I put my motorcycle up for sale (if you’re interested click HERE) and listed it on a number of sites to help get the word out. Those included paid ads as well as enthusiast sites.
Within 24 hours, I got a response. Beauty, I thought, and what’s better he didn’t haggle. He offered to pay me the advertised cost. Too good to be true? Yep.
Here’s the scam: he could only pay me by PayPal. Supposedly he’s an oceanographer at sea at the moment, with no access to his bank account but did have access to his PayPal account, which was linked to his bank account. He could transfer money into my PayPal account and then organize an ‘agent’ to collect the bike when the money had hit.
Sounds foolproof, right? The money goes in, he sends his guy around, collects the bike and we’re all happy.
As a former journalist (ex-crime rounds), all of this sounded fishy in the extreme. His story sounded lame (‘if he can access PayPal over the Internet, why not his bank account?’; ‘what’s with the flimsy oceanographer at sea line?’, etc.) and I did some homework as to how PayPal works and doesn’t work.
Essentially the scam works because PayPal allows buyers to dispute a transaction and if done with a credit card, the issuer can ask for a ‘chargeback’ if the buyer disputes the sale. This means that after the money has gone in, even if you have transferred it to your account, the buyer’s issuing bank can order a ‘chargeback’ on the money you were paid, which means you have to pay it back one way or another. Meanwhile, your goods have been delivered or picked up and you have no way of recovering them because the phony buyer has disappeared.
This asymmetry in the buyer/seller dynamic means the seller can be caught short — big time.
I emailed my erstwhile oceanographer with a hanking to buy a motorbike for his favourite cousin in Perth saying I would only take cash (on pick-up was was fine), a cashier’s cheque (with goods to be picked up AFTER the cheque cleared) or a direct deposit (bank-to-bank, with 24-48 hour pick-up after the transaction cleared). I never heard back from him, which was not much of a surprise.
Also, one more word of caution: it’s not just PayPal, it’s also Western Union that you can have problems with, so beware folks, there’s some serious shonks out there that are waiting to take advantage of you if you don’t have your wits about you.
I listed a car on ebay and it sold for full price of 10k in 10 minuits even though the starting bid was $200.00. This guy is a scammer, not sure how he can get away with it, but I can spot a scammer! below is copy of his email.
Thanks for your swift respond,i really appreciate,I am currently away on business
trip, i am buying the jaguar car for my big dad,i want to make it a surprise gift for him,
so he won’t know anything about the gift until they get delivered. I can only pay through
paypal. So please kindly get back to me immediately so i can proceed with the
payment and after the payment has been done,i have a pick up agent that will
come around to pick the Item up immediately after payments…….
Looking forward to hear from you soon
This should not be allowed to happen and they should be able to track his ISP and block and report him. So happy to hear that people are onto him and really sad that many people have already been taken.
Hi
I have had the same kind of thing….see below…the persons name is Kelvin Brown – Oceanographer!
Hello Sophie,
Great reading from you. I believe you must have buyer’s interested in the purchase and I thought the best way to outbid them is by offering additional sum to the asking price. I am an oceanographer and am currently in the middle of the ocean in Tasmania. Am buying this as a surprise gift for my Dad in NZ.
To start with, I can only make the payment via paypal because it’s very safe and secure for both of us. In case you don’t have a paypal account I’ll advice you to register for one at http://www.paypal.com.au. I won’t be available to come for inspection due to my present location because I’ll still be on the ship for the next 1 Month. I have a private pick-up agent that will contact you in-order to handle the pick-up at any location of your choice once the payment is completed.
I’ll like you to tell me more about the present mechanical condition of the Vehicle, how often do you service it and the history? Send me your paypal email address and your name so that I can make the payment.
I’ll be the one to handle the payment via paypal because the agent doesn’t make payment on behalf of customers. Your quick response is greatly appreciated so that we can proceed with this transaction a.s.a.p.
Regards.
Kelvin
WOW! I got the exact email from ‘Kelvin Brown’…..this guy is a prick!
I hope he gets caught ASAP.
Thank you everyone and google for posting warnings about Paul Smith. I also received a similar email from him. Something didn’t feel right so I did a google search and found everyone’s comments.
