there ploy and some are’nt and lose.
You have already done the best thing you can do, you reported it.