I have received your message, please accept my condolences on the loss of your cousin.
I will watch for the payment.
-W
Of course, he has not lost his cousin or anyone else.
I loved getting a piece of mail with this name on it. 
The check looks real. It comes with the stub information and everything, and is obviously printed on a stock check form, but the check is as bogus as a $9.00 bill.
Note that the package was supposedly mailed from San Francisco, but the tracking number indicates that it was actually dropped off in Torrance. Note also that it cost someone $5.15 to mail this.
|
Subject: PAYMENT DELIVERED TODAY, FOLLOW INSTRUCTION BELOW $ GET BACK TO ME ASAP
From: Lewis Duke <lewisduke900@gmail.com>
To: (Name Redacted) |
Hello,
Thanks for your endurance for the payment of the item sold, the
payment will delivered to you via USPS with tracking number I had
to spent $10 to the payment with USPS….priority overnight so that
you can quickly receive the payment.
Get the check cash deduct the money for your item sold, plus the $50 i
promised for keeping the item hold ,then the rest fund will be send
via money gram to the shipper, who will come down to your house for
the pick up.
HERE IS THE SHIPPER INFORMATION VIA MONEY GRAM TRANSFER::
Name: William Alvarado
Address: 802 S Virginia Dare Trl
City: Kill Devil Hills
State: NC.
Zip code: 27041
Note: You have to deduct the Money gram charges from the money you
are sending to the shipper and make the money available in a minutes
after you have send it and then get back to me with the
money gram transfer details below as it is appears on the money gram
Receipts
1….Sender’s Name and Address
2…. REFERENCE NUMBER, 8 DIGIT
3….Total Amount Sent After the Money Gram Charges
What’s your schedule regarding pick up as i have some other
properties to be moved alongside the item.
Regards
10) Here’s the rub:
- The check is bogus
- Anyone who sends money to one of these scammers will lose all of it, without recourse
- Cashing a bogus check is grounds for prosecution, and victims have been arrested for attempting to pass fraudulent documents
So, I send the following email back to “Lewis”.
Hello, Lewis.
Yes, I have the check in hand. It’s lovely. I’ve always wanted a souvenir.
So, you read the advert for the item very carefully, and you were satisfied? Perhaps you didn’t read the part at the end where it says, very plainly:
Principals only. Cash only sale. No checks, money orders, shipping agents, Western Union money transfers, or anything else a Nigerian scammer may be using this week.
The fact that you ignored this, combined with your lousy English, was a solid guarantee that you are a criminal, a liar, a thief and a moron. I will keep your worthless check in my “Fraud Prevention” file.
Onioburu, dem no born you reach. Mugu no chop my dollar, chop only black powder from Olumba Olumba Obu, straight to you, not for me. U no fit comot face, just skip along.
I’m glad I wasted your time and money.
No love,
Martins Tanjul
Thus far, no response. Sometimes these scammers get their knickers in a twist and respond with a whole raft full of Nigerian insults, but usually there is no answer to my “game over” message.
Update: Wait, there’s more! Despite my sending Lewis the above email, I get this the next day:
|
Subject: Re: Solid Hardwood Antique Secretary’s Desk – $550
From: Lewis Duke <lewisduke900@gmail.com>
To: (redacted) |
why did you keep silence since you received the payment
from USPS, you are to deduct your money out the money received
if i did not read from you today, i will report to the authority.
HERE IS THE SHIPPER INFORMATION VIA MONEY GRAM TRANSFER::
Name: William Alvarado
Address: 802 S Virginia Dare Trl
City: Kill Devil Hills
State: NC.
Zip code: 27041.
am looking forward to read from you the money gram transfer detail
and the best time for the pick up
I again send him the same letter as above, with some additional “up yours” information. After that, no further response.
As a followup, I notified the following companies and agencies so they would be aware that their name was being used for fraudulent purposes:
- Liquid Realty Partners
- Hamilton Health Center, Inc.