Hello All – the lucky “father” is soon going to be surprised with a 7 piece dining suite to match the bus and other itmes – or maybe not! Paul Smith is sill the busiest oceanographer in the world by the looks of it..
BEWARE!
Have the same thing But he’s not at sea now he’s just leaving state
But heads up Hes using the same Address for me to send the money to, Amazing, quick copy in web to check an hey I find this.
Solomon Jack
85, Disraeli Road, Putney,
London,
SW15 2DY,
United Kingdom.
Hey hey all,
This guy is still going in 2011! I too am selling a car – a Honda Civic Coupe 1997. You can tell from his tone straight away in the first email – too aggressive for my liking. I just said it wasn’t happening I believe it’s a scam don’t contact me again or I’ll call the police.
So let’s hope he doesn’t murder me – I wonder what country he’s even in?!
In our residence, we usually added a component of giving to the day. We would bake and deliver house made cookies to elderly neighbors. We’d collect coins in a massive decorated Valentines Day jug that we had decorated after shortly after Christmas and have fun watching it grow. On Valentines Day we would count the coins and determine where we would donate the monies.
Just tried to sell my car on Autotrader same scam, paypal with western union transfer for agent . goes by the name David Mario. SCUM !
The new name of the mariner: John Bultin.
New Name of the mariner: John Bultin, London UK;)
I too just received this – knew it was too good to be true! And who writes like that when your name is “Paul Smith”?! And why would his dad of all people need a 7 seater car?!
I am happy to read from you,i really appreciate it,i am an oceanographer and am currently at sea at the moment,i am buying the car as a gift for my dad, i want to make it a surprise for him,he wont know anything about the car until it get delivered to him,i can only pay through pay pal as i don’t have access to my bank account online and i don’t have internet banking,but i have my bank account attached to my pay pal account and this is why i insisted on paying you through pay pal,So pls kindly get back to me with your pay pal details so i can proceed with the payment and after the payment has been made, i have a pick up agent that will come around to inspect and pick the car up after i have made the payments for the item what is your reserve price,and would be happy if you could remove the ads from the site and once am provided with your paypal email address i will send in payment..
beware of the name Layla Scott too people.
i am from New Zealand ,and Paul Smith and Layla Scott tried to buy my car.
Paul Smith text me from 07508440059
Thanks for the info!!! Never knew that ware lots of scam happening and good thing I was able to read this first because i would like to sell our motorbike. Now I know their strategy and will never fool me.
Got a second email today from Gavin Dawson seems he has changed jobs he is now a petroleum engineer but is still offshore!!!
thanks to this. a precautionary post that will help people that hasnt been scammed yet.
Thanks very much you have all just saved me a whole bunch of heart ache it seems his new name is Paul Smith, still an oceanographer and at sea!! He text me from 0433291010.
Thanks to Google and everyone who has added their 2 stories to the chain hopefully this will help others.
Thanks again everyone Nina
Hi Al,
Wow! I thought I was alone here with this same kind of problem! Last week I put up my car for sale and this same person offer me a great deal. Good thing I found this post. Thanks for sharing it!
We nearly got scammed by Mike Smith tonight (we were trying to sell a car on carsales.com.au). Were a bit suss when no money appeared in our paypal account. Luckily my brother in law suggested i google ‘mike smith oceanographer’ – and what do you know – i find this website! knew that it was too good to be true.
we emailed him back with this page attached so he can read about his scams gone wrong…
Thanks heaps for this blog!
Just had the same thing this time saying his name is Chayondra Sandra, Said he had paid the full asking price into my Paypal account plus £900 shipping fee which I was to pay to his agent??? He then threatened me with paypal ” interpol police” as I would not proceed. The bloke is a total jerk but the emails did appear genuine. Not sure what paypal are doing about this but I suspect many people have been caught out……
He needs to be stopped, it was your email that finally convinced me this was a scam Thank You
THE ACTUAL MECHANISMS PLUS REASONS FOR ATHEROSCLEROSIS
Got a car for sale on carsales.com.au
Someone by the name of Robert Langford texted me (number 0410 074 367). asked me to email him and told me a long story about being at sea and not being able to see the car. He asked me to give him my email and use Paypal. I was satrting to believe it first. but then i thought it’s a little far fetched. I called carsales andthen check his number on google. i landed on this website.
so please be aware of number and email address. most of the time the person’s name doesn’t match the email,
Thanks
Ha! Kelvin Brown, oceanographer, same deal with my car, he offered $500 extra, a bit of google and he’s got none of my money. Thanks all.
