Buyers and Sellers Beware

THIS STORY APPEARED IN LAST NIGHTS NEWSPAPER

Fri, Dec 19, 2003

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'56 Chevy drives owner into a nightmare

By ANNE JOHNSTON / ajohnston@mpnewspapers.com

GORHAM - A Gorham woman who was just trying to get a little extra money for the holidays is now wondering how she can get out from under thousands of dollars of sudden debt, let alone buy gifts for her children.

The woman, who asked that her last name be withheld out of concern for her safety and that of her family, is an apparent victim of Internet fraud perpetrated by someone overseas.

"I'm now $8,800 in the hole, and I can't get anybody to help us," she said. "I have no clue what I'm going to do about Christmas."

The trouble started when Patricia advertised a '56 Chevy she and her husband own on a couple of car sites on the Internet. She had done business on the Internet before and had never had any problems.

Patricia got some responses to her ad, including one from a man who said he was a car dealer in London with an interested client.

"We e-mailed back and forth," she said. "I sent him pictures of the car, and so on."

The man, who used the name William Smarteen, told Patricia his client was willing to pay the asking price of $3,200, plus $5,600 she was to take to Western Union to wire to a John Moore in London so the shipping company could pick up the car and deliver it to the buyer.

On Dec. 4, via Federal Express, Patricia received what appeared to be a legitimate $8,800 cashier's check issued by a credit union in Elgin, Ill. She took it to her bank, First Niagara Bank in Canandaigua.

The teller asked her manager if it was OK to cash it, according to Patricia, and the manager told the teller to go right ahead.

"It took me five minutes to cash this check," Patricia said, noting that she deposited a total of $3,000 into her personal account and the account for her home-based business, walking out the door with $5,800.

When she went to Western Union to wire $5,600 to John Moore, Patricia learned that the company does not wire to a residential address. She went home and e-mailed Smarteen, who gave her another man's name and a bank in Nigeria to wire the money to.

But on Dec. 6, Patricia received another e-mail from Smarteen, who told her that when the man in Nigeria went to the bank to get the money, he was shot and killed in a bank robbery.

"I immediately got suspicious and called the Ontario County Sheriff's Department," said Patricia, who was referred to state police Investigator Randy Newcomb. Newcomb specializes in computer crimes.

"He told me I'd been scammed, that the check they had given me was counterfeit, and to get to my bank immediately and tell them what was going on," she said.

She went to the bank the morning of Dec. 9, but it was too late.

First Niagara froze Patricia's accounts, so checks she had written are beginning to bounce. But she learned Wednesday that the bank will allow her to open a new checking account and make a payment arrangement to pay off the debt.

"It's a big relief. I'm grateful for the opportunity to be able to have a checking account," said Patricia, who feared that with this incident in her financial history, she wouldn't be able to get one anywhere else. She added that she has read on a Web site at www.scamvictimsunited.com that other victims have been arrested for cashing counterfeit checks.

Leslie Garrity, a spokeswoman for First Niagara, said Thursday that privacy laws are so strict she could not even confirm that Patricia is a customer, let alone comment on any transactions.

"I can tell you that we are aware that scams of this nature exist and we do take measures to prevent them, including customer education and taking extra precautions when customers present transactions to us which appear unusual," she said.

While she believes her bank "stepped up to the plate," Patricia said it appears that the government may not be able to help her.

"There's nothing, absolutely nothing they can do for us," she said.

Patricia contacted the state Attorney General's Office and received a brief letter stating that the office is familiar with this type of scam and urging her to contact the Secret Service.

Brian Marr, an assistant special agent in charge of the Secret Service's Buffalo field office, has not spoken to Patricia but said it appears she fell victim to what is known as "advanced-fee fraud."

"It's known worldwide as 419 fraud," he added, noting that 419 refers to a section of the Nigerian penal code.

Marr said there are a few variations of such fraud, which first surfaced in west Africa but is worldwide.

One variation involves e-mails promising a windfall if only the recipient will provide an account to transfer millions of dollars to, from overseas. The sender asks for $500 for this fee and $1,000 for that banking transaction, and so on, Marr said, until the victim catches on. The "windfall" never materializes.

While the majority of people perpetrating such scams are overseas in operations that are quickly set up and quickly dismantled, Marr said "if we can identify that the fraud is being perpetrated in the United States, the Secret Service will work aggressively to go after these individuals."