- Fulton Bank
I also contacted
- The Torrance, California, Police Deparment
- The Kill Devil Hills, NC Police Department
- http://www.ic3.gov
Now, how this waste of human cytoplasm has something mailed in Torrance, CA and gets funds picked up in North Carolina is a mystery to me. All I know is he won’t get a red cent out of this transaction, which has cost him time and money.
Summary
On the top of every Craigslist response is the following text:
** CRAIGSLIST ADVISORY — AVOID SCAMS BY DEALING LOCALLY
** Avoid: wiring money, cross-border deals, work-at-home
** Beware: cashier checks, money orders, escrow, shipping
And that’s solid advice. Yet despite this, people continue to fall for scams like this, or others – including apartment rentals, relationship scams, “grandson in trouble,” and lost pets.
Follow the advice. If you use Craigslist, always deal locally, and face to face. Never send money via Western Union to anyone for anything, unless you initiate the transaction and you know your recipient.
Be careful – it’s crazy out there.
The Old Wolf has spoken.
Update 8-20-2012
Absolutely gobsmacked at the number of scammers that have landed on my Craigslist page for this same item. I’m not sure what sort of network they have, but something out there is being passed around. Whee! More fun for me.
So here’s the next one. After the usual “Is this item still for sale?” (that seems to be the standard opener for all of these bottom-feeders), I get:
|
From: “Menia Dykes” <pherrysmith02@gmail.com>
To: (redacted)
Subject: Re: Solid Hardwood Antique Secretary’s Desk
|
Hello! thanks for getting back to me let’s do like this, actually now
I’m not in town for now, I came to visit my family so i wont be able
to meet with you to see the item but am ok with the price as seen on
the advert. I don’t mind to give you $50 to withdraw the advert for
you to see how serious i am in the transaction, i will contact my
secretary to issuing a Check out to you and when you received the
check I will make arrangement for pick up. So get back to me with
below details to be on the
check asap.
Name:
Address:
City:
State:
Postal Code:
Phone Number:
And as soon as this is provided, the payment will be overnight to you
and i will let you know when its mailed out. I need you to be honest
with the sale as I am a God fearing person.Note you don’t need to
worry about shipping the items for me as soon as you have the check
and have the check cash my shipper will come over for pick up
Thanks
God Bless
Wolfington X. Analemma responds with an address, and get a similar response back:
|
Subject: Re: Solid Hardwood Antique Secretary’s Desk
From: Menia Dykes <pherrysmith02@gmail.com>
To: (redacted)
|
Hello I appreciate your quick response sorry for late respond and am
happy you are selling to me. I got your details and have forward it to my
secretary, payment has been issued out to you and sent to you via
USPS POSTAL SERVICE, I will email you with the tracking number for
confirmation as soon as am provided with it. I will also like to let
you know that shipping company funds was included with your payment
due to i might not be around once the payment arrive to you because
am going to ALABAMA for my honeymoon Once the payment arrive you will
go ahead and have the check cash then you deduct the money for your
item with additional $100 for your Gas and running around then you have
the rest of the money send to my shipper via western union and money
gram then i will contact shipper to get ready to come over for pick up
immediately. LET ME KNOW IF I CAN trust you in this transaction.
Note you are not responsible for shipping as soon as you have the check
and have it cashed my shipper will be coming over for pick up Hope to
hear back from you soon.
Thanks for your understanding
Aside from the noise about a honeymoon, it looks very similar. These people must either copy from or share with each other – the scam is almost identical in nature. I respond:
Thank you for the message, I will keep an eye out for the payment. I look forward to completing this transaction.
-W
Next communication from the scammer:
|
Subject: Re: Solid Hardwood Antique Secretary’s Desk
From: Menia Dykes <pherrysmith02@gmail.com>
To: (redacted)
|
Hello how are you doing i just want to let you know that the payment
had been issued and sent to you via USPS courier service which is
going to arrive to you latest on on friday 3PM once you receive
it let me know so that all the arrangement for pick up can be getting
done immediately i will soon get back to you with the shipper
information and USPS tracking number so you can be able to check
the status of delivery till then stay blessed.