My car is advertised on carsales.com.au,
Got a person called Robert Langford this time. First he sent an txt message from the same number 0410 074 367, then asked me to email him. He said he works for the World Health Organisation and he’s at sea now. Same deal, asked for paypal name. I told him i’ve got his IP address and i’ve given the information to the police. Beware of scammers, it sounded to ridiculous.
FR
This is just like the wild wild west here its great!
Can you believe it, yeasterday I had Mr Thomas Pinson wanting to buy my car for his wife, he wants to send his shipping agent to pick it up. He’d come himsef but is a marine engeneer and is currently offshore. I was immidiately suspicious as there was no haggeling over price n ive never heard of anyone wanting to buy a car without viewing it first. Ive since told him my concernes (prior to reading this blog) and havnt heard from his since ….. As is always the case with life, if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is …… !!!! BEWARE PEOPLE
“Good to have your reply. I am Thomas Pinson from Eccles, Manchester.and would have loved to come and inspect this car at your placemyself, but I am a marine engineer and presently off-shore. I aminterested in buying this for my wife as a surprise birthday gift andpls make sure it is in condition described. I will appreciate morepictures if available and will be sending your money asap. My shipperwill be available to pick this up as soon as payment is made. Do youhave paypal account? because, I have a paypal account that I caneasily send money through because, its good for business payments. Getback to me with your paypal email address and name in order for me tohave your money sent on time. Confirm sale to me and remove the addfrom posting.regardsThomas Pinson164 charter house barton laneEccles, Manchesterm30 0hbPhone: 7045721609″
This is just like the wild wild west here its great!
I’ve had two ‘off shore workers’ contact me trying to buy my car. One was Thomas Pinson and the other was Jack Lincoln. Jack Lincoln is now offering to transfer the money direct to my bank if I supply details including IBAN and Swift codes….not sure how he is going to scam me using those but am pretty sure he has something planned…Anyone else had this offer?
Nothing is wrong with dating outside your race but I don’t think I could.
Wow, I think this is the best post you have ever put up… Brilliant.
The very crux of your writing while sounding agreeable at first, did not really settle properly with me personally after some time. Someplace within the sentences you actually were able to make me a believer but just for a short while. I nevertheless have got a problem with your jumps in logic and you would do well to fill in all those gaps. In the event you can accomplish that, I could definitely be impressed.
Our oceanographer is now called Mike Smith but otherwise all details are the same. He tried to buy my son’s car but thankfully we smelt a rat and this website confirmed it. Mind you his English and spelling has improved. Many thanks to your site for exposing this scam.
wow, thank you for this blog, i thought this was a bit suss and was trying to ask questions to find out more info, in a way i am glad he is using the same name and (profession) as i might not of found this if he did change anything, i am selling pups through pups4sale, so now he is after animals also, and to think i was worried about him mis using the dog in other ways, i also googled the name and profession i will also be passing on this info to the admin of pups4sale,
HIM I want to purchase your dog is still for sale ? What is the final price and what is the condition of the dog ? Please I would like to pay using PayPal,After payments has been made i will arrange for pick up of the dog as soon as possible…Looking forward in reading back from you soonest.
Thanks
,ME Hi we have 1 female pup left, she is 5mths old and has had her 3needles so doesnt need anymore till 12mths, i will have to look into paypal as i have never received a payment through paypal, she is $600.00 and she comes with papers, we have flown pups throughout Australia, where would the pup be going to and do you need transport, Do you know much about the American Bulldogs and training them, I always ask this so i can give you more information if you need it,
Thanks
HIM I am okay with the price and i will like to made the payment with no delay,I am an oceanographer and am currently at sea at the moment, i am buying the Dog for my wife at home and i know she will take good care of them because she really love puppy so much,Has the mode of payment i can only pay through pay pal as i don’t have access to my bank account online as i don’t have internet banking,but i have my bank account attached to my pay pal account and this is why i insisted on paying you through pay pal,So please kindly get back to me with your pay pal details so i can proceed with the payment and after the payment has been done, I have a pick up agent that will come around for verifications and to pick the Dog up after i have made the payments for the dog.