Patricia saved all documentation of her transactions, so Marr said it would be worth it for her to pursue action with the Secret Service.

Although Patricia tried to get her car off the Web sites, at least one still lists it. She is already hearing from another man who is eager to make a deal, in the exact same manner as the first.

And the man calling himself William Smarteen continues to contact her because he wants the $3,200 he sent for the car back (although his check was no good). She said he called her house so many times, she had to change her number.

Still, she is frightened because she has heard stories via the scam victims' Web site about people showing up on doorsteps to collect.

"I'm scared for my family. I jump every time the phone rings. I have not slept in more than a week," she said.

Patricia has written to lawmakers about her experience. She is also trying to spread the word via car Web sites and the media, so other people don't fall victim to similar scams.

"People just don't know - this is real and it can totally devastate a family," she said.

"I just never thought that selling our car to get a little extra money was going to do this to us," she added. "No way."

New York State Police recommend the following Web sites for information on how to avoid scams: www.ftc.gov ; www.ifcc.gov and www.oag.state.ny.us

A sad but common story. When I am solicited by overseas "buyers" whom I don't personally know or who don't come recommended by a verifiable source that I personally know, I always tell them that I will be glad to do business but will send nothing until their funds irrevocably clear my bank. I never hear from them again.

While we can all sympathize with the lady from Gorham who got scammed, I don't think many car collectors (or anybody else) would have fallen for it. The whole thing stank of scam from the word GO. As the adage says: if it sounds to good to be true, it generally is.

On this topic, I have been getting "Nigeria 419" scam letters from a dozen African nations, monthly if not weekly, and sometimes three times a week (!) for the past twenty years (I must be on someone's potential "idiot" list). I answer each one with glee, telling the scammer how excited I am to have been chosen by him/her to get 20-25% of his/her millions of dollars (usually left in a secret account or bank vault by his/her "assassinated" father), just for helping him/her to "smuggle" the millions out of his/her country.

To test their good faith I always ask the scammer to transfer $5000 to me, in advance (I mean, what's five grand compared to the $2-3 million he/she's gonna send me, later); I give the scammer only my name, the name and address of my bank (authentic) and this fictitious account number/reference: "Account Nigeria 419").

Needless to say I rarely hear from the majority of them again, although one in ten actually does follow up on my reply, acknowledging that he/she has received it (but obviously not read or understood it); he/she then asks me for more details, so as to get the "transaction" under way; more specifically, he/she will ask me to pay some bank fees and demurrage charges to the "holding" bank (in Nigeria, Chad, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, wherever) to get the box "released" and ready to send to me, via the governmental diplomatic pouch, no less. Yeah, right !

My second communication usually is quite rude, in addition to telling the originator where to put his/her millions, I always close by informing him/her that, "by the way", I am putting the case into the hands of the FBI's Financial Fraud Unit. That usually silences them for good ...but does not prevent others from trying their hand at the same sly game in the weeks/months that follow !

This scam has been contributing to the Nigerian GDP for more than twenty years, which proves that a (greedy) fool is born every minute.

I have responded in a similar fashion when singled out as a mark by our dusky brethren,although I quite justifiably request more funds than you up front!

I did not however supply them with a bank #or address,rather I request a series of international postal money orders in US funds sent to my P.O. box. More direct,leaves little room for error,Ha,ha..............

Do you know I have never heard back from them!!!

I would formerly receive about 2 of these transparently Ponziesque emails per month,or as many times as the hapless regime of the equatorial nation harboring these offending neopaths was overthrown by a coup d'etat I suppose.

I didn't catch on at first....

Why would some one in Africa want my landlords 68 Rustbucket Vista Cruiser and was willing to pay to have it shipped over seas. Then I read a few stories on this type of fraud and just had to laugh.

When I get these deals I don't blink... I just return their email with the advice...

