Caught in Digital Camera scam

[artaqq]

I have ordered a camera through Amazon.com. The seller is mamameaqw@yahoo.com, the seller's name is Hanganu Marius Ionel. Prudu B5A, Pitesti, 0300, Romania. I have sent him payment of $650.00, through Money Gram on June 8th, and have not received any word back from him. I had emailed him several times to confirm payment, innitially. Then, to inquire on the status of the order. I have gotten no response from him.
I wanted to bring this item to all of your attention, as I have a feeling he has victimized many people through different names. He is still an active seller on amazon and many other camera sites, through different names. If any of you have any information, please let me know.
I have contacted Amazon, my local authorities, the FBI and the Romanian Commerce department. I feel like a fool for ever allowing this to happen. I have a lot of company, unfortunately. Be very wary of Romanian sellers and NEVER send anyone a money wire, no matter how official the documents they provide look. That was the stupidest thing I could have done. Contact me at artaqq@southslope.net, if you have any information.

[John_Reed]

Pardon the dumb question, but WHY were you even contemplating buying a camera from someone in Romania? Couldn't you find a legitimate domestic source for the same camera?

[jeisner]

I have ordered a camera through Amazon.com. The seller is mamameaqw@yahoo.com, the seller's name is Hanganu Marius Ionel. Prudu B5A, Pitesti, 0300, Romania. I have sent him payment of $650.00, through Money Gram on June 8th, and have not received any word back from him. I had emailed him several times to confirm payment, innitially. Then, to inquire on the status of the order. I have gotten no response from him.
I wanted to bring this item to all of your attention, as I have a feeling he has victimized many people through different names. He is still an active seller on amazon and many other camera sites, through different names. If any of you have any information, please let me know.
I have contacted Amazon, my local authorities, the FBI and the Romanian Commerce department. I feel like a fool for ever allowing this to happen. I have a lot of company, unfortunately. Be very wary of Romanian sellers and NEVER send anyone a money wire, no matter how official the documents they provide look. That was the stupidest thing I could have done. Contact me at artaqq@southslope.net, if you have any information.


Yeah I would be very careful buying from unknown sellers through Amazon, they DO NOT have a good reputation for protecting their customers in these situations....

I must admit I have been ripped off before (once) on ebay but I payed through Paypal, so after 2 weeks of my complaint paypal/ebay refunded my money...

[Rhys]

Yeah I would be very careful buying from unknown sellers through Amazon, they DO NOT have a good reputation for protecting their customers in these situations....

I must admit I have been ripped off before (once) on ebay but I payed through Paypal, so after 2 weeks of my complaint paypal/ebay refunded my money...

I've had so many dodgy online dealings that I refuse to deal with any online "businesses". It's safer buying from a shop that has a physical address that can be visited. I went on about some shop I was told about called KFH or something similar. Emailing the people asking where they were and what their store hours were proved they didn't have a shop at all but dealt online as though they had a shop. For all I know, they could be honest with a bad business practice or downright crooks. Either way they lost my interest. Basically, it isn't worth risking fraud when for a few dollars more you can walk into a shop, keep local people employed and have somewhere you can return duff goods to.

[Zac_K]

Hey man... found the same dude I think on an Aussie webpage. Tried to sell me a camera after a western union sale... I also have emails from the guy I will send to you hey... hope you find this dodgy ass.

http://www.stuff.com.au/itemview_classified.asp?sch=stuff1&uid=guest&sku={F033F8DF-282F-4B96-8472-494283EFBFEB}

[Rhys]

Hey man... found the same dude I think on an Aussie webpage. Tried to sell me a camera after a western union sale... I also have emails from the guy I will send to you hey... hope you find this dodgy ass.

http://www.stuff.com.au/itemview_classified.asp?sch=stuff1&uid=guest&sku={F033F8DF-282F-4B96-8472-494283EFBFEB}

It's simple... Contact the Romanian police... They're trying to get away from the "corrupt" image they acquired under Ceaucescu.

Romanian police attack cyber-crime

Source: Europemedia.net
Date: May 23, 2003

Stop Cyber-crime On 7 May 2003 the Romanian Police held a press conference at which Mr. Dan Fatuloiu, Adjunct Director of the General Division on Combating Organised Crime and Drugs presented a document on cyber-crime.
He said that over the course of last year, there were 242 complaints registered in 35 cases related to internet crimes. Ninety-six people were investigated and 54 were preventatively arrested. The estimated loss due to such crimes was around E342,000m. From the beginning of this year, complaints have been solved in 12 penal cases, with people arrested. The estimated loss for 2003 is E86,000.

Original article: http://www.europemedia.net/shownews.asp?ArticleID=1645

It might be a good idea to have a word with these people: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania
Address: Aleea Alexandru nr. 31, Sector 1, 011822 Bucharest
Phone: (40 21) 319.21.45
Fax: (40 21) 319.21.73

If you write them a nice letter or even email them then they should be avle to assist you in contacting the right people in Romania. Without a shadow of doubt, your money is gone forever but you can make the guy that conned you suffer and you can save others from falling into the same trap. When the con-artist goes to jail, it might even dissuade other con-artists from attempting the same con.

[jeisner]

I've had so many dodgy online dealings that I refuse to deal with any online "businesses". It's safer buying from a shop that has a physical address that can be visited. I went on about some shop I was told about called KFH or something similar. Emailing the people asking where they were and what their store hours were proved they didn't have a shop at all but dealt online as though they had a shop. For all I know, they could be honest with a bad business practice or downright crooks. Either way they lost my interest. Basically, it isn't worth risking fraud when for a few dollars more you can walk into a shop, keep local people employed and have somewhere you can return duff goods to.

It is just a matter of being careful with who you deal with, I have had more trouble with 'brick and morter' retailers than I have had with online dealers... A reputable dealer is a reputable dealer online or not, same goes for the dodgy dealers...

For ebay most people know to buy from people with decent feedback and use paypal, as with my only case of being poorly dealt with on ebay (from maybe 50 or so purchases) you issue a complaint with ebay, if tracking records cannot be supplied within the required timeframe, with proof that the goods were received, then the money is returned to me by paypal and it is their problem to chase the seller.

Were you referring to KEH?? the second hand camera/lens people, have dealt with them without any issue, infact I know many people who have purchased from them and are more than happy, but hey more deals for us if people are scared to deal with them ;-)

[IlBianconero]

Oh my GOD! I am stunned.I am Romanian.How anyone could allow this to happen is beyond any imagination...first,I for one am trying my best to buy an S2 from USA,I would never trust my own fellows,so many just waiting to rip you off...I mean sellers like the one you describe.There are many decent ones which you can call and have a word with,prices are high,but you also get warranty,and hey,you can call them any problem.All in all,I think I will pay 700$ and buy one in a shop.(that is the price here).
Better safe than sorry.Much to my disgust,this is the country I live in.
Please,if you think I can help you in any way,let me know,I will make phonecalls,I dunno,think about it and let me know.
And one million sorry's in the name of all decent Romanians.

[Rhys]

I think the best thing would be to post the contact name/number/address of the police for Cluj and the headquarters if the police or their fraud department. That would seem to be the most appropriate assistance.

[IlBianconero]

Ok.I will post this info today,later.Now I am making some phonecalls, I have a buddy there,maybe he can give the address right away.But why Cluj? From the address I can see he said Pitesti as his city.However,it's probably fake as well.

[Rhys]

Ok.I will post this info today,later.Now I am making some phonecalls, I have a buddy there,maybe he can give the address right away.But why Cluj? From the address I can see he said Pitesti as his city.However,it's probably fake as well.

I can't remember now. I know Cluj came up somewhere in my research. I believe it could have been in an Australian version of the same scam.

[IlBianconero]

Ok.The number for the police hedquarters in Cluj is this:0040264432872.
From this number you should be redirected to fraud department. I was unable to find an address just yet,none of my friends knew.I think there is a guy from Cluj on this forum...almost certainly.
Now I think they will have to open an investigation,I do not know if they are willing to do so...chasing internet frauds are very slow in here.
I am amazed how the guy could get past the checkings on amazon.com...i mean,what?Anybody can do something like this...
I will keep on trying to find out the address and maybe a contact name,but it may last a few days...my friens said they will look into it.
Tell me if this helps and how you intend to take action.Then we will see.

[g0tr00t]

You are out the cash. Do a search on g00gle for western union scam or even dpreview.

Its been around for a while now.

[Rhys]

You are out the cash. Do a search on g00gle for western union scam or even dpreview.

Its been around for a while now.

Isn't it amazing how the same scams repeatedly catch people out? Even scams that everybody knows about. I guess it's a case of con-artists playing on the desperate and the impoverished who tend to rationalise things far more than anybody else.

One of the people I meet occasionally works for the FBI and is amazed how often people fall for the Nigerian scams, the phishing scams and these Western Union scams. He even gets people calling to discuss the Nigerian scams to ask whether he thinks they should send more money. As they say "there's a sucker born every minute".

[g0tr00t]

Isn't it amazing how the same scams repeatedly catch people out? Even scams that everybody knows about. I guess it's a case of con-artists playing on the desperate and the impoverished who tend to rationalise things far more than anybody else.

I know. I hate seeing that. Everyone keeps looking for that "deal".

All I know is that since I live in the US, I only buy from people that live in the US. I have had some transactions with people from Spain, but we usually call each other and confirm the deals.

I also pay with a credit card, at least there "might" be some coverage... :(

I feel bad for this guy, but what can you do. I know if this happened to me, I would be very upset, but you also have to put money to your time. If you're out the $650, is it really worth trying to pursue someone hidden in Romania?