Thanks,
ME i will find out what my paypal details are, would you like me to send some photos of the pup to you or your wife, i just want to make sure she will be happy with the pup, as i said we only have 1 pup left and she is the 1 with the brindle patch on her body and eye, she is a very gentle natured pup and would love a gentle owner, what verifications would you like i might be able to send you something for you to see,
there are no conditions on the pups, we only ask that the pup has some training so she doesnt end up uncontrollable as an adult, and that she has a loving home,
what details do you need from me to pay through paypal, i will go and have a look, i just don’t want to miss any details out,
Thanks guy! I had the exact same email.
Am trying to sell furniture on gumtree.com, and ‘Paul Smith’ contacted me within 24hrs. He sound dodgy, so I googled him and found this blog! Very lucky!!
He email was:
I am happy to read from you,i really appreciate it,i am an oceanographer and am currently at sea at the moment,i am buying the item as a gift for my dad, i want to make it a surprise for him,he wont know anything about the item until it get delivered to him,i can only pay through pay pal as i don’t have access to my bank account online and i don’t have internet banking,but i have my bank account attached to my pay pal account and this is why i insisted on paying you through pay pal,So pls kindly get back to me with your pay pal details so i can proceed with the payment and after the payment has been made, i have a pick up agent that will come around to inspect and pick the item up after i have made the payments for the item what is your reserve price,and would be happy if you could remove the ads from the site and once am provided with your paypal email address i will send in payment…
Hi All, Really appreciate all these comments I am in the midst of the same situation, had 2 buyers for a car i’m selling, despite telling them not to go ahead with payments they did and I have just received a threatening email from paypal saying they have contacted interpol, not sure what to do ….. the buyers were Thomas Pinson supposed engineer working offshore and L megan Oceanographer!!! I only found you by chance trying to google the so called shipping agents.
I am planning on calling the police fraud squad tomorrow, so will let you all know the outcome. If anyone has any ideas please let me know.
You have undoubtedly first been quite demanding remarkable moving up this skill great weblog, Finally it was really fascinating that you can examine. Can’t just to determine anything you contented inside the subsequent last seven days. Hello for your huge perks, so far, I have ever felt actually compassionate such web site , and as well, reason for optimism might, as well as the great reviews the most pop other people showed, probably will assist that you decide in cases where it is usually the proper choice for you. Could be the most effective aspect.
This xxxx is still at it – Using the name Felix Michael Soludo – Michael Pearl and the so called Western union fee agent Frank Leo at guess what address Yes 85 Disraile Road Putney London.
I suspected this was a fraud but not sure so keyed the address into search engine and found this site.
We had a van for sale and he wanted a agent fee of $1450. paid first.
So nice to catch on to our so called sincere buyer (his words) before we became another victim.
Hope he emails complaining about our lack of response cause I have a few shall we say unkind works for the xxxx
Thanks for all the previous posters – makes interesting reading
Cherie in Brisbane Aust
Thanks for your swift respond,i am an oceanographer and am currently on the sea at the moment, i am buying the item as a gift for my dad,i want to make it a surprise gift for him,he won’t know anything about the gift until they get delivered to him.So i want you to reassure me that the item is in good condition as you have described. I can only pay through PayPal. So please kindly get back to immediately so i can proceed with the payment and after the payment has been done,i have a pick up agent that will come around to pick the Item up immediately after payments…….Get back to me with your direct email address and your phone number so i can contact your directly.
Looking forward to hear from you soon
Thanks.
have just made the payments and PayPal emailed me confirming this. So please check your PayPal email address (#############@gmail.com) inbox,spam mail for the Pay Pal confirmation email. PayPal said that they would be holding the money i sent because of the excess payments that i made which was the money for pick up, i will need you to proceed and Wire the excess which is $900.00 to my pick up agent to enable them make a booking for the picked up of the item.Remember that you will wire the agent fee to them via Western Union Money transfer as that is there method of payment.
So please do send the $900.00 through western union money transfer and use the remaining change of $100.00 as Western Union charges.You can easily Walk to any western union agent or supermarket,wornmart, or any western union outlet around you.After you have sent the money please get back to me asap with the western union details, the MTCN number which you will be given by western union after you have sent the money as well as the sender’s name and address so i can forward it back to PayPal for your money to be put through or you can email it to PayPal directly,that is alright as well.
