Got scammed

[t_stomski]

I was looking for meopta 6x rifle scope, and got contacted by one of the new members here on site.

Naturally I was slightly hesitant but when i asked for pictures of the scope, i received it with note of date, time, and members name, which I'll try to include in the post. Sent zelle the same day, waited for shipping information then i got bunch of excuses why idem wasn't sent yet, and then communication stopped.
Maybe something happened to that person? Maybe personal, or family issues? In that case I wish him best, but at the moment I'm gonna assume that I got scammed. I waited quite long to give him a chance to contact me, and send few PMs. No response.
So here it is, a quick reminder to be careful out there.

 

[375Fox]

Nothing replaces a phone call. Any decent scammer can add a piece of paper with username and date into photo. They can’t talk about hunting and shooting on the phone. Hopefully you didn’t pay too much.

 

[dchum]

I find out who they are, what they do for work and where they live. All over a phone call

Sorry you got taken. That would piss me off!

 

[Rimbaud]

Because Zelle is a bank service, I would contact your bank and tell them what happened. The bank might/should be able to help you remedy the situation. Good luck.

 

[matt85]

That really sucks! Its a real shame how much sub-human trash is out there trying their hardest to screw honest people out of money.

 

[RootballExpress]

You have to be careful putting “WTB” ads up too. It’ll really piss you off to have some asshole DM and email you with EXACTLY what you want all to not be able to schedule a phone call with you or send very specific photos of the item/firearm after a lengthy back and forth conversation.

These kind of people need to be hunted like coyotes or rats.

They’ll request payment or reply with “oh, you don’t believe me? I am an honest person”. An honest person doesn’t have to say that. The just do what is right.

 

[Safari Dave]

I bought a couple of boxes of ammo off Gunbroker this week.

There was something a little "off" about the description, so I contacted the seller and ask them to call me.

They did.

The seller knew what they were talking about and explained everything to my satisfaction. Gave me their real names and all the contact info for their business. They mailed the ammo out yesterday, took a picture of the box with the tracking number.

I real conversation goes a long way in helping to prove legitimacy.

 

[Tintin]

Sorry to hear.

:-(

All posts by the member you mention have been "welcomes' ... another warning sign.

 

[Safari Dave]

Be especially careful with scopes.



I've been scammed twice.

Once at a gun show where I bought what looked like a brand new Leupold VX-3i (turned out it was a counterfeit) I paid cash, and didn't have any idea who I bought it from.

The other time was off eBay - A Sig Sauer Tango 6T 1-6x24. Luckily, I was able to get my money back on that one.

​

 

[wyosteve]

Not meaning to sound too critical, but these scams have been going on for years and for some reason folks won't use one of the more useful ways to prevent the scam. I.E., ask for a video call with the person holding the item and take a screenshot during the call so you have a pic if needed down the road. If the seller refuses the call, move on. There was a program on Natl. Geographic a few years ago with a lady named Mariana Van Zeller (if I recall correctly). Anyway she was allowed into a scammers lair in Jamaica or one of the Caribbean islands. About 6 guys with a dozen computers who do nothing all day but try and scam. I remember them laughing at the 'dumb' Americans who would trust someone they don't know and have never met over the internet. We are our own worst enemy. As Ronald Reagan said-"trust, but verify'! The fake pics and piece of paper are old school methods that are easily faked. Sorry it happened, but it sounds like there were a number of red flags.

 

[Rez Exelon]

Even if it's an established account, it's a good idea to try and verify if not meeting in person. Online accounts get hacked and then can become a gold mine for scammers if they get ahold of an "made" account on the right forums.

 

[Shakka]

I was looking for meopta 6x rifle scope, and got contacted by one of the new members here on site.


View attachment 750807


Naturally I was slightly hesitant but when i asked for pictures of the scope, i received it with note of date, time, and members name, which I'll try to include in the post. Sent zelle the same day, waited for shipping information then i got bunch of excuses why idem wasn't sent yet, and then communication stopped.
Maybe something happened to that person? Maybe personal, or family issues? In that case I wish him best, but at the moment I'm gonna assume that I got scammed. I waited quite long to give him a chance to contact me, and send few PMs. No response.
So here it is, a quick reminder to be careful out there.



View attachment 750804

Yes

I was looking for meopta 6x rifle scope, and got contacted by one of the new members here on site.