[artaqq]

Just want to thank (almost) all of you for your input. For a few of you, Yes. I got swindled and that's embarrassing enough. To be labelled 'impoverished and desperate' and lumped into the same group with those drawn into the Nigerian scandal, is a little harsh. I have done hundreds of internet dealings and never had a problem. So, yes. I probably do assume the 'best' in people, too much. Trust me, I did do my homework before buying from this guy. I don't buy much off Amazon, and when I was provided the forged Amazon document, I assumed it to be lagitimate. It wasn't. I'm screwed. Thanks for the lable.

For the rest of you, who have taken a sincere interest in helping me, I am sincerely grateful. I will pursure your leads and keep you posted as things go. If it costs me anoth $650.00 to get this parasite off the internet, and spare someone else my embarrassment and loss, it's worth it.

Thanks again. Sorry to be snappy. Not trying to play the 'poor victim' card but, I have been through enough. Just trying to turn it around. ;)

[artaqq]

Is there any way of finding out if this person is Hanganu Marius Ionel? Can you look this up?

I appreciate your help. I am just at a real loss and don't know what to do.
Thanks very much!
BC

[Rhys]

I know. I hate seeing that. Everyone keeps looking for that "deal".

I keep looking for a wonderful deal too. In reality though, I find it's often better just to buy locally. Ritz will provide a top-end price from which you can probably knock 25% by buying elsewhere. I suspect the important thing is to find out what the MSRP for the product is and reckon on paying 75% of the price for a really good bargain.

[rahulsin]

I had placed an order for a Nikon D70 on July 24th 2005 from a seller who goes by the name Marinica Alecsandru
I received a mail from Amazon stating that the order was cancelled as the Seller email ID alecsandru.seller@gmail.com was not in a position to take the payment.
When I contacted the Seller, s/he replied back to me that if I am genuinely interested, I should provide them with details about my address and name which I promptly did. To this the seller, I assume, contacted Amazon to initiate another sale for the product and a mail was sent across to me stating that I should go ahead and make the payment through Western Union wire transfer. On the 27th I made the payment to the address that was mentioned as part of the mail and it was for a value of $600 for the camera. I provided the necessary details to the seller with regards to the Western Union Money transfer control number the same day.
The seller never got back to me to tell me if s/he had received the money. Upon checking up with Western Union, they mentioned that the seller has already received the money. I wrote back to the seller a couple of times but I assume all my emails to the seller are falling on deaf ears.
From their side, they do not confirm anything. I am in the dark about the sale as it does not show up on the Amazon site. All that I have is a copy of these emails that I have been exchanging with the seller.

I also have details with regards to the Seller's address. Is there anyway i get get this thug caught. He has been out way too long and there is not a thing you can do about him. Amazon sucks when it comes to customer support. My advise never buy stuff from amazon because you would never know whether its a geniune seller or one these cons out there. GUYS Exercise caution !! These guys are out there everywhere.

Can someone give me details where i can send information about this person and see if the Romanian police can do something about him.

[wimnms]

Yeah, I was caught too and thought something from message-payments@amazon.com was real. I asked Western Union to get them to bring in Id for $ pickup but I'm sure they all enjoy faking about 100 identities.

He was (this time):

"David Adrian" <davidselleramazon@gmail.com>

Ship from Address:
> David Adrian Ionut
> Str Cuza
> Voda 43,zip 0300
> City Pitesti
> ROMANIA

[klwong570]

Apparently the same guys are at it again...

Today the sellers were:
Alecsandru Marinica <gre8deal@gmail.com>
Shreyas Patel <swami147@yahoo.com>

The address listed for the second guy was:
Emanuel Derich
449 Luton Rd
London NW109PT
United Kingdom

I was trying to purchase a Canon Digital Rebel XT 8MP Digital SLR from Amazon. These guys both asked for Western Union Wire transfers and instructed me to send them my mailing info which would then be confirmed through Amazon. After a few emails, I checked Amazon.com only to discover no such "purchase" was in process. I called Amazon (800) 201-7575 to check it out. They knew nothing about the order. Luckily, I hadn't sent any money. But definitely be careful. I was nearly dupped by the good ratings these guys apparently had. (with 2000 sales attributed to the first one, for instance)

If anyone is still trying to catch these guys, I hope this post helps! Let me know if you have any further questions.

[Rhys]

Apparently the same guys are at it again...

Today the sellers were:
Alecsandru Marinica <gre8deal@gmail.com>
Shreyas Patel <swami147@yahoo.com>

The address listed for the second guy was:
Emanuel Derich
449 Luton Rd
London NW109PT
United Kingdom

I was trying to purchase a Canon Digital Rebel XT 8MP Digital SLR from Amazon. These guys both asked for Western Union Wire transfers and instructed me to send them my mailing info which would then be confirmed through Amazon. After a few emails, I checked Amazon.com only to discover no such "purchase" was in process. I called Amazon (800) 201-7575 to check it out. They knew nothing about the order. Luckily, I hadn't sent any money. But definitely be careful. I was nearly dupped by the good ratings these guys apparently had. (with 2000 sales attributed to the first one, for instance)

If anyone is still trying to catch these guys, I hope this post helps! Let me know if you have any further questions.


Perhaps this should be passed onto the metropolitan police? They have a cyber-crime squad. http://www.met.police.uk/

[sots]

This Ionel person gets around.

(known) SN: hyspain

-advertises to be from Spain, but actually from Romania. Fully expecting this, I sent him an e-mail with some questions and I got back: Dear sir,

The item is brand new in original box( never open ), will come with 1 year intrnational warranty , is USA model ( NTSC ) also you have FREE SHIPPING . Price of the item is only 600 $ !! So if you are interested to buy it now you must to accept our shipping & payments methods :

1. The product will be shipped through DHL
2. I will give you the tracking number from DHL
3. You can verify the shipping with the tracking number on DHL web site ( Will be mentioned weight and name of package )
4. Now you must send the payment through Western Union .

We are a small company in Romania , here all products are cheaps for others countrys like US and this product don't work here because is NTSC and we work with PAL secam.

If you agree our methods of shipping & payment i will wait your details ( full name and full address ) so i can go to DHL and ship the product to you .

With Regards,
Militaru Ion Daniel

[Rhys]

This Ionel person gets around.

(known) SN: hyspain

-advertises to be from Spain, but actually from Romania. Fully expecting this, I sent him an e-mail with some questions and I got back: Dear sir,

The item is brand new in original box( never open ), will come with 1 year intrnational warranty , is USA model ( NTSC ) also you have FREE SHIPPING . Price of the item is only 600 $ !! So if you are interested to buy it now you must to accept our shipping & payments methods :

1. The product will be shipped through DHL
2. I will give you the tracking number from DHL
3. You can verify the shipping with the tracking number on DHL web site ( Will be mentioned weight and name of package )
4. Now you must send the payment through Western Union .

We are a small company in Romania , here all products are cheaps for others countrys like US and this product don't work here because is NTSC and we work with PAL secam.

If you agree our methods of shipping & payment i will wait your details ( full name and full address ) so i can go to DHL and ship the product to you .

With Regards,
Militaru Ion Daniel


Where are my hip-waders? All cameras will work with both PAL and NTSC.

[dcabello]

I am glad I did this search before sending the money using Western Union as this scamer's instructions were, here is my story: I find in the Amazon.com Marketplace a guy that sells an X2 Infocus DLP Projector for $550 plus $10 S&H, very appealing; I place my order asuming Amazon.com will charge my VISA Card and forward the money to this "Emanuel" guy as they have done it with my previous purchases from the Marketplace. The day after I place my order I get an email from Amazon.com that reads:

"We're sorry, we're unable to complete your order from an Amazon Marketplace seller enjoythegroove1@hotmail.com. We have canceled this transaction and you have not been charged for the order."

I emailed "enjoythegroove1@hotmail.com" and asked him why he had cancelled the order. He immediately replys:

"Sir the offert is avaible.But if you want to buy the projector you must send me your full name and address so i can call to amazon center to approve the transaction.After that you will receive an email confirmation from them with the all shipping details and payment method.
Please email me asap with your full info!"

I sent him my full name and address and then I did get 2 (TWO) identical emails from Amazon (since when Amazon.com sends the emails twice?) saying that the item was sold to me and telling me the payment instructions. They were asking me to pay via Western Union Wire Transfer (I thought Amazon.com was supposed to charge my Credit Card!!!) I even chatted with the guy on the yahoo Messenger he told me he was in London, so I asked him where the item was, he told me the projector was in the United States, in the Amazon warehouse. What the heck!!?!?!?! Does this guy think I'm stupid? I went on with his game and decided to do a Google search on this BASTARD, I found this Forum and was stunned to realize I was not the first one. So please be careful when buying in Marketplaces like Amazon or ebay, ALWAYS use Amazon itself or PayPal when paying for goods. that way you'll be protected. OOh by the way, that email "from Amazon" asking me to send money through Western Union to:

Emanuel Derich
449 Luton Rd
London NW109PT
United Kingdom

also totaled $550, as I was chatting with the guy I asked him what about the S&H??? He said it was included. Yeah Right ! when I completed my purchase in Amazon when I placed the order Shipping was $10 making a total of $560, and now this new "Amazon" email doesn't say anything about shipping ??!?!?!? That was stupid very stupid my Emanuel friend. I hope you read this and are behind bars when you do it. Have your mother send you wire transfers!!! As*sho*e! I hope this comment was useful for other people to keep them from doing business with this kind of guys.

[Ellis]

This a ficticious address. I searched the Royal Mail postcode database and the answer was:- The address or postcode you have entered is not listed in our database.

[Scamstopper]

Lets say that I am involved with this exact scam right now... How would I get this guy caught? There might be hope for everyone.......