Here is my pick up agent’s info that you will need to send the money to through western union money transfer:
Amanda Warren
4745 Northampton Blvd
Virginia Beach VA 23455
United State.
I will need the address where the item will be picked up,as my pick up agent will contact you to book a pick up time after they have received payments but they will have to book a time that is convenient for you.
Best Regards.
Joe Williams.
Thanks for the helpful posts, here’s another…
On Thu, Jan 13, 2011 at 3:25 PM, U?ytkownik serwisu eBay: johncoke0824 wrote:
Hello
i want you to know i am the winning buyer of your item,and i am buying it has a gift for my dad.i will like to pay by PayPal….I have a shipping agent coming for the pickup in your location. So kindly get back to me with your direct email address and phone number so that i can contact you.
Regards
- johncoke0824
Thanks for your respond,i am an oceanographer and am currently on the sea at the moment, i am buying the item as a gift for my dad,i want to make it a surprise gift for him,he won’t know anything about the gift until they get delivered to him.So i want you to reassure me that the item is in good condition as you have described. I can only pay through PayPal. So please kindly get back to immediately so i can proceed with the payment and after the payment has been done,i have a pick up agent that will come around to pick the Item up immediately after payments…….Get back to me with your direct email address and your phone number so i can contact your directly.
Looking forward to hear from you soon
Thanks.
Hi Everyone,
THANKYOU EVERYONE!!!! I have just received the same email as per Simone 8th September 2010. My gut instantly told me this was SUSPECT and my hubby was like ‘Bird in the Hand’ blah blah. Thought I would check out the guys name and occupation and guess what – came across this BLOG. PAYPAL needs to pick up their game. This should not be allowed to happen and they should be able to track his ISP and block and report him. So happy to hear that people are onto him and really sad that many people have already been taken.
I am happy to read from you,i really appreciate it,i am an oceanographer and am currently at sea at the moment,i am buying the item as a gift for my dad, i want to make it a surprise for him,he wont know anything about the item until it get delivered to him,i can only pay through pay pal as i don’t have access to my bank account online and i don’t have internet banking,but i have my bank account attached to my pay pal account and this is why i insisted on paying you through pay pal,So pls kindly get back to me with your pay pal details so i can proceed with the payment and after the payment has been made, i have a pick up agent that will come around to inspect and pick the item up after i have made the payments for the item what is your reserve price,and would be happy if you could remove the ads from the site and once am provided with your paypal email address i will send in payment
that is what i just recived lol from paul smith the king of bullshit
This guy has just tried to scam us over the sale of a dishwasher on ebay. We got the oceanographer story. The dishwasher was supposedly to be a surprise gift for his brother. We queried the purchase as we live in Australia but were still suspicious in spite of his guarantees that he wanted to buy it. He then claimed to have sent the money plus shipping to PayPal but they would not process it because it exceeded the cost of the item. We were therefore to forward $500 for the shipping of the item to Richard Blocker at the Tulare address (for the record a Richard Blocker actually lives at that address, according to the California White Pages). We were sure at this point that it was a scam when emails arrived from both “ebay” and “PayPal”, the latter wanting us to transfer the money to Blocker via Western Union (this is against ebay/PayPal policy). The email addresses did not look right so we contacted the real ebay and PayPal and sure enough, the emails were phony. I also decided to look up Donem Shipping, from whom we had also received an email wanting our address, and also Richard Blocker. As stated, there is a Richard Blocker at that address, but Donem had never heard of him and were grateful for the tip-off. Needless to say we have not paid a cent, but he (calls himself “billy layne” but the same address as others have mentioned)is persistent. We got another email today asking when we are going to forward the shipping costs so the dishwasher can be picked up. Don’t hold your breath, “billy”. We are just deleting any further emails as they arrive.
Hello, I’m being careful about revealing any of my identity now, because I have just found out who this group of scammers are and shall be reporting them to the CIA tomorrow. I am not joking. They collect peoples identities too, and use Oracle to do it. It has taken me a long time but I have the address of one, they are not Australian!