GET A JOB

checkout www.chevelle396.com/id19.html for a similar warning. You'd think Big Brother could find them if he wanted.

thanks i receive the same Nigerian letters and i spend most of my time working in south america. I would give a warning to all that i had some stuff stolen plus owed money by a gentleman from Perth Australia. For the most part i have some great dealings with all Australia which cause me to let my guard down on this one. Name available if you email at kmstrade@aol.com

i hope the women that got scammed is reading this.

i also recieved several e.mails from OWEN GODWIN, and his alternate man in london england wanted the extra amount wired back to him prior to my cars inspection, i did not fall for any of it, but i did comply with all his requests and sent pictures, names and addresses, i wanted to string this guy out and play each e.mail and phone call he made to me out as far as i could until he could be traced, i know there was nobody that would help me instantly that i could call, the standard response was that they knew about these scams, and blah! blah! blah.

i had this guy calling me at least 50 times in the december, not to mention, e.mails beyond belief!

he wanted his money sent to a specific place in london, a western union, i told him i did send it, then several calls to tell me nothing arrived, i just acted stupid, as it was my first time, then it was just before christmas, i was home and my phone system at home was the first break i had....

you see, he was so sure i had sent the money, he was hell bent to call me for the 10 digit number code, and name that goes with the western union wire.....im skipping over alot of information, but i need to tell you that,(i map quested the western union he wanted me to send the money wire to, and i picked another western union about1-2 hours away from that site, and he called me back kinda pissed off, so again i employed my stupid act,cause he said he went there, and there was no money wire to his ficticious named he supplied, i was laughing inside.)

now back to the story:

my home phone blocks all unidentified callers, this forced him to lower his guard, he was betting on me that i was a genuine dummy, so he must have called from his home phone just to get through to my home line during the holiday, i finally got a caller id number when he frantically called me back during christmas holiday!HE WANTED THAT MONEY BAD!this was his number on my caller I.D> 1-305-433-7487 wow!

i called the phone company, and one call led to the final phone carrier, but they told me i needed a court order to retrieve the owners name and address.

but they didn't know the prior phone companies i called to get to them at least gave me the place. it was BIG PINE KEY, FLORIDA

i was in control of the situation, and waited for his next call, well..it happened within an hour, i answered the phone, it was OWEN GODWIN looking for his 10 digit code number for the western union wire, so as it stood i gave it to him, i figured his telephone number was 10 digits long, so what the heck, let's try it! so i gave him his own telephone number back in this order

30 50433 74 87. it worked like a charm, but i figured by the time his man goes back to the western union in london and gives them this number he would have figured it all out, NOT! he calls back about 3 hours later, with disappointment in his voice, by now, im killing myself laughing inside, and since i knew i was out of weapons, i had to let him know everything, so i answered the phone in my passive tone, he sounded very anxious, and i said hey! wait a minute, is this OWEN GODWIN, from big pine key florida,..there was a pause so long, you could drive a truck through it, he replied to me and said my name again, i repeated to him, is this OWEN GODWIN from big pine key florida, another long pause, he said are you tracking me, i said of course i am you idiot! how do you think i know where you live!!!!

he was astonished and at lost for words, i told him, MR owen or, whoever you are, all of america is laughing at you right now! and if you ever call me or anyone else like this, im coming down to pay you a visit, are you reading me on this!!!!......then another pause, he said i am in spain, and i said no your not, your in big pine key florida.....then i heard a click

so i called him back at that number, because i knew i had him on the run, he was very frightened because he said " are you tracking me" so all the calls i made back to him right after he hung up on me, where getting answered, but now he was hanging up very quickly, i guess he figured that if he let it go into his answering machine, that i would still be able to trace him, so i called back for the next 5 minutes just to let him know it was me.

he has never once called me at home or work again, which i know these bastards are pretty brave and they badger you afterwards!

in conclusion, i still have the bank check from chase bank in houston as my trophy, and i did speak with the banks fraud unit several times, and i showed them the check, which was an old issue copy, i offered them the phone number and location if they wanted to pursue this guy that was forging their bank checks, but nothing! i really don't care at this point, the law has got their hands full with bigger fish to fry, and apparently, this bank feels the same way.

but feel free if you want to e.mail this creep karsautos@yahoo.com

or, try to call him in florida, 1-305-433-7487.

i wonder if he pulled every wire out of the wall, he sounded and acted pretty scared!!

i hope you enjoyed this, at least this guy spent ton's of money and time on me!

im sure his buddy in london, england is also pretty mad!!!

thanks,

dennis.

Kool!!! The warning from the Chevelle site was on another forum I go to. A guy was telling his experiance with an scam artist from Belgium, supposedly a car dealer. Two guys from Belgium on the forum offered to go visit this guy and ruff him up. Kool beans, we got to stick together.