[milenka]

It just happened to me- unfortunately I sent money - western union.

The same story- I wanted to order via Amason, no success, than i contacted this person- i received confirmation and payment instructions- I trusted Amason.... :mad: :mad: :mad:


Thanks for your order,Milena Likar !

Want to track your order status?
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Did you know you can view your orders online, 24 hours a day? Click Your Account to:

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See tax and seller information
Do much more...
Purchasing Information:
E-mail Address: milenka-likar@charter.net



Billing Address:

Milena Likar
110 southchase blvd
Fountain Inn,SC 29644
USA
< /FONT> Shipping Address:

Milena Likar
110 southchase blvd
Fountain Inn,SC 29644
USA





Order Grand Total: $600.00

Order Summary:
Shipping Details: Standard
Have questions about this order? Please contact the seller..

Shipping Method: Standard Shipping
Total Price: $600.00
Shipping & Handling: $0.00
------
Total for this Order: $600.00


Shipping estimate for these items: July 19, 2005 3 "Canon Powershot S2 IS 5MP Digital Camera with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom"

$600.00




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Payment Method:
The seller requests to be paid via Western Union Wire Transfer.
Thank you for the understanding.




To submit the payment with Western Union Money Transfer you have the following option:
Pay for the transfer with cash at a local Western Union agent.
Click here to locate the agents in your area :
http://www.westernunion.com/info/agentInquiryIntl.asp


Once the payment was sent, provide the seller with the following information:
1) MTCN (Western Union Money Transfer Control Number):
2) Sender name :
3) Sender address :
4) City where you sent the money from:
5) Amount sent:
Then wait for the confirmation that the payment was received. Within 2 business days,
you will receive the tracking number for your product.

Shipping from Address and Payment Information:
E-mail Address: gre8deal@gmail.com

Ship from :

Amazon Center

New York,NY 10002


Payment Address:


Marinica Alecsandru
Str Cuza Voda 43
Zip 0300
City Pitesti
ROMANIA




Note: Due to this terms the shipping will be supported by the seller.

The item was sent to your address ,now you have to make the payment for you can receive the item at time.

If you will not make the payment ,we will stop the shippment.Don't reply ,ask seller if you have questions.




Purchase Protection and Refund Information:
Currently, this seller has $ 4,000.00 deposit in an Amazon.com managed purchase protection account. Transactions with this amazon seller are covered 90% in case of fraud and description errors.
You have 14 days after you receive the product to request a refund.
Refund requests are processed within 3 days.
For your safety, this account was blocked today, for 14 time. The seller is unable to withdraw the money within this period.
The seller was informed about this transaction being started and is awaiting for your payment.


You can review your orders in Your Account.

Please note: This e-mail message was sent from a notification-only address that cannot accept incoming e-mail. Please do not reply to this message.

Thanks again for shopping with us.


Amazon.com
Earth's Biggest Selection

[shroom08]

Anyone have any info on what needs to be done? To whom should I forward all the email exchanges? The scam changed a bit... it's not with ipods... ipod photos 60gb nonetheless.... The guy offered a free one if you buy 2 and each one was 300 so totalling 600 for 3 ipods... I asked him about it right away and he said don't place the order thru the site right now, amazon will be contacting me real soon to confirm the order... what a fu*kin moron... I would love to get this guy caught... any ideas??

[demcc101]

A few weeks ago I got my 300D stolen and was desperate to buy a new one as quickly as possible as I wanted to start a small freelance photography venture..
I too 'bought' mine of this guy called Hanganu Marius Ionel. :(
I had sent dozens of mails asking about the process and even got a friend in work to have a look to see if it all looked genuine. It really did. The mail arrived from Amazon to explain that I'd be covered for this transaction as the seller had an account with Amazon which would cover the cost for damaged or non-delivered goods. So much for that.
Obviously Amazon won't cover you for a thing. They say that you should only ever pay through their site. They really should do something about this though. Post a comment on heir welcome page or something...
This guy is getting away with thousands of $€£ and we are all paying the price.....

Sorry to hear about everyone else's loss... I honestly know how you all feel.

Dave

[artaqq]

To report scams in, or from Romania...there appears to be plenty, email them here: office@mcti.ro

Then go here: http://www.efrauda.ro/efrauda/admin/default.aspx?StartTab=0&lang=2

I have been reading all of the posting since I've been screwed over. It all looks like the same thing. Don't let that knowledge go to waste. We may never see our money again but, others need to know our stories. I am compiling a list of names and addresses to send to my contact in the Romanian police department. Feel free to contact me with any addresses you have. So far, I have 9 addresses from Pitesti, alone. Neat country. I know I'd be proud to call it my own. :eek:

[lit_langel]

I am in the same situation as most of you . i was screwed out of 543 dollars when i have placed an order through amazon (or at least i thought that it was amazon) i got the canceled orders and then was asked for my email so amazon could confirm it and get back to me about the payment. the user is now using the name cyber_flexo@yahoo.com. The nmae taht i recieved and shipped money to was
beatrice Buescu
STR.-B-DUL Galati Nr.4
Galati,0300 Romania

after sending it through this name the seller than stated that someone had stolen their id and asked me to put it in this name

bejan adrian
bdu-l dunares nr 2
galati 0300 romania

that is when i checked the status of the previous addressed wire transfer. they told me at western union that it was recieved then i got supious. i contacted amazon and could not find any order info on there site. but i did have an order # and status email that i assumed was but amazon and found out it was not. i have contacted western union and the local police and the fbi and also romania website but have not gotten anything solved. i do not understand how amazon cannot controll this or western union. what would really be nice is to find the seller again and then have the police bust them when they go and pick up the money. if the person does get caught i am hoping that we may get some refund or something but i am not getting my hopes up. i think that we were all screwed. it is ashame that you cannot trust people anymore and the sad thing is the ones who are getting screwed are people like me can't afford to lose the money. i needed the camera for school and now i am screwed out of a camera and money. i feel everyones pain and loss and hope we can catch this bastard.

marcia

[yasin]

Thank you very much and thanks to google for finding this thread. Now I see that I have the same story as yours. The seller is from Romania and the payment method is through Western Union as well . I am lucky that I made some search before I pay the money. Now I am angry with the Amazon who allows unverified sellers to show expensive items to sell on their site.
Again, thank you very much for your help, I will provide you with the detailed information soon.

Regards

[cromdubh]

Im raising a glass to search engines like google that saved me the heartbreak of forking out a few hundred dollars to scam artists like others have come across on amazon.
I felt I was wise with buying stuff online and have bought plenty from ebay with no problems over the years. I thought paying close attention to a sellers feedback was an important step in establishing a sellers credibility. But with amazon that doesnt seem the case? How can scam artists have 200+ positive feedbacks???

I ordered a Canon SD500 digital camera TWICE from amazon.com since it was being sold for under $300 each time. Then a day later I get the email from amazon saying that "the seller is currently unable to accept payment". Of course I was curious that it ended like that and contacted the seller both times to see what was the story.

The first time it was a seller by the name of Filion Alexandru (filionus@yahoo.com and filionus@secureroot.com) and here was his response
------------------------------------------
For the momment our bank account is close because we
must clear out;we wait a big amount this month and we
can`t accept any credit card transfer in this
moment.Please let me know your full name and address
and you will be contact by amazon with new methods of
payment available in this moment.Let me kniow asap if
you have other questions and i will try to answer in
the same day.Best regards
------------------------------------------
Then the next day I get the email from message-payments@amazon.com saying:
"The seller requests to be paid via Western Union Wire Transfer.
Thank you for the understanding. Currently, this seller has $ 4,000.00 deposit in an Amazon.com managed purchase protection account. Transactions with this amazon seller are covered 90% in case of fraud and description errors.
You have 14 days after you receive the product to request a refund.
Refund requests are processed within 3 days.
For your safety, this account was blocked today, for 14 time. The seller is unable to withdraw the money within this period.
The seller was informed about this transaction being started and is awaiting for your payment. "
(typical romanian scam artists' attempt at english)

Payment Address:
Filion Alexandru
Str Bananai 32
Pitesti 0300
Romania

The whole thing sounded fishy to me so I didnt go for it. Instead a few days later I saw another Canon SD500 for under $300 - ordered it and the same thing happened - Amazon cancelled the order and then the seller contacts me with this email:
seller: ptgrasulmeu@yahoo.com
-------------------------------------------------
I can`t receive the payment thru Amazon but if you want to buy the product then e-mail back with your full name and address so i can contact the Amazon and send the product at them.
After that you will receive an e-mail invoice from them with all the details of the shipping and payment informations so you can make the payment via moneygram.
I will pay all the shipping taxes for delivery and you will pay the fee for sending money via MoneyGram.
After the payment is confirmed Amazon will continue the delivery on your address and you will receive another e-mail notification from them with the tracking number.
Let me know if you agree those terms and i wait your answer back with your decision.
-------------------------------------------------

Then I found this website and know that both times the seller was a fraud. I have to admit that the scam is quite clever and I can see so many people falling for it......as it is difficult not to, for that "great deal". I believe amazon are the biggest culprits here and should be able to stamp out this with some better placed warnings. When buying from the amazon marketplace, there should be a warning message above each product saying - "only pay for a product through Amazon and not through Wire Transfer of Western Union or Moneygram". I reported the first seller to amazon saying I think he is a scam artist and they responded with ignorance
------------------------------------------
Thank you for writing to us at Amazon.com. I am sorry that you were
unable to complete your purchase.

Occasionally a third-party seller on our web site may temporarily be
unable to accept Amazon Payments, the method by which payment is
submitted for such orders. This can happen for a variety of reasons,
and usually the best solution is simply to make another selection
from a different seller, or to try ordering again from the same
seller at a later time
-----------------------------------------
That is BS - they should at least investigate the seller.

