Craigslist gyrations

I got the following response for some conduit I am selling on Craigslist. It is fishy, but there is no mention of kickback or taking the goods before check clears. I figure this is a scam, but am unsure of how it works.

Anyone?

aroo james to me:

Hello,

I am very much satisfied with the condition and price of the above item you posted on KSL and I would like to make an immediate purchase of the item. So i will advice that you withdraw the ad from the web.

Pls, i will like to know how you intend to proceed on this, but i would prefer that i issue out a certified check to your location and upon the confirmation and clearance of payment, my shipper will come for the pick-up at your location. I would really have loved to come for the viewing of the item but since i am not chanced my movers will. If you are okay with this, please do get back to me with the following details so i can make out payment IMMEDIATELY.

1: Your Full Name to be on the payment 2: Your Address and zip code (NOT P.O BOX) 3: Your mobile number or cell phone number

I would forward all your details to my secretary to make the payment out to you fast...i am on a business trip right now, and would be busy for sometime, i would be checking my email time to time to check your message.

Have a nice day

ME TO AROO JAMES:

I proceed very simple. Bring US currency. Pick up merchandise.

AROO JAMES BACK TO ME.

Hello, Thanks for your swift response.I would have preferred paying you by cash,but i am presently on Business Trip,and due to the interest i have with the item.I will instruct my secretary to go ahead and prepared the Certified Check asap. Then when the check clears, my shipping Agent will come for the pick up. Get back to me your full name and address,so that I can go ahead and issue out the payment.

MY LAST TO AROO JAMES:

You seem not to understand what I told you, so I will tell you once more. When a living person pays me with American currency, I shall release the goods. Is that clear enough?

Steve

Reply to
Steve B
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scam

Steve B wrote:

Reply to
CaveLamb

I can guess. The check is phony (he hopes you don't call and verify it) but done in a way that takes a week or two to come back, and "accidentally" made out for more than the price. You're asked to wire some money to him in East Africa or whatever and generously allowed to "keep" some for your troubles.

Or he asks you to pay the shipping company, and includes a very, very generous amount on the fake check for shipping, and again, as above.

Either way you end up out whatever is sent to him, maybe shipping and maybe the goods.

From a car site:

Verify that a certified check is genuine Before you deposit a certified check, verify authenticity with the issuing bank-not just your bank. Make sure the account contains sufficient funds and the issuing bank guarantees payment on the check. It may take a week or more for the check to clear. It hasn't cleared just because your bank has accepted it and credited your account.

Beware of overpayment or other complicated payment schemes Don't agree to any plan where the buyer asks to send a check for more than the sale price and requests that the seller refund the difference. And be suspicious of any buyer who proposes making payment through a friend or agent of the buyer.

For laughs you could ask him to send the "certified check" and see what happens. You can always change your mind and send it back if you don't like the looks of it (and from this dude's approach and command of English, I bet you won't). Of course he can then claim he didn't receive it and you owe him the money etc. so maybe the laughs won't be worth it.

Best regards, Spehro Pefhany

Reply to
Spehro Pefhany

Nigerian scammer from Lagos, no doubt whatsoever.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus29885

I wouldn't even reply and give him your email address.

Reply to
ATP

It's not a good idea to try to outsmart them. They're used to it, and they're very good.

I know this guy. He is brilliant. He thought he could beat them:

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Reply to
Ed Huntress

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What a marroon.

Reply to
PrecisionmachinisT

I did it many times. I no longer do it because it is boring. I could get them to become completely enraged. It was fun.

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Does not seem very brilliant to be. Seems like a tyipcal dumb ass.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus29885

"Spehro Pefhany" wrote

We did that with one of our rent houses just for laughs. The check was a pretty good copy of the real deal. The bank called us back in two days saying it was no good, which we expected, and didn't touch the funds. The guy called all indignant, and asking for his overage, and vehemently assuring that the check was good. We said, "Well, then I'm sure you want it back. Where do we mail it to?" ........... click........

Steve

Reply to
Steve B

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>

Agreed. A brilliant person would be much too busy being brilliant to take the time required to play games with these morons, especially knowing from the get go that they are fakes.

I just hadn't gotten to the part yet where I could see there was to be an overage, or he would try to pick up the stuff while the check was still kiting.

Steve

Reply to
Steve B

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The scammer will send you a bad check ni the amount more than your asking price, and will demand that you send the difference to a "shipper" via Western Union. The "shipper" is the scammer himself. The scammer could not care less about what you are actually selling.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus29885

It's a scam, as others noted. No need to bother with responding any further to him. Usually they tell you to pay the shipper, and they "accidentally" write the check for too much, and ask you to send the overpayment back to them. So the goal is they get free stuff + money too.

If you get the issue (of these sorts of scams) frequently, one thing you can do is do a lookup of the email domain to see where its coming from. Nobody is going to pay to ship a pile of ordinary hardware store shit halfway around the world. If it's not in your geographical area, forget them.

If all they can provide is a gmail, hotmail, yahoo or whatever web-based account, forget them too.

First go here-

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and then enter the domain name in the "whois" box and press the go button. For an address like "
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", you drop the "http://www." part, and only enter "google.com"

Google is a webpage of course, but it works for mail servers too.

For an email address of " snipped-for-privacy@google.com", you just enter "google.com" and it will tell you were the domain is geographically located.

Reply to
DougC

"Ignoramus29885" wrote

I got as far as the third sentence when they tell you to pull the ad. No, I pull the ad when I have the money in my pocket. And, I don't stop advertising when people say they want it and they'll be right over or on this Saturday or whatever. I've had flakes, well intentioned people, and even friends who never showed up to pay for and/or pick up the stuff. Even had one guy pay for it, and I never saw him again. Contacted his family, and they said he "just took his stuff and left."

Steve

Reply to
Steve B

wrote

A roustabout in my crew offshore, Enos Guillory was a very intelligent person who wanted to go on to be a directional driller. His family was into that and told him if he got a couple of years under his belt in the oilpatch that they would take him on and train him. He was one fine hand. He roustabouted for me for about six months, then went up on the drill floor as a rough neck.

He called it "being educated beyond one's capacity."

Wherever you are, Enos, hope life has been good to you. You were a good hand. Hope you realized your goal.

Steve, the crane operator

Reply to
Steve B

Tell him to take his certified check to a bank, and trade it in for currency, or possibly gold. ;-)

Good Luck! Rich

Reply to
Rich Grise

Ed, all I was talking about is suckering "cab fare" to supposedly get to the bank or some such.

$700k is an entirely different subject altogether.

Reply to
PrecisionmachinisT

That's pretty obvious to me, considering there was never a mention of the merchandise, which was spoken of in general terms. A *one size fits all* scam letter.

Harold

Reply to
Harold & Susan Vordos

I wasn't being very specific about individual posts. All I said originally is that trying to outsmart those Nigerians is not smart. It doesn't get you anything, and it can get one into some big trouble.

Reply to
Ed Huntress

Q: Where was the largest, most expensive church built?

A: Winners' Chapel "Canaanland" Otta, Nigeria

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'nuff said?

-- Self-development is a higher duty than self-sacrifice. -- Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Reply to
Larry Jaques

Pretty much.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus26219

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