James Adams
to me
show details 17:27 (34 minutes ago)
Hi,
thanks for your respond and is really nice transacting with you and am hoping to do more with you in the nearest future with faith.
i’ve called the shipping agent and explained that you can only afford $200 but what they told me is that the amount couldn’t not be enough to book a shipping and as you’re aware that all my effort in sending the agent money is not working.
please i want you to try and make the money $500 because only such amount can be enough for the shipping as the shipping agent have stated.
pls here is the shipping information below in which you’re to send the money to through western union money transfer,and i’ll be glad if you can send the money online since you can’t afford to leave your work.
Richard Blocker
3097 Ryan Ave
Tulare, California 93274
United State.
pls do send the information immediately after you send the money online so that i can forward it to paypal and also to the shipping agent immediately.
Am looking forward to hear from you soon.
Regards.
SAME HERE GUYS, I WAS E-MAILING AND ANSWERING HIS PHONE CALLS TO TRY AND GET MORE INFO OUT OF HIM.
THE BASTARD!!!
From: “steve baker”
Mate, am an oceanographer and i am buying this for wife and kids as a pleasant supprise as a Xmas gift, i am at sea right now,i can only pay through paypal and you can put the pay pal charges on me as am presently at the moment dont have access to my bank account online,but i have it attached to my paypal account, and this is why i insisted on using paypal to pay,all i will need is your paypal email address to make the payments….due to the nature of my work, phone calls making and visiting of website are restricted but i squeezed out time to check this advert and send you an email regarding it. I really want this car to be a surprise for my family so i wont let them know anything about the car until it gets delivered to them, i am sure they will be more than happy with the car …..i wont be able to come for inspection but all i really need from you is to be sure that the car is as describe online and if you can send some more pictures(engines inclusive) .i have gone through what you wrote on the advert and i am really satisfied with its condition……I have a pick up agent that will come for the pick up after payments has been sorted..
N;B I am so sorry for my phone,my wife complained of same problem.Signal here on sea is very bad please,let communicate here..
Thanks.
Oceanograher / marine engineer…!!!! my ass!!!
this person SMS’ed me from 0410 074 367
BUYER BEWARE.
traceable by phone…???
I got 2 scams from the one email address in the same day using 2 different names and stories (see below) What a bunch of —— Ill let you fill in the blanks!!
am happy to read from you,i really appreciate it,i am an oceanographer and am currently at sea at the moment,i am buying the car as a gift for my dad, i want to make it a surprise for him,he wont know anything about the car until it get delivered to him,i can only pay through pay pal as i don’t have access to my bank account online and i don’t have internet banking,but i have my bank account attached to my pay pal account and this is why i insisted on paying you through pay pal,So pls kindly get back to me with your pay pal details so i can proceed with the payment and after the payment has been made, i have a pick up agent that will come around to inspect and pick the car up after i have made the payments for the car….. what is your reserve price,and would be happy if you could remove the ads from the site and once am provided with your paypal email address i will send in payment
————————————————————
Thanks for the swift response ….i am pleased with the price for $3,300, i am buying this for wife and due to the nature of my job and location…i will not be able to come for inspection,am a very busy type as i work long hours everyday,i have gone through your advertisement and i am satisfied with it.
As for the payment..i can only pay via the fastest and secure way to pay online(PayPal) here.
I have a private courier agent that will come for the pick up after the payment have been made …so no shipping included and With the issue of my details,transferring the name of ownership and signing of all paperwork will be done by the courier services company agent so you don’t have to worry about that.
You can now send me your PayPal email so i can pay i can pay in right away and also include your address in your reply.If you don’t have a paypal account, you can easily set up one…log on to http://www.paypal.com.au and sign up its very easy… i would have loved to talk to you on phone but i work mainly offshore, our phone is down on the rig right now due to bad weather, that was why i sent you a text, i even wonder how my message deliver to your phone but for now we can only communicate through the same mailing channel.
await your reply asap.
A conversation with Ebay Support
7:30:15 AM adrenalin_mc0
Initial Question/Comment: I received a suspicious email
7:30:21 AM System
Thank you for contacting eBay Australia Live Help! Please hold for the next available Live Help representative.
7:30:21 AM System
Delfin G. has joined this session!
7:30:21 AM System
Connected with Delfin G.
7:30:26 AM adrenalin_mc0
Hi Delfin
7:30:27 AM Delfin G.