View attachment 750807


Naturally I was slightly hesitant but when i asked for pictures of the scope, i received it with note of date, time, and members name, which I'll try to include in the post. Sent zelle the same day, waited for shipping information then i got bunch of excuses why idem wasn't sent yet, and then communication stopped.
Maybe something happened to that person? Maybe personal, or family issues? In that case I wish him best, but at the moment I'm gonna assume that I got scammed. I waited quite long to give him a chance to contact me, and send few PMs. No response.
So here it is, a quick reminder to be careful out there.



View attachment 750804

Yes, my friend you did but if it makes you feel better, I got scammed out of $480 for a Glock slide on a Glock forum

Same as you, I Zelled him the money and that was that. The bank won't refund you either because you willingly sent the money

Lesson learned...NEVER Zell unless you know the recipient

 

[375Fox]

Because Zelle is a bank service, I would contact your bank and tell them what happened. The bank might/should be able to help you remedy the situation. Good luck.

When you use Zelle, it’s for person to person transfers. It’s not supposed to be for buying items or firearm associated items from people you don’t know. Might cause more problems than worth like getting locked from zelle.

 

[C.W. Richter]

Seller doesn't appear to be American from some of the writing and only metric units on the scale. Plus, what is that name?? Bucky or Buc-ees foreign interpretation? Zelle will be able to track the payee account and your bank (mine uses Zelle so it's covered under their transactions) can likely refund the money (and they may debit the others' account upon conclusion of their investigation.) I don't believe you can send money internationally via Zelle, so that's why the banks here like it. Is Buck-Is still on AH?? It's likely buckisn't now! Also, it's PA, not pa. The Devil's in the details...(been scammed too much in a 1/2 century.)

 

[dchum]

Even if it's an established account, it's a good idea to try and verify if not meeting in person. Online accounts get hacked and then can become a gold mine for scammers if they get ahold of an "made" account on the right forums.

No you don’t need to meet in person. That takes away the whole point of buying online from someone across the country.

A simple phone call before money was sent would have stopped this.

It really is that simple.

 

[Rimbaud]

When you use Zelle, it’s for person to person transfers. It’s not supposed to be for buying items or firearm associated items from people you don’t know. Might cause more problems than worth like getting locked from zelle.

I'm not certain of the contours of Zelle, but I do know from senior executives at big banks that the industry was interested in Zelle, and adopted Zelle as a preferred protocol, to ward off PayPal, in particular, and other transfer apps. Moreover, the scammer has broken the law. A superficial web search indicates that FBI has protocols for logging complaints, and I imagine local law enforcement will take a report, too. I'd let the scammer know he will soon be subject of those complaints. We all handle our affairs differently, and that's how it should be. All that said, I do wish that there was a way for us to better police the website. For instance, just as AH designates us as Fanatics, or Elite, based on posts, why not make a rule that one cannot sell anything here unless they have posted X times, or something like that. This is such a good group of people, and I hate to see some a scammer get away with scamming.

 

[Rez Exelon]

No you don’t need to meet in person. That takes away the whole point of buying online from someone across the country.

A simple phone call before money was sent would have stopped this.

It really is that simple.

I didn't say you need to meet in person. You might want to re-read the first sentence where I said to try and verify if not meeting in person". I'm sure I'm not the only person that also uses local forums where meeting in person is an option.

 

[375Fox]

I'm not certain of the contours of Zelle, but I do know from senior executives at big banks that the industry was interested in Zelle, and adopted Zelle as a preferred protocol, to ward off PayPal, in particular, and other transfer apps. Moreover, the scammer has broken the law. A superficial web search indicates that FBI has protocols for logging complaints, and I imagine local law enforcement will take a report, too. I'd let the scammer know he will soon be subject of those complaints. We all handle our affairs differently, and that's how it should be. All that said, I do wish that there was a way for us to better police the website. For instance, just as AH designates us as Fanatics, or Elite, based on posts, why not make a rule that one cannot sell anything here unless they have posted X times, or something like that. This is such a good group of people, and I hate to see some a scammer get away with scamming.

I think the only way to prevent scammers selling on this forum would be to require sellers to pay the supporter fee. Scammers will just make X number of meaningless posts like they do now on Welcome to AH threads. Until then some due diligence is all you have. Checking post quality, checking reference thread, making a phone call. Anyone of those probably would have stopped this payment from happening.

 

[absales]

Sorry to hear. I have reported a few scammers that replied to my WTB thread. Phone call, video chat, and be sure to ask very specific questions and also ask for specific photos

 

[CBH Australia]

I hope the seller makes good. If not then he is at fault.
Scamming is wrong and we start to lose trust among a group that we have been trusting of.