I respond,
Thank you for this notification.
-W
The Scammer has sent me a check.
Notice that her name has now changed from Menia Dykes to Menia Elliott (with an extra “L”). It is almost guaranteed that she does not work at Sultana High School, but it is interesting to note that this package was indeed dropped off in Hesperia, CA according to the USPS tracking number.
I like the “Pay with Valid ID” bit. “Daniel J. Saxt on P.C” and Suntrust Bank have been notified that their identities are being stolen for this scam. So here are a couple more emails from the scammer, first the instructions on how to send her the “overage”.
|
Subject: Re: Solid Hardwood Antique Secretary’s Desk – $550
From: Menia Ellliott <pherrysmith02@gmail.com>
To: (redacted)
|
Hello how are you doing today i had a confirmed from USPS that the
payment had been delivered to you Here is the tracking number for
you to check the status of the delivery {redacted} As i told
you before that i might not be around when the check arrive due to am
going to ALABAMA for my honeymoon Here is what you need to do. Just
go straight to your bank and cashed the check instantly or you can deposit
it into your bank account it will only take 24hrs for the check to be verify
and the money will be available in your account and as soon as you have
the cash go ahead and deduct your money for the item with additional $50
for your Gas and running around then have the rest of the money send to
mover via western union money transfer so that shipper can be coming
over for pick up immediately. Herae is the shipper information to send the
rest of the money to via western union or money gram transafer.
NAME: Lara Sepanosian
ADDRESS : 4827 Romulus dr
CITY: Glendal
STATE: CA
ZIP CODE: 91205
Shipper have ready to come to your location anytime from now She informed me
that the only thing holding her up is the shipping funds. so immediately you
have the money send to shipper i will require the following information on the
western union transfer receipt such as……..
1: Sender’s name and address used in sending the money
2: The MTCN number which is the 10 digits number on the western union receipt
3: Actual amount sent.after western union charging
4: date and time you want shipper to come over for pick up
Note. email me your map quest for shipper to locate to place with the best
time you want the shipper to come over for the pick up today cos i do
still have some other items at another location with shipper need to pick up for
me that is why you need to send all the rest of the money to my shipper for
shipper to proceed on is work immediately **Please note that youwill be paying
whatever the western union charges to send the money from the excess fund
before sending the rest to shipper thanks for your understanding hope to hear
back from you soon.
God bless you
Interestingly enough, there is a Lara Sepanosian in Glendale, CA – but Western Union doesn’t require ID for pickup, as far as I know – all you have to do is provide a name and a control number to pick up funds. Later the same day I get this – she’s really anxious to get her money, isn’t she?
|
Subject: Re: Solid Hardwood Antique Secretary’s Desk – $550
From: Menia Ellliott <pherrysmith02@gmail.com>
To: (redacted) |
Hello how are you doing what is going on? i was wondering why you keep
silent since the payment had been delivered to you i will like you to
get back to me with the western union details that you use to send the
rest of the money to my shipper for me to contact shipper to get ready
for pick up immediately i will also like you to email me your map
quest for shipper to locate you with the best date and time that you
want shipper to come over for pick up. Hope to hear back from you
soon..
Your Tracking Information
Status: DELIVERED
Last Scan: August 17, 2012 11:52 am Delivered
Delivery Date: Friday, August 17, 2012
Delivery Time: 11:52 AM
Delivery Location: (redacted)
Carrier: US Postal Service
US Postal Service Tracking Number: (redacted)
Notice the “keep silent” is very similar to the “keep silence” used by Lewis Dukes in the first scam above. An American would say “I’m wondering why I have not heard from you” or something similar. As it happens, it’s the weekend, so I respond:
Menia, the parcel is probably in my mailbox, which is a long way away. I usually pick up my mail in the evening. When I see if the payment is there, I will get back to you.