So what should we do to make it mor difficult for scam artists to survive on amazon.com and elsewhere? Post reviews on products and mention to potential buyers to Beware of scam artists selling this product...if they are from romania or ask for payment through western union or moneygram.

Anyone else got ideas?

[kimnicho]

Maybe we can insist that Amazon provide seller contact info like eBay - I am a seller in both places and would Never mind a customer "screening" me first as I am legit !!! I actually got scammed in a different way via Amazon. I had someone act real dumb - "I don't know how to use internet blah blah blah" but I really want to buy your camera....he wanted to pay via bidpay(?) and asked for my mailing address. That was all he needed to "phish" my perfect Amazon seller reputation ! It took half a dozen calls and almost two weeks before I could sell cameras again on Amazon! Also, never ever use Money Order to buy anything online. EVER. Or be willing to kiss your money good-bye. I'm not trying to blame anyone as it angers me that there's so many dishonest sellers out there taking advantage of the internet but that's the harsh reality. I just hope Amazon can be one step ahead of these guys. 'Til then, you have to be your own watch dog (and keep posting to prevent others from falling for these same "traps").

[50ft Queenie]

I am just now dealing with this same scam.
I made the order through Amazon, then after received this email:
We are sorry but we can not receive amazon payments because here we do not have international credit card service or paypal service, the deal will be made through amazon (they will be tacking care about shipment) but the only difference is that you have to pay via MoneyGram,so give us the payment details so we can refund your money, because we do not receive any payment yet from amazon. The product will arrive at your home in 2-3 days so we are waiting your email with payment details.
Regards.

I told the guy that I had already paid using Amazon, and that I would not pay through MoneyGram. He then sent me a fraud Amazon email:

The seller requests to be paid via MoneyGram Money Transfer.
Thank you for the understanding.

To submit the payment with MoneyGram Money Transfer you have the following option:
Pay for the transfer with cash at a local MoneyGram Money Transfer agent.

Once the payment was sent, provide the seller with the following information:
1) MTCN (MoneyGram Transfer Control Number):
2) Sender name :
3) Sender address :
4) City where you sent the money from:
5) Amount sent:
Then wait for the confirmation that the payment was received. Within 2 business days,
you will receive the tracking number for your product.

Shipping from Address and Payment Information:
E-mail Address: savit1984t@hotmail.com

Ship from Address:
Mitrache Adrian
Str Republicii 222
Pitesti 0300
Romania
Payment Address:
Mitrache Adrian
Str Republicii 222
Pitesti 0300
Romania

Purchase Protection and Refund Information:
Currently, this seller has $ 6,000.00 deposit in an Amazon.com managed purchase protection account. Transactions with this amazon seller are covered 90% in case of fraud and description errors.
You have 14 days after you receive the product to request a refund.
Refund requests are processed within 3 days.
For your safety, this account was blocked today, for 14 days. The seller is unable to withdraw the money within this period.
The seller was informed about this transaction being started and is awaiting for your payment.
You can review your orders in Your Account.
Please note: This e-mail message was sent from a notification-only address that cannot accept incoming e-mail. Please do not reply to this message.

Note: The shipping will be supported by the seller.

Thanks again for shopping with us.

And remember this seller is protected and authorized by us to deal with MoneyGram and we guarantee this transaction with this seller

I wrote him back telling him I wanted a refund. He then told me he never received my payment through Amazon. Then this morning I received another email from him (fraud) telling me my order was shipped and confirmed.

I reported him to Amazon, for the fraud emails, for asking for money gram, and for ignoring my request for a refund.
I now have a file claimed and I'm waiting to hear from Amazon.

[Norm in Fujino]

I am just now dealing with this same scam.
I made the order through Amazon, then after received this email:

As someone else hinted above, one of the important clues that you are seeing a scam is the level of English used. I've gotten scam emails from ostensible "Paypal" and "Citibank" addresses, but considered them suspicious merely because the expressions and English usage they demonstrated smelled fishy for a business of that size. When you feel suspicious about a marketplace seller, always use google and do a check for the website url or mail address ISP involved.

[Rhys]

I often wonder why people are so desperate to screw down non-existant bargains. Have we all forgotten about waiting until we can afford to buy things?

[Jabberwock]

Thanks for actually using the guys' names. This was the only search result I got by putting "Alecsandru Marinica" into Google.

I recently noticed a Canon 1Ds Mark II for $400 on Amazon.com, under "refurbished". Normally, these cameras sell for around $7,500, and refurbished ones go for approx. $4,000. It seemed suspicious, of course, but I was interested. I figured maybe they fell off a truck, or were stolen, and the seller didn't really know the value.

Anyway, it was gone almost instantly. I e-mailed the seller--Alecsandru Marinica--, and he said that he "still [had] four left", and that if I sent him my shipping info, he'd be able to supply me with one.

I sent him my shipping address, and he didn't reply for about a week. He just got back to me today with the following:

Please send me the info again,i dont recive it first time.
After that i will contact amazon to release the shipping to you.
Amazon staff will contact you with the shipping and payment info after i have your address.

I'm trying to keep him baited, so I sent him my shipping address again, to which he replied:

I will need your full name also.
I will contact amazon and they will start the shipping to your address and after that they will contact you with the shipping and payment info.


Thanks

I'm not sure what to do, really. I'm glad I found this site, though, because it saved me having to deal with all of this and be potentially scammed out of $400. I'm thinking maybe there's some way I could meta-scam him, or something.

How do these guys get such good ratings? That's what I don't understand. And why doesn't Amazon do something about it? They've obviously scammed enough people for it to become noticeable--how are they still able to sell things on Amazon?

I think I'll just wait and ask for a 20D for Christmas.

[Norm in Fujino]

How do these guys get such good ratings? That's what I don't understand. And why doesn't Amazon do something about it? They've obviously scammed enough people for it to become noticeable--how are they still able to sell things on Amazon?

Think about it: all they have to do is have an accomplice (or merely use a different name and do it themselves!) "order" something using a temporary hotmail address; the accomplice or aka then writes a glowing review for amazon. Multiply this a hundred times or so and voila, you've got a great reputation.

[Rhys]

Think about it: all they have to do is have an accomplice (or merely use a different name and do it themselves!) "order" something using a temporary hotmail address; the accomplice or aka then writes a glowing review for amazon. Multiply this a hundred times or so and voila, you've got a great reputation.

Exactly how all those people on ebay work. If the ebay seller is genuine then he'll have very little "feedback" as he'll be somebody going there to offload some redundant items once every few years in the same way most of us use the small ads in the newspapers to get rid of our redundant stuff.

[XOO]

Exactly how all those people on ebay work. If the ebay seller is genuine then he'll have very little "feedback" as he'll be somebody going there to offload some redundant items once every few years in the same way most of us use the small ads in the newspapers to get rid of our redundant stuff.
Agree completely. I even wrote whomever ramrods eBay that it sure would be nice to have a "filter" to eliminate those with over a certain amount (you decide) of feedback. When the seller has thousands of feedbacks, I figure he has never touched the item up for auction. Matter of fact the "small print" many have at the end of their listing bears this out...i.e.,"It powers up but have no way of testing", etc.

[Norm in Fujino]

Maybe we can insist that Amazon provide seller contact info like eBay - . . . . I just hope Amazon can be one step ahead of these guys. 'Til then, you have to be your own watch dog (and keep posting to prevent others from falling for these same "traps").

I just noticed on Amazon the following message:

"Always pay through Amazon.com's Shopping Cart or 1-Click
Your purchase will be protected by the A-to-z Safe Buying Guarantee. Never respond to requests to send funds via wire transfer. Learn more about Safe Online Shopping."

The last sentence was linked to another page about safe online shopping. I don't know how long this message has been online, but apparently Amazon is getting feedback about such scams.

[barnesquared]

before finding a reputable seller (digitalmegastore.com) online from which to buy my Digital Rebel XT, I ALMOST got duped into buying from these guys too. I had enough to buy from my local camera store for $999, but if I could get it for $600, that frees up $400 for maybe another lens. it sounded so great!

but i did some research before going through the process with these guys. you can tell off the bat they seem SO suspect. Their bad english, their inability to deal with amazon payments even though they're selling through amazon, etc. they sent me a very official-looking amazon confirmation, exactly the same one as most of you received, but with all the spelling mistakes, i was suspicious. I'm really big on spelling and cant stand when words are spelled incorrectly, especially on "official" emails and documents, so this tipped me off and I decided to fwd the email to amazon.com and see if they really sent it to me.

of course, they told me they did not. i asked them about dealing with payments NOT through their site, and if my purchase will still be insured by them. i even gave them the names of the sellers (i attempted this deal with 6 different sellers, all from romania, apparently), their addresses, etc, and all they told me was my purchase would not be insured by amazon unless payment goes through their site.

after reading all of your experiences, i'm glad i didn't go through with my purchase. i'm a semi-broke college student who picked up an expensive hobby and i definitely wouldn't have been able to afford a $600 loss. i hope all of you who have to deal with these guys are able to find some sort of justice.

[formerisan]

Had a close call with the Romanian scam today. Folloiwng are things which might help:
- level of English: looks like there are more than 1 person involved. some of the e-mails were quite fluent.
- reputation of the seller: when I placed the order yesterday, the seller profile pointed to an US company which I could check their website. When I checked again this evening, that part of profile was gone. I suspect that the seller's Amazon account might be hi-jacked.

