posted on January 25, 2001 09:58:46 PM new
Wow, looks like I stirred up some interest!
Question for the moderator though...
You say I can't post his name...What if his ID IS his name...
Take John Smith for example...
If his ID is [email protected], is that ok to post?
Stay tuned tomorrow, I invited all of the other people who were ripped by this guy to visit the discussion tomorrow.
I can only PRAY that the fraud seller shows up...That would REALLY BE FUN!!!
Since I can't mention his name, I will just reiterate that his ID is [email protected]
Now that we have that out of the way...
Here's the short story...
About 1 month ago, I bid $52 on a $100 Home Depot Gift card. The auction ends while I am sleeping, and I wake up to find I was outbid. 3 hours after the auction ends, I get an email stating the guy who won it doesn't want to honor his bid, so I can have it...I think, ok, 3 hours, that seems kinda fishy...should have gone with my instinct...
After paying, I get an emtpy envelope in the mail that appeared to have been ripped open with a letter opener...It could have been the Post Office error, but I suspected him also...I knew he was lying based on his responses (sorry, I sent it, not my problem...etc, etc) Just as I am filing a fraud report with IFCCFBI.gov, I check his
feedback one more time, and sure enough, the actual winner of the auction posted the following feedback:
Comment:I am out $62 plus the cost of a money order. Received an open
envelope w/no gift card in it. The $100 gift card was sent with a .33
cent stamp and was mailed without being hidden in the envelope.
Requested a refund since the item was mailed without bei (Jan 11 20:48 PST)
Comment:I was just notified that he is trying to resell this gift
card!! If I do not receive the card by 1/15, I am calling the
police. (Jan 11 21:46 PST) (most recent)
Now, I know he is lying...Needless to say I am furious. So, I do a little detective work, and I contacted the winner of the auction. (I will invite him to this discussion so he can add anything I forget)
I find out that there is at least 1 other person who he gave the same story to...so at LEAST 3 people paid him and received an
empty envelope.
Now he is selling playstation 2's on Yahoo, ripping people off there as well. The title of his auction is this:
Playstation 2 controllers 3 games included reciept free overnight fedex ship.
Or similar to that...
And He shows a picture of a PlayStation 2 box...Reading the title again, he is selling playstation 2 controllers,(COMMA) and 3 games. He leads you to believe you are getting a PS2, controllers, and 3 games.
He posts a picture of a PS2 unit box. Combined with the picture of the unit,
you think you're bidding on a PS2 unit, controllers, and 3 games...
I, fortunantly, only lost $52 (which I hope PayPal stops by here and reverses that transaction) But many other people have lost over $400 to this fraud.
I can't personally leave any feedback, because I didn't actually win the auction.
You can read some of his feedback, most is under the DEALER2002 Yahoo ID and a few under INSOMNIA0012, also at Yahoo.
I have been in contact with 4 different people who have been ripped off by him, and will invite them all here as well.
Now that I know he is a fraud, I have filed everywhere, Yahoo, IFCCFBI.gov, PayPal...
Apparently, he is well known for fraud where he is from...I have heard that the FBI is involved, but I am really thinking the only way I get my money back is if PayPal does something about it...
So, that's what I have to say, I seriously doubt he'll say anything to defend himeself, he has a habit of getting lost in the shadows once he has your money...I would LOVE to see him show up here though! That would be some good comedy!
I will gladly respond to all questions about this guy.
I would like to commend you on taking the time to raise this. I am glad that you didn't lose a lot of money, and are willing to try to help others who have lost more.
Where do you go from here?
It will be interesting to have some feedback on what response you get from PayPal. Yahoo seems much more flakey to me than Ebay in terms of fraud and rip-offs, and I tend to be very wary of stuff there.
Inviting other "winners" of the auctions here is a good start, so that you can network and share information and experiences. The people who were done over by Alien Distribution started here, and have since gone on to develop a bulletin board, Yahoo club and web-page for collecting information which has been shared with the FBI.
Getting Ebay and Yahoo to take the situation seriously will be a defining point for PREVENTION, but getting together and sharing experience will help you get REFUNDS.
posted on January 26, 2001 04:05:05 PM new
Doubt Yahoo! Will be any help at all, I complained to them about a seller who had grossly misrepresented an item (the 1.5CTTW gemstone turned out to be .35CTTW) and was told I needed to work it out with the seller or contact the appropriate authorities. That's it. Seller is still selling despite at least one other complaint for the same thing, but most of the FB is OK. I guess I was just unlucky! Trying to work it out with seller only resulted in me being called a "liar" and accussed of trying to "pull a fast one"! I was so shocked, I just decided no more Yahoo for me, thank you very much!
At least with eBay you have SafeHarbor. I'm not sure they do anything about getting your money back, but at least they will NARU someone if it's appropriate. Of course, the NARUed user can just create a new ID and keep on going like that little pink bunny!
So, how do you stop someone bent on deception/fraud????? I don't know that you can.