-W
and later that evening,
OK, I have the check in hand. Tomorrow is Saturday, banks are closed until Monday so I won’t be able to cash the check until then. When the bank has cashed the check I will send you the rest of the information you asked for.
-W
The scammer writes back:
|
Subject: Re: Solid Hardwood Antique Secretary’s Desk – $550
From: Menia Ellliott <pherrysmith02@gmail.com>
To: (redacted) |
Thanks for the updating i will contact shipper to wait till monday
then as soon as you have the check cash on monday go ahead and deduct
$550 for your item then deduct additional $100 for your gas and
running around making $650 Then have the rest of the money send to
shipper via western union and get back to me with the western union
details for me to contact shipper to get ready for pick up immediately
Hope to hear back from you soon
Today is Monday, but I’m not going to respond at all until I get her frantic “Where is my money” email. In a previous post, I tweak a scammer who is obviously in Africa, and get him to go to Western Union five times in an attempt to collect money. I could do that again, but I really don’t have the time. I’m just interested in collecting enough information from these people to see if I can identify a pattern in where they are working.
More as it becomes available. For what it’s worth, I now have several other scammers promising to send me money:
- “Tim” or “Ben Carson” (ben.carson103@gmail.com)
- Natasha William (natasha.william9211@gmail.com)
- Kristal Beauchamp (michael.frank03@gmail.com)
- And just today, “Chloe Burton” (chloeburton61@gmail.com) has inquired about three of my items for sale. It will be interesting to see how that one turns out.
Update: 8-23-2012
Here’s Menia’s “Where is my money” letter:
|
Subject: Re: Solid Hardwood Antique Secretary’s Desk – $550
From: Menia Ellliott <pherrysmith02@gmail.com>
To: (Redacted) |
Hello how are you doing i was wondering why you keep silent since
monday you promise to get back to me i have been awaiting for the
western union details that you use to send the rest of the money to my
shipper for me to contact shipper to get ready for pick up immediately
Hope to hear back from you soon
And here’s what I wrote her back:
Menia,I took the check to my bank and they looked at the name on it:
DANIEL J. SAXT ON P.C
They are telling me a certified check should never have typographical errors on it, and they think this check might be faked. Can you explain this?
I don’t want to proceed until I know these funds are valid.
Please get back to me at once because I have several other people interested in my item.
-W
I’ll be curious to see if I get a response on this one, or if the scammer will assume he’s been outed and just fade away. As of 8/29, “Menia” has not responded – but it looks like he actually got lucky with someone else, which is a shame.
Also:
Another scammer takes the bait. I’ll not report the entire email exchange, but here’s the essential marrow:
This one was posted from Memphis, TN.
The Priority envelope supposedly came from John Sharon at the University of Memphis:
and the Western Union transfer is supposed to go to:
Rachel Fowler
8382 brooks road
Memphis TN 38116
According to Google Maps, Rachel lives in the middle of a container storage lot, but oh well – I guess the economy is not all that great for scammers. Seriously, though – every piece of data these drones use is falsified, but I noticed one very interesting thing about this check:
The signature above is from the check from “Krystal Beauchamp,” (Memphis, TN); the one on the bottom from the check sent me by “Menia Elliott (Glendal,e CA). Identical. Are we dealing with a ring of connected people here? Do they swap information and files among themselves?
Impossible to tell. I only wish that the FBI would consider investigating these drones and getting them off the streets – I’m willing to bet they’re taking a lot of people for a lot of money, and very little of it ends up in a centralized database anywhere.
Update 8/29/2012
Another one bites the dust:
The printing on this one is abominable – I’m not sure who would think this is a valid check. Sent by scammer “Ben Carson,” package mailed from Los Angeles, with a supposed “shipper” at
Samara Olivo
804 Hampton Drive.
Sacramento, CA 94203
This address is just totally bogus.
According to FedEx, I should have another one coming tomorrow from “Natasha William.”
The Old Wolf keeps on speaking.
Playing in the World Game 