[sunandsky]

Didn't fall for it (thankfully) but followed the exact same scam format as previous posts. To your defense, the emails from these characters arrive looking pretty official -- Amazon logo, working links, etc. It was the warning on the actual Amazon site about only guaranteeing Amazon payments that kept me from making the same mistake. I emailed Amazon customer service asking them to verify whether or not the email was real and heard nothing back -- thought that was pretty weak.

Sure hope you can get some cooperation out of the Romanian officials with this.

Best of luck,
Sunny


First name:PACURARU
Last name:ROBERT DANIEL
Adress:Str. 24 Ianuarie Nr.5
State:AG
Zip code:0300
City:Pitesti
Country:Romania

seller email: pacurarureobert1977@gmail.com

[Rhys]

I googled " 24 Ianuarie Nr.5" and found that it's "24 January Street".

I keep finding a reference to "Palatl de Justite" connected with it too.

The record from http://anunturi.3x.ro/index.php?page=out&id=18728 shows
24 ianuarie nr 5, Palatul de justitie, Ploiesti
Judet Prahova

Etaj 2/2 , Decomandat , Confort 1 , Mobilat , Termopane total, Usa metalica, Vedere mixta, Gresie, Faianta, Centrala proprie , 50 mp

Zona Banca Transilvania-Palatul de justitie,inchiriez apart. 2cam,dec,et2/2,imbunatatiri de lux,bucatarie dotata,G+F,centrala termica,termopane,scara curata.

Pret: 500 EURO Discutabil

Contact
Nume: sava iuliana
Telefon: 0723182711
Email: Trimiteti

It's a shame nobody can read Romanian. Guessing from the other part connected to the address, could it be a Justice Ministry with a corrupt official?

[thebac]

I disagree that it's so easy to rack up positive feedback on Ebay as a seller. The method of having friends give you feedback doesn't work that well because a) there are fees to listing items on ebay and the amount it sold for, so feedback is costly and b) if you sign up through a free e-mail account, you need to verify your account using a credit card, IIRC.

The way scams work normally are that a) sellers buy a ton and get good feedback as a buyer, then sell stuff touting their perfect feedback and hope that the bidder doesn't notice that it's feedback for buying, not selling or b) sell tons of cheap stuff to build up their feedback, then all of a sudden sell expensive lenses and bodies.

The key is just to be able to decipher Ebay's feedback system correctly.

For the above issues, check the seller's recent feedback--if they sold similar stuff (or at least similarly expensive stuff), that's a good sign. If they have not received positive feedback for selling an expensive item recently, but all of a sudden have lots to liquidate, that's a bad sign (though they could still be legitimate). If they do not accept Paypal, that's another bad sign (though lots of legit sellers don't accept Paypal). If they have no or little feedback as a seller, again, not a good sign.

Moreover, most of us grow up thinking that 90% is a pretty good score. On Ebay, that's not true--when I buy from someone with 90% positive feedback, whether the seller has feedback in the 100's or the 10,000's, I buy at my own risk.

If I had the choice b/t a seller with 20,000 feedback points (all as a seller), 92% of them positive or a seller with 400 feedback points (all as a seller), 100% positive, then the 400 feedback seller is the better option (the only one, really).

However, b/t a seller with 50 feedback points and 100% positive or the seller with 4,000 feedback points, 99.7% of them positive, I go with the 4,000 feedback seller.

Ebay doesn't make it easier by awarding stars and powerseller status to sellers in a way not necessarily related to customer satisfaction.

Certainly, it's easy to get screwed over on Ebay if you're new to it. However, to somehow suggest that sellers with lots of feedback are necessarily unreliable or scam artists is ludicrous. The key is just understanding that you need to see what the seller has sold in the recent past and how they've been rated on that. And when in doubt, do not buy from a seller who doesn't take Paypal. Stay away from sellers from China, Pakistan, Ukraine, etc. There are legit sellers based there, but for me, it's just too risky.

[ormandj]

Salut!

I thought I would help you all out. :)

Here is a few email exchanges I had with this scammer. Mostly in order to gather the information needed to take care of this. I will be flying to Romania in December and handling the problem myself.

-------------------
Dear Sir,

The camera Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX1K (black) is still $400 and will come in 2-3 days,
If you are interested please let me know your full name and address where you want
to shep and i will call amazon.com to make this order, they will contact you whit
all information for shipping and method of payment.

I wait your reply.
Thanx

Best Regards
"David" <xxx@xxx> wrote:
Sir/Madam:

I noticed you list the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX1K on Amazon.com.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000A7XZI2/qid=1124415480/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_unbuck_1/002-6403971-5122427?v=glance&s=photo&n=541966
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/stores/offering/list/-/B000A7XZI2/all/ref=dp_pb_a/002-6403971-5122427?s=photo

The listing was for 399$. I know the camera is not due out until
September 25. I did however notice you sell the Silver model for 550$. I
was curious if the 399$ was your actual selling price for the black
model? If so, I will be placing an order with you as soon as possible,
as this is an amazing deal.

When is your estimated ship date? It says 1-2 business days but the
camera is not even released yet. I'm just a bit confused, and I think
your auction might be in error, hence me contacting you.

I appreciate your time in clarifying/clearing this up for me, I saw how
wonderful 99% of your feedback was so I have no qualms with placing an
order as soon as I know your response.

Thank you again,
David
------------------------
At this point I thought the transaction would be brokered by Amazon, which I had no problem doing, especially via CC, because I'd have two methods to protect myself. If amazon wouldn't take care of somebody trying to scam (if they payment was made through them) my CC company would gladly drop the charges. I've done it before, I know. Little did I know I'd be asked to provide my information to make a payment via Western Union. Haha. Sure, let me send money to a random guy on the net NOT via amazon (a place I trust) via a method in which money is same-as-cash, and there is NO recourse if you let yourself get scammed. Harsh words, but I want to make sure everybody is clear, NEVER use WU unless you're sending money to family. There is *0* fraud protection, you're sending cash.

------------------------

Dear Sir,

The tv is brand new in box unopened, and will come whit 1 year international
warranty and all accessories standard.
It is not a prototipe, it is the real camera, because is made from USA in Europa,
The camera cost $400, the shipping is free because i have a countract whit
amazon.com, and the camera arrive in US in 2-3 days.
If you are interested please let me know your full name and address where you want
to shep and i will call amazon.com to make this order, they will contact you whit
all information for shipping and method of payment.

Thanx
Best Regards!!

"David" <xxx@xxx> wrote:
Hi,


Sorry to be persistent but this seems like a deal too good to be true. Could you
tell me more about this camera? How did you get it 1 month before the camera's
official release? Is it a prototype or pre-production model? Is there anything wrong
with it? Is it brand new or used? Is it covered under the full manufacturers
warranty? I'm just curious, because this is 300 dollars below the MSRP. :) If you
can provide the above information, I will purchase this camera.


Thank you,
David
----------------------
Dear Sir,

I don`t have the a photo for the moment, but you can see that camera on amazon.com
because i give 2 photos them.
I have a shop whit electronics in my country and where is arrive the new camera.
I need you information for shipping.

Thanx
Best Regards!!

"David" <xxx@xxx> wrote:

Could you please send me some photos of the item? Thank you. I would still like to
know how you got it one month before the actual release date?

David
-----Original Message-----
From: Madalin Adrian
Date: Fri, 19 Aug 2005 12:00:02
To:"David"
Subject: Re: Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX1K - Question

Dear Sir,

The camera Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX1K (black) is still $400 and will come in 2-3 days,
If you are interested please let me know your full name and address where you want
to shep and i will call amazon.com to make this order, they will contact you whit
all information for shipping and method of payment.

I wait your reply.
Thanx

Best Regards
---------------

Dear Sir,

Is clouse because i have one Panasonic, and one tv to sell, and i have allready
customers for that. If you send me yor name and where you want to shep the camera i
will call to amazon.com to make this order. They will contact you whit all
information for shipping and method of payment.
I wait your reply

Thanx
Best Regards!

"David" <xxx@xxx> wrote:
I noticed on amazon.com your sale is gone now, I could not access it to purchase. Is
something wrong?


Thank you,
David
-----------------------
Dear Sir,

Just few minute i tolk whit a operaton by Amazon.com , and i make the order, in few
minutes you will be contact by them whit all information for the payment and
shipping.
Plese let me know when are you contact.
I wait your reply

Thanx
Best Regards!!
-------------
NO Sir i not scam you, i have spoke whit amazon.com, i not send you noting, that
happening one time , one buyes say what you are saing, i don`t know what happening ,
propable amazon server is from RUSSIA.
How i scam you ? if i scam you my reputation is finish aslo my feedback.

I wait your reply

Thanx
Best regards!!

"David" <xxx@xxx> wrote:
I received the mail from Amazon, however it is not actually from Amazon.


From: payment-messages@amazon.com
Subject: Your Order with Amazon.com
Date: August 20, 2005 9:50:36 AM HST
To: david.orman@corenode.com
Return-Path: <passat1@diffusion.agava.com>
X-Original-To: xxx@xxx
Delivered-To: xxx@xxx
Received: from eternity.agava.net (eternity.agava.net [198.173.4.2]) by
pulsar.xxx.com (Postfix) with ESMTP id 44E21E71E8 for
<xxx@xxx>; Sat, 20 Aug 2005 15:50:08 -0400 (EDT)
Received: from diffusion.agava.com (diffusion.agava.com [198.173.4.9]) by
eternity.agava.net (Postfix) with ESMTP id C65351533F for
<xxx@xxx>; Sat, 20 Aug 2005 14:50:36 -0500 (CDT)
Received: by diffusion.agava.com (Postfix, from userid 4989) id C09CFBC6254;
Sat, 20 Aug 2005 14:50:36 -0500 (CDT)


Agava.net is Agava Software, and their netblock indicates they are in Moscow Russia.
Sorry but I will not be clicking on links to give my credit card to emails that come
from Russia but say "Amazon". Are you trying to scam me?


