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SOUNDS LIKE A SCAM TO ME...


Z-Dreamer

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As some of you know, I'm selling some Ultra High Performance parts on this site and also on several racer classified sites. One of the responses I received HAS TO BE A SCAM. I'll let you, my fellow HybridZ brothern be the judge!

 

First response I received:

 

-----Original Message-----

From: pharrel4real@yahoo.co.uk [mailto:pharrel4real@yahoo.co.uk]

Sent: Friday, January 16, 2004 12:15 PM

To: machristensen@netzero.net

Subject: Reply To Your Ad at the RPMnet.com Classifieds

 

Good day,

I am inetersted in buying your said item and i will like you

to get back to

me with your last offering price and the present condition of it

so that

payment can be made out to you via USA cashier check and also i

will take

care of the shipping myself so hope to hear from you soon, my

regards to you

and your family,

THANK`S

 

I e-mailed back the following:

 

Thank you for expressing interest in the parts I posted at RPMnet.com.

I have listed different parts, at different times though. If you are

referring to the Kryptonite crankshaft, Carrillo rods and BRC pistons, they

are used but in excellent condition. These engine parts are of the highest

quality and were originally used in an 800 hp sprint car racer.

The price I'm asking for is $2,300 US dollars. That's less than half the

cost of purchasing them new!

I can crate these parts for shipment once payment arrangements can be made.

E-mail me or call me at 916-524-2011 to make said arrangements.

Thank you again and I'm looking forward to hearing from you.

 

Mark Christensen

 

Ps. With whom am I corresponding?

 

Then I received this CRAP!!!

 

FROM: PHARREL LAWNSON

SUBJECT: MODE OF PAYMENT.........$8,000

 

THANKS FOR THE MAIL ,THE PRICE IS OKAY BY ME NOW I CAN

CONTACT MY CLIENT TO ISSUE YOU A CASHIER CHECK OF $8,000

WHILE YOU WILL DEDUCT YOUR OWN $600 AND SEND THE BALANCE TO

ME P.A SO THAT HE CAN INSTRUCT MY SHIPPER TO COME TO YOUR

LOCATION TO COME AND PICK IT UP FOR SHIPPING SO I WILL LIKE

YOU TO SEND ME YOUR CONTACT DETAILS OF WERE THE CHECK WILL

BE SEND TO I MEAN YOUR FULL NAME AND THE ADDRESS AND YOUR

PHONE NUMBER OF WERE THE CHECK WILL BE SEND TO AND ALSO DO

NOT FORGET TO SEND THE PICTURE ALONG .HOPE TO HEAR FROM YOU

SOON,

REGRADS,

 

How can I report this CON-ARTIST and to whom?

 

Mark

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Guest Nic-Rebel450CA

Someone else posted the almost exact same scam before. Try searching for some of the text in that email and see if you can find the thread. I believe the buyer said it was an insurance cashiers check that was already written for $xxxx and that the seller could deduct the cost of the product plus a portion for the inconvenience or some crap like that.

 

I would contact your local authorities and see if they want to try to bust the fellow when he comes to pick up the product. If you can find the old thread, there was some really good advice in it.

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Guest Nic-Rebel450CA

Get a P.O. box, have him send the cashier's check, and then shine him on picking up the product. If the cashier's check is fake, take it to the PD. If it is real, hold onto it for a while, and then cash it at a random bank that is a few dozen miles from your home and have fun with the money.

 

Yes, UK is for United Kingdom. You'd be surprised how many scams come out of Europe. When I worked for an internet provider, a couple co-workers and I discovered an elaborate network server theft that was a theft of enough internet servers to basically provide dialup access to a small country. It was amazing how bold the people were too. They actually re-registered the servers with names like "you.cant.stop.the.ubergeeks.net".

 

BTW, Mark, I see you live in Sac. I'll help you if you wanna try to get some money from this guy. I have a buddy that is a manager at local bank, I could have him verify the authenticity of the cashiers check too.

 

It's also kind of funny that he forgot to edit his email when he copied and pasted...

WHILE YOU WILL DEDUCT YOUR OWN $600 AND SEND THE BALANCE TO

ME

:D

 

Oh ya, and dont delete any emails, the IP address(es) in the headers can prove very useful to determine if this is actually someone out of the country, or that just has an out of country email address.

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I've had it happen to me several times. Tried to catch them by getting them to send a check, they just wanted more and more and more personal info and I refused to give any past my name and address... everybody else I've talked to says the FBI won't do anything, it is out of the country - probably Africa. The first guy to contact me admitted to being in Africa, the second (I'm 99*) sure it was the same guy was supposedly in the UK.

 

Delete their email and don't waste time, just use it to educate those you know.

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While this clown's english is bad, if you read carefully, he wants to send me a cashiers check for $8,000, I'm to cash it, then keep $600 and then send back $7,400 so he can then instruct his shipper to pick it up.

 

RIGHT...

 

Well I might of been born at night, but it wasn't last night!

 

Mark

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Actually Mark I believe the scam works this way:

 

The poor english grammer is intentional. The $8000 is the bait the keep you e-mailing back. The more you corispond the more confident you start to feel about this guy. The english gets better. Then after four or five, or eleven or twelve e-mails, whatever it takes, when he is convinced you believe him the sting comes down. At that point his english is crystal clear. He has a check for $8000 he can't cash for some (now very believeable to you) reason. He wants your parts and will trade his check (which you now believe you can easily cash) for the parts. All he wants from you is the international shipping charges which, you guessed it, are about $600. He will arrange the shipping. Notice he said he will send his shipper to you? So he needs the $600 to pay his shipper. You send him $600 and you believe you will receive a check for $8000. You get $7400 for your $2300 parts!$!$ Only it doesn't work out that way. You may or may or may not get a phony cashiers check. You never see his "shipper", there is none. He doesn't want your parts, just the $600.

 

Honest people wont offer you twice what your stuff is worth. He hopes your greed will cloud your thinking. Sadly, he is right enough times to make a living conning people. The best way to combat this scam is to ignore it and tell others to do the same. Replying only encourages him.

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My former employer just called me about a similar scam. Apparently the one he fell victim to involves a person making a large purchase, and a "relay call" to a foreign country. Needless to say he got a fraudulent cashier's check, but only determined that after he had sent $1000's of dollars worth of merchandise out of the country.

 

I won't do biz outside the US, period.

 

Jon

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