Hello and thank you for contacting eBay Account Security Live Help, my name is Derek G. May I have your name, please?
7:30:35 AM adrenalin_mc0
My name is Steven
7:30:53 AM adrenalin_mc0
I listed an item for sale last night – with a buy it now price.
7:31:06 AM Delfin G.
Thanks, Steven. How may I help you?
7:31:28 AM adrenalin_mc0
The item was pick up only. The buyer is located in Poland, and I am in Australia. I then received a scam email from him
7:31:33 AM adrenalin_mc0
HELLO,
I JUST WON YOUR ITEM WITH BUY IT NOW OPTION AND PRESENTLY AT OFFSHORE AM A MARINE ENGINEER, ALSO DO YOU ACCEPT PAYPAL….SEND ME PAYPAL INVOICE…SO THAT I CAN MAKE THE PAYMENT AND MY SHIPPER WOULD PICKUP THE ITEM.AND PLS GET BACK TO ME WITH YOUR EMAIL SO THAT MY SHIPPER COULD CONTACT YOU AS SOON AS THE PAYMENT AS BEEN MADE AND THE PAYPAL INVOICE..
Ozzy.
7:33:09 AM adrenalin_mc0
I’m smart enough to recognise that this is bullshit scamming stuff. Ebay will not let me open a dispute until the 2nd of Dec. Is there a way I can get this item relisted for free and have the scammer removed from ebay.
7:33:39 AM adrenalin_mc0
His account is ozynel88 – he’s got 0 feedback and registered the account on the 28th of Nov (yesterday)
7:34:01 AM Delfin G.
As I understand, your are having doubts on the buyer of your item. Is that correct?
7:34:19 AM adrenalin_mc0
Did you read that email?
7:34:45 AM adrenalin_mc0
The item is a full size car trailer. No one is going to ship a car trailer across to Poland.
7:35:32 AM adrenalin_mc0
Yes I am 100% sure the buyer of my item is a scammer.
7:36:06 AM Delfin G.
I understand your concern regarding this issue. While I’m checking your account, do you have other concerns that I can assist you with?
7:37:34 AM adrenalin_mc0
My only concern is that I would like the item relisted for free as soon as possible. I am concerned that people are getting away with these scams of the Ebay and PayPal systems.
7:38:01 AM Delfin G.
I see. As I am a specialist specifically with issues related to unauthorized access to eBay accounts, I will need to refer you to another specialist to address your concern. May I go ahead and connect you now?
7:38:46 AM adrenalin_mc0
Sure. Can you please inform them of what has happened.
By the way, I looked up the address on google maps for the place we were asked to mail the $900 “pick up fee”… here’s a picture of the actual address in case anyone is visiting England sometime in the near future and feels like “chatting” with this person
http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&biw=1276&bih=628&q=85,+Disraeli+Road,+Putney,+London,+SW15+2DY,&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=85+Disraeli+Rd,+London+SW15+2DY,+UK&gl=ca&ei=HprhTOTcFqesnAfQl-2WDw&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=image&resnum=1&ved=0CBYQ8gEwAA
Just an FYI, this ass is still at it – posing as a lady named Jean, now – buying our bus as a surprise for her husband. Still an oceanographer. Might wanna pick another profession as this makes it too obviously FISHY. Sorry, had to be said.
Thanks a million everyone for these postings! I had the sale in hand (see below) and I got a funny feeling, a very quiet one just niggling me to do a google search…..and here we are…the Oceanographers Club!
Here are the details:
Sale price: AU $4,000.00
Quantity sold: 1
Sale date: 04-Nov-10 01:21:00 AEDST
Buyer: baker joe
baker_j5333 (baker_j53@rocketmail.com) [contact buyer]
Buyer’s postal address:
baker joe
Obroncow Wybrzeza 2
Gdansk, pomorskie 80398 Polska
Thanks for your swift respond,i really appreciate it,i am an
oceanographer and am currently on the sea at the moment, i am
buying the item as a gift for my dad,i want to make it a surprise
gift for him,he won’t know anything abt the gift until they get
delivered to him. I can only pay through paypal. So pls kindly get
back to immediately so i can proceed with the payment and after the
payment has been done,i have a pick up agent that will come around
to pick the Item up immediately after payments…….
Looking forward to hear from you soon
Thanks