David
-----------------

^ that was the point in which I had what I needed.

------------------
Dear Sir,

I will relisted next week some cameras, and sure one you waht to buy, and i will
contact you to see that is not a scam , and you will pay through Amazon.com, whit
credit card.
I will say you something , WU is through Amazon.com , because they guarantee for me
, and your money are protect by them because i have deposited $4000 in amazon.com
accounts, i make this transactions because amazon.com allow me to sell items that ,
i send the items using Amazon.com and the buyer send money using WU, is more fast,
if you will buy whit credit card ,the item will arrive to you in 10-15 days, and
your money arrive in my accounts after 20-25 days, that is the reason i use WU. More
seller NEW are scamers and sell that way because they say have money deposited, and
contract whit amazon, and fake items, but that sellers not have feedback, i`m a
respecable seller and my feedback is good , i not scam noboudy. I`m sorry whit that
problem.

Thanx
Sincerity,

Madalin
--------------

Regardless, I went through all of the email logs on my servers, and eventually found the common point of access in Romania, (86.105.97.2) which belonds to zapa.ro, which he was relaying mail through. All other emails were sent via an AOL IP, most likely a trojaned re-mailer on broadband. I've got my ticket and I'll be on my way this December. I didn't get scammed, but I take a personal stance to people trying to take my money through means such as this. Anyways, hope everybody learned their lesson never to trust emails that look like they are "from" Amazon. They aren't. You can modify the header to say it's from whoever you like: whitehouse.gov, fsb.ru, whatever. Never ever send payment via email, or to somebody who requests through email, no matter how official it looks.

As a side note, my LX1 is on the way, I'll have some of my friends grab photos while I'm in Romania, maybe people will get a laugh out of the guy's face when I get my hands on him. (Especially when he's being photographed using the very camera he tried to scam me with!) ;) The RO police were not interested in this person, but a few friends I have in RO government office had no trouble helping me out finding this particular menace.

PS - Sorry for the out of order responses, my emails are usually listed following his response to my email. Didn't feel like digging through my sent box too. :)

PPS - If any of you have any other people in RO you'd like me to go "visit", please let me know. I'm spending 4 grand to be there, I might as well make it worthwhile.

La Revedere,
David

[Rhys]

Sounds a fun trip. What will you be doing when you find the guy?

[ormandj]

Sounds a fun trip. What will you be doing when you find the guy?

"Taking Photos"

Leave it at that. :)

[RyRy4649]

Hey Everyone, I just got scammed by this guy recently via Amazon and Western Union Wire Transfer, I am furious. I was buying an iPod Amazon and I know that' snot as much as all of you have lost but it's still significant. We need to find this guy and take him down. David I'm glad to see you are doing so. Please David e-mail, I'm interested in this Romanian trip. Everyone else we need to do all we can to stop scammers. It was probably stupid of me to believe any of this but still it looked authentic i don't know a ton about computers so I don't know you can changed e-mails to say Amazon.com. It's just ridiculous. I'm pissed and we need to get some closer for this. David please, anything, any help please.

He used this email:
camerasvendeur@gmail.com

This Address:

First name:PACURARU
Last name:ROBERT DANIEL
Adress:Str. 24 Ianuarie nr.5
State:AG
Zip code:0300
City:Pitesti
Country:Romania

DONT BE FOOLED...and David please contact me..


Ryan

[ormandj]

Hey Everyone, I just got scammed by this guy recently via Amazon and Western Union Wire Transfer, I am furious. I was buying an iPod Amazon and I know that' snot as much as all of you have lost but it's still significant. We need to find this guy and take him down. David I'm glad to see you are doing so. Please David e-mail, I'm interested in this Romanian trip. Everyone else we need to do all we can to stop scammers. It was probably stupid of me to believe any of this but still it looked authentic i don't know a ton about computers so I don't know you can changed e-mails to say Amazon.com. It's just ridiculous. I'm pissed and we need to get some closer for this. David please, anything, any help please.

He used this email:
camerasvendeur@gmail.com

This Address:

First name:PACURARU
Last name:ROBERT DANIEL
Adress:Str. 24 Ianuarie nr.5
State:AG
Zip code:0300
City:Pitesti
Country:Romania

DONT BE FOOLED...and David please contact me..


Ryan

There isn't really a whole lot I can do for you in terms of your money, I'm sure it's long gone. I don't have any way to make it re-appear. I'm just not letting the scum who tried to scam me get away with it for anybody in the future. That's the best I can do. Sorry that I can't return everyone's money as well, if I could I would, but RO police aren't interested in these kinds of cases, and even if they were, what could they do? Beat the guy until money bleeds out of him? :)

Best wishes, at least you can rest knowing this guy won't be at this too much longer. :)

[NashⅤ]

I just got degital camera scammed today via Amazon and Western Union Wire Transfer. I purchesed Canon 20D refurbished one as $800.00. Once Amazon noteced me this order has been canceled due to "we're unable to complete your order from an Amazon Marketplace seller el3ctro4all@gmail.com. In this case, the seller is currently unable to accept payment. Amazon Marketplace items We have canceled this transaction and you have not been charged for the order"

But Amazon sent another email to me next day. "Sold,pay now. Canon EOS 20D 8.2MP Digital SLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens." In this HTML email looks like from Amazon they say "The seller requests to be paid via Western Union Wire Transfer.Thank you for the understanding." Also they mentioned in the email they have purchase protection as "Currently, this seller has $ 4,000.00 deposit in an Amazon.com managed purchase protection account."

I suspected this email was not comming from Amazon then asked Amazon customer service about this case. Their answer was "we never ask buyer to send money via Western Unoin, purchasing transaction always going through via Amazon" I found out this is scammed case. I called up Western Union for stopping payment transaction immediately.

The guys email address: el3ctro4all@gmail.com
His name:Pacuraru Robert Georgel

This Address:

First name:PACURARU
Last name:ROBERT Georgel
Adress:Str. Republici 22
City:Pitesti
Zip code:0300
Country:Romania

I doubted why the camera with US warranty is coming from Romania. However he said "I just moved to Romania for 3 weeks for my real estate job, the camera is shipped from New York."

Don`t be scammed by him!!

NashⅤ

[Joni]

Hi, I've just been reading the threads. I wonder if the same scam is currently taking place on yahoo auction. The seller is selling Canon rebel xt at $300, Nikon D70 at $400 with a whole load of lens accessories etc. Claims that products are with DHL and will be shipped through them. Payment details apparantly to be provided by them also. Sellers name is Gabriel, at Domodigitals@aol.com.
He is also selling a number of other cameras and items. He claims that he has got a very good deal with a bankrupt photograhic store chain (in surprisingnly enough....Romania, Bucharest).
Auction still has 6-9 days to run on the various items.
Any further info regarding this would be appreciated.

[Joni]

Gabriel alert!
Definitely the same guy, same scam, same emails previously carried out under the name of Andrei Matei, 2003-2004.
Active on yahoo as I write.

[gracie328]

KEH is definitely legit. They are wonderful to deal with... give fast service and fantastic customer service. Just because a company doesn't have a PHYSICAL store for you to visit and shop doesn't mean they aren't for real. The internet is a wonderful opportunity for business and many companies are strictly internet sales only. You can read 'store reviews' and ask around on websites to determine if a place is reliable or not. We've done tons of internet ordering over the years and have never had an issue with a place that's not for real. You just have to use common sense and do your homework.

[Erad]

i actually had an experience with a member on ebay, i just recently tried selling a sony PSP on ebay. 1 day later a member private messages me asking me to end the auction ASAP and he will by the PSP from me for $500. well, he then replied that he will pay me via western union wire transfer. he told me that i will recieve a confirmation from western union letting me know that the money has been processed, he told me once i recieve the email from western union to ship the product to him because he needs it ASAP. i recieved an email from western union that the payment was confirmed. i sent an email to this member and told him that i wanna recieve and see the money first before i ship anything to him. i never recieved any money whatsoever. seems like there people out there not only for money, but also for products. this members location was in singapore. a day later i tried looking up that member name, it said that the member is no longer registered.

[Rhys]

i actually had an experience with a member on ebay, i just recently tried selling a sony PSP on ebay. 1 day later a member private messages me asking me to end the auction ASAP and he will by the PSP from me for $500. well, he then replied that he will pay me via western union wire transfer. he told me that i will recieve a confirmation from western union letting me know that the money has been processed, he told me once i recieve the email from western union to ship the product to him because he needs it ASAP. i recieved an email from western union that the payment was confirmed. i sent an email to this member and told him that i wanna recieve and see the money first before i ship anything to him. i never recieved any money whatsoever. seems like there people out there not only for money, but also for products. this members location was in singapore. a day later i tried looking up that member name, it said that the member is no longer registered.

I've heard of this one before. Somebody buys a load of cheap items from a seller and then buys an expensive item with some sort of line like "the cheque's in the post. Can you send now as I'm going abroad". There are as many scam buyers as sellers on ebay which is yet another reason to abandon ebay and leave it to the dimwits and the crimminals.

[crudo20]

Wow - I didn't realize this is so widespread until I found this thread here. I just got scammed by a seller on ebay and his store was temporarily taken off, but now I check and it's back up again! The seller is shlomo18 - and it was one of the canon XT scams. They had a bunch of positive feedback, so I thought it was safe. Then ebay notified me that the sale was cancelled etc, after I paid! I did get the paypal protection to refund the money, after 10 days. I did a search for completed listings for the xt and then looked at the feedback for the cheaper listings. I was suprised to find that there was no feedback provided for those cheaper listings, but now some of the users are 'unregistered'. Caveat emptor!

[SNiperMarine]

Thank you for this info. I saw a listing at amazon.com for a Canon Pocketshot SD 500 for 250$ and then i tried to buy it through Amazon but it didnt let me buy it so i contacted him. Here is the reply:

"The price is 250 usd including the shipping taxes for delivery at your address.
i have the product brand new in the sealed box with all the accessories included and also 1 Year US warranty.
Also we have a special offert this mount if you would like to buy two then you get one FREE and the total amounth is $300 usd including the shipping taxes for delivery at your address using UPS service.
if you are interested to buy the product or more then e-mail me back so i can give you all the terms to see how we can proceed with this transaction."

His name was hanganu marius ionel <cotoiuseller@secureroot.com>

I was suspicious so I googled his name. What a fucken scammer!

[Norm in Fujino]

See this story:

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/10/28/ebay.scam.ap/index.html

[shazmn]

hye guys...

i just heard the news yesterday on the radio about some guys get caught for a scam on ebay and stuff...

reminds me of my case somewhere in april until may 2005 i guess...

the scam for a Canon EOS 350D...cost me about EURO254.04...

well quite surprising because when i heard the news last night i think hey what if i try to google for the guy's name and walla...i've been directed here...hahahah seems like he is quite famous...too bad i didn't do my homeworkk that well and yeah i was too naive back then...sigh...

owh well the name used was DAVID ADRIAN IONUT...i used to keep all the emails between me and him but around last month i think no point in keeping it anymore...he's out there somewhere laughing his a$$ out and yet i'm here regretting about my stupid mistake...so i think i'll just delete it and yes i did...i know there's nothing much i could do...all i can is just be carefull instead and warn others...

the address i think something something but have Codreanu and Pitesti and ahhh obviously ROMANIA...hahahahah :D

well the story does not end there actually...

i was caught off guard because of a few factors...

i was searching for canon EOS 350D on amazon...suddenly at that moment there are like 3-4 people from romania offered an amazing £200(some even less) deal...i asked one of the seller named something something i cant remember how did u guys from romania can sell it soo cheap...the reason he gave was 'ahhh this major company named whateverwhatever who provided electronics stuff in romania got bankrupt so the bank sell the remaining item cheap...'...so i was like 'ahhhhh that explains it...no wonder it was cheap...'

so i made orders from a guy but apparently he cant accept paypal...(whoooaaa kinda surprised...)...and order from the other but he said he sold off his item...i ask the 3rd guy (who turns out this blood $uck3r David Adrian Ionut) if he already got buyer for his and he said no...but he has to remove the list since he has problem with paypal as well and there's a bidder before me who complained(ahh what a lame story it sounds to me now but very convincing back then...sighh...)...

so i immediately said i want it and i'll make the payment the next day via western union...ahh not to forget the 'off-amazon order' with the payment details and all...so i guess i'm fully convinced enetho my fren told me to be carefull with western union since they wont be held responsible for any fraud case...i think owh well...i trust this guy so what the heck...go for it...

and too bad after he got the mtcn number and all he didnt reply to me not even once...what do u expect from a conman anyway hahahahah... :p

the time i realized i was being conned by him i thought ahhh i got another guy who also listed the same camera so i guess i just email him and ask if he still has any cameras left and what a surprise this other guy from romania said 'yes i do have it...the last buyer pulled out at the last minute...'

and i was like hurrayyyy i still have the chance...but when the same thing happen(receive 'off-amazon order form', pay via another system money transfer bla bla bla...) i was puzzled...no way i'm going to go through the same thing again...and after a discussion with my frens they said 'heck why waste your money?...better if u save more and buy it from someone in uk and this time go for a self pick-up...'...

so i ditch that guy...but he didnt give up on me...one day he called my mobile and said he was calling from romania('unknown number'...whoaaa that is so hard not to believe it did come from romania...sheeshhh... :eek: ) and he said he is waiting for the money and the item has been wrapped up just waiting to be delivered...i said ' ahhh i'll transfer it tomorrow...dont worry i'll email once i did...($uck3r...)'...well he seems so desperate for money so i guess hey i'm not willing to be conned again...so i just ignore him and he didnt call me until now...what and a$$hol3...

so i think he is quite good at attracting possible buyer...he must have create 5-6 accounts just to get attention and start making out stories...if somehow those 3 romanians arrested yesterday somehow related together and somehow happens to have connection with this case...hmmm they are good working as a team huh...;)

huh lost for words...well finally i got to tell my side of the story to someone who is the victim of the same conman...

owh well...i rest my case... :cool:

[Rhys]

I never hear of anything but scams coming from the former USSR. Romania, Moldova, countries of the former Yugoslavia, Russia,Beorussia and Ukraine seem pretty bad in this respect.

[Romanian_police_officer]

please give me more details

[Norm in Fujino]

What's a Romanian (or any other, for that matter) police officer using a Yahoo address for?

[eaglssong]

Norm,

My thoughts exactly.

:confused:

[Glenn Kennedy]

Hmmm.

At least he hasn't asked for CC or bank account details... yet !

[Romanian_police_officer]

i use an yahoo mail adress because is very common here.. and because it;s my private email adress
but if u don;t belive me i can give u the phone number at work ..and u can call there

[Romanian_police_officer]

i can help you file a formal complaint.. and i am very interested in more information about the perpetrators..
i don't want any personal informations about you.. but if u like to prosecute the persons who scamed you , then you can help me do it

[Romanian_police_officer]

https://www.efrauda.ro/efrauda_secure/admin/default.aspx?StartTab=1&lang=2
this is a very good site.. to file your complaints..

[ernie_ng81]

Name: Serban George Razvan
Street: Banatului 21
City: Pitesti
Zip Code: 0300
Country: Romania

Lets see how many names n add these scammers can come up with!!!

Seriously, they do spoil the name of romania... sigh... they should be banished!

[Rhys]

Romania along with Moldova, Russia, Poland, Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovena, Slovakia, Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia, Belorussia and Nigeria all have several things in common...

poor social support for their citizens
high unemployment
low morality
poor infrastructure
unpaid conscript army
unpaid conscript police force
corruuption at all levels of government and the judicial system
high crime rates (whether they're recorded or not)
And the local mafia's have more power than the government

It is in a climate such as this that the local mafia perpertrates fraud via the internet. In Russia, where wages are $40 per month or Latvia where wages are $80 per month, fleecing foreigners is a way of surviving.

It's generally a good idea not to do business with such countries and sadly, their citizens that make it to the western world are generally not much better than those they left behind.

Greed will get you in trouble every time. There's a world of trouble out there too. Better to save your pennies for a few more months and buy safely than to buy from Amazon/Ebay or some other crook laundry.

[ekaterina guseva]

I knew it was going to get very personal. :)
Romania along with Moldova, Russia, Poland, Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovena, Slovakia, Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia, Belorussia and Nigeria all have several things in common...
Hey Rhyes, I wonder how Nigeria got in your list out of the blue with no other African countries? Did you get scamed by a nigerian as well?

poor social support for their citizens true
high unemployment true
low morality How did you measure that? And further question: what's the country that stands on the top of your "morality list" - USA?
poor infrastructure true, though buses in Russia are much more frequent than those of USA
unpaid conscript army
unpaid conscript police force all true
corruuption at all levels of government and the judicial system
high crime rates (whether they're recorded or not) Just FYI USA is on the 6th place on the crime rate list AHEAD of Romania, Moldova and even Ukraine, though much to my dismay beaten by Russia (2nd place).
And the local mafia's have more power than the government still true, though getting slightly better with the arests of many oligarhs.

It is in a climate such as this that the local mafia perpertrates fraud via the internet. Haha ... you should see the mafia in Russia. They don't do stuff like e-bay or amazon scam. What they are into is country music, vodka and murders. just kidding, but I'm more than sure that those people are probably a family that has one PC and a student daughter learning English at school.
In Russia, where wages are $40 per month or Latvia where wages are $80 per month, way off. It's at the very least $100 which I know doesnt make a difference for you, but in Russia where for $5 you can eat for two weeks, here you cant even fill up on McDonald's. And Latvia, Estonia... oh you should really see those countries. Their technology advancement (I'm talking about the capitals) and infrastructure are not to be compared to USA surely, but neither it is close to Nigeria and Russia.


It's generally a good idea not to do business with such countries and sadly, their citizens that make it to the western world are generally not much better than those they left behind. Well... you had me at hello. :) here I am a girl from Siberia, Russia not better than any other left "behind" in Russia. I wonder how bad a person that statement makes me.

Greed will get you in trouble every time. There's a world of trouble out there too. Better to save your pennies for a few more months and buy safely than to buy from Amazon/Ebay or some other crook laundry.I'm glad you learnt that lesson, so sorry you did it the traditional way - learn on your mistakes.

[Rhys]

I actually lived and worked as an instructor with certain armies of the former Soviet Union so I know exactly what the countries in Eastern Europe are like. I know what Nigeria is like as I keep getting their scam postal mail and email.

[ekaterina guseva]

then why such conclusions?

[aedynambrose]

Rhys,

You certainly don't know enough about Eastern Europe to spell the names of the countries properly. Slovenia for example. And while we're talking about Slovenia, Slovenia has the highest GDP rate of any of the newly joined EU countries (or did the year they were accepted, as listed in the Economist during late 2003/early 2004). Their GDP was higher than the Czech Republic and Hungary which do not meet most of your other criteria (Czech soldiers are, as of a couple years back, paid). Slovakia and Poland have excellent infrastructural systems. Busses and trains access even remote areas. In Slovenia average wages are 84% of the European average with cost of living being substantially below the European average (occording to Wikipedia). Latvia's GDP per capita is $11, 500 which means, let me assure you, that no matter WHAT the wealth differentials may be the average salary is not $80 a month. I could keep going, but I think I've made my point. Do your research before you bash countries which you apparently learned nothing about while living there.

Yeah, a lot of scams come from these countries, but a lot of scams come from other places too, and while some of what you have said about these places is true of SOME of these places your facts are demonstrably off in several situations. Don't deal with sketchy people like the Romanians discussed on this thread no matter where they come from. Protect yourself, but don't make overgeneralizations about entire nations full of people most of whom are completely normal completely fine individuals.

-Mel (a specialist in Central and Eastern European studies who has lived and travelled rather broadly in this region and not with the military but with everyday people in small villages as well as big cities)

[Rhys]

Rhys,

You certainly don't know enough about Eastern Europe to spell the names of the countries properly. Slovenia for example. And while we're talking about Slovenia, Slovenia has the highest GDP rate of any of the newly joined EU countries (or did the year they were accepted, as listed in the Economist during late 2003/early 2004). Their GDP was higher than the Czech Republic and Hungary which do not meet most of your other criteria (Czech soldiers are, as of a couple years back, paid). Slovakia and Poland have excellent infrastructural systems. Busses and trains access even remote areas. In Slovenia average wages are 84% of the European average with cost of living being substantially below the European average (occording to Wikipedia). Latvia's GDP per capita is $11, 500 which means, let me assure you, that no matter WHAT the wealth differentials may be the average salary is not $80 a month. I could keep going, but I think I've made my point. Do your research before you bash countries which you apparently learned nothing about while living there.

Yeah, a lot of scams come from these countries, but a lot of scams come from other places too, and while some of what you have said about these places is true of SOME of these places your facts are demonstrably off in several situations. Don't deal with sketchy people like the Romanians discussed on this thread no matter where they come from. Protect yourself, but don't make overgeneralizations about entire nations full of people most of whom are completely normal completely fine individuals.

-Mel (a specialist in Central and Eastern European studies who has lived and travelled rather broadly in this region and not with the military but with everyday people in small villages as well as big cities)

Mel can quote statistics and nit-pick on typos until the cows come home. It won't alter the fact that more scams come from the countries he professes to love than he'll care to admit. I am surprised that a "specialist" would waste everybody's time with statistics which he should realise, having lived with the people in the countries mentioned, are completely unrepresentative of reality. I thought Bombay University turned out graduates of a much higher calibre.

[aedynambrose]

Rhys,

You and I clearly lived in different parts of Central/Eastern Europe. My experiences in Slovenia, Slovakia, Hungary, Czech Republic and Poland did not resemble what you are describing (I have travelled to other parts of this region, but feel less qualified to discuss them as I spent shorter periods of time there). And my experience in Romania, while different from my experience in the rest of that region, was certainly not negative in the ways that you are describing. Some people are poor, just like they are many places, but in general they are also friendly, happy and have a reasonable standard of living that is steadily improving. It's a developing country, sure, but that doesn't imply that all of the people there are scam artists and con men. I have met jerks in these places, but I've met more jerks in the United States. I quote statistics, because it's difficult to "prove" personal experience. I'm the only person here who can vouch for me. Statistics are more able to stand on their own, but if you would prefer experience, I can provide that too, and I still think that you are overgeneralizing and being extremely judgemental. I usually wouldn't comment, but given the relatively small number of people who get to experience this part of the world, and the fact that many people's perceptions are based on just such judgemental attitudes, I felt like I needed to express my differing opinion. That being said, this is a forum about cameras and not about Eastern Europe, and I won't respond on this issue anymore in this particular forum. I've said what I wanted to say and you and I will just have to disagree.

Mel

[milenka]

I believe you are from USA and therefore - of course- you have no idea about countries outside the USA.
Slovenia is great country, especially compared with states.

Ema


Romania along with Moldova, Russia, Poland, Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovena, Slovakia, Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia, Belorussia and Nigeria all have several things in common...

poor social support for their citizens
high unemployment
low morality
poor infrastructure
unpaid conscript army
unpaid conscript police force
corruuption at all levels of government and the judicial system
high crime rates (whether they're recorded or not)
And the local mafia's have more power than the government

It is in a climate such as this that the local mafia perpertrates fraud via the internet. In Russia, where wages are $40 per month or Latvia where wages are $80 per month, fleecing foreigners is a way of surviving.

It's generally a good idea not to do business with such countries and sadly, their citizens that make it to the western world are generally not much better than those they left behind.

Greed will get you in trouble every time. There's a world of trouble out there too. Better to save your pennies for a few more months and buy safely than to buy from Amazon/Ebay or some other crook laundry.

[Rhys]

I believe you are from USA and therefore - of course- you have no idea about countries outside the USA.
Slovenia is great country, especially compared with states.

Ema

You believe wrong. I am British and have spent years travelling through, living and working in the former USSR, Western and Eastern Europe.

[chrisbnp]

First off, I am a white american male that grew up in the southern US.

I've only know a few people that are Romainian, so I can only speak to what I know, each and every one of them are warm, honest, and hard working people.

Painting with such a broad brush is in a word bigotry. While you *may* be right about some people's ethics... My experience differs.

Curious how this thread has the same few people mentioned in a single scam with multiple victims but all of a sudden it's all of the former USSR that is at fault.

So, go ahead, give us your views on women, blacks, hispanics, jews or any other group you wish to single out. Tell us what ethnic groups are "ok" to do business with and which are "undesirable". For that matter, maybe you should start with southern american males. We all know they are ignorant bigots. Are they "OK".

Chris

To the rest of you.. My apologies but I can't stand by and not say anything.

[Rhys]

But have you lived and worked with the people of the former USSR? I could write a whole essay on how they stab each other in the back continually over petty issues that mean nothing. Most Westerners do not really understand the reality of Commuism and how it has affected the people of the former USSR and how that experience colours the reality of today. Most Westerners do not also understand how the vision of Capitalism enacted by people of the former ussr is not about doing business and keeping good business relations but more about screwing the last kopek out of every potential customer and giving them the minimum in return. It's a very Thatcherite economy in which the internet is seen as a way of milking rich foreigners of money in the certain knowledge that by the time enough foreigners have complained about being ripped off they will be long gone. The police are very poorly paid in all the former USSR and hence bribary is a known way of doing business.

[crondor]

Here is my story.

Just a warning to everyone to be careful.

He is at it again .. this time on yahoo auctions.

As you can see I got him down to 200$ - consider it as a first payment ...;-)
This by the way is for a D70S

Hi,

I'll be more than willing to pay the price for the camera.
Not to insult you, but you don't have much feedback, and as I have burned my fingers in the past, I’m still a bit hesitant to continue with the bidding.

In any event, can you supply me with the shipping costs to Ireland.


He goes on explaining specs etc. and also address the question about 400$ for a 800$ camera

The NIKON D70S SLR 6.1 Megapixel Digital Camera Kit ( Lens Included ) (US Model) is brand new in box,full accessories,warranty papers,1 year Nikon Full Warranty.
I bought the camera 1 week ago from Bucharest Digit Store (the second largest digital cameras store from my country Romania that exported camcorders and digital cameras to US+Canada) that went bankrupt and i`ve got a great deal in buying the Nikon D70S and a couple of other digital cameras.

Features:

Supplied Accessories - 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5 G-AFS ED-IF DX Nikkor Lens, AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED Nikkor Lens, etc.etc.

Looking forword to hear from you.

Best Regards
Sincerely
ionut[/I] - ionut ? mmmmm....perhaps a common surname in Romania

I stated that I’m still reluctant to continue with this and ask for PayPal , to which he reply:

I called Yahoo Customer Support to ask them about the Payment Methods and they told me that i cannot accept their payment option because they dont cover my country (Romania) in their payment teritory.

In this case we shall proceed this way:

Regarding shippment and payment here are the details : 1. SHIPPMENT :
There are 3 options of delivery services that are very fast : - UPS 2
days air insured - FedEx 2 days air insured - DHL insured Any of those
services are good, but I personaly prefere UPS 2 days air, if you have
other preference, there is no problem. 2. PAYMENT : For payment, the
fastest way to send money worldwide is Money Gram wire transfer. To
arrange the transfer, you must go in person to an Money Gram Office
please visit www.moneygram.com to find the nearest agent and hours of
operation. From Money Gram, you will receive a number (Reference Number),
you must send me that number as soon as you have arranged the payment so
I can go to www.moneygram.com to see if the transaction is arranged.
As soon as I have verifyed the transaction, I will ship you the package
with all the accesories with the delivery service selected by you. For
the reason that you will pay some money for the Money Gram wire
transfer fee, I will cover shipping and insurance. 3. INSURANCE : The
package will be insured at the delivery service for the amount of 400$.
If something happends on the road, you will receive the insurance from the
delivery service. 4. RETURN POLICY : As soon as the package arrives,
you will test the product and if it does not matches 100% to your
expectations, you will return it in max. 10 days sience the arrival
date. In this case I will send you the full amount back and you will send me the product in the original box and you will pay the return shipping and
insurance. The shipping will be with UPS 2 days air or FedEx 2 days
air and I will pay shipping and insurance charges.Choose a shipping service you want me to use and give me your full name and address.

At the Money Gram office you`ll need my full name and address which is:

Name: Family name : CRETU Second name : ionut
Address: Street Name: Mai #2 , Apt 22 , Sector 5
City: Bucharest
Country: Romania
Zip Code: 7000
Phone number: 00 40 726 538 499

US Full model.
Looking forword to hear from you.

Best Regards
Sincerely
ionut
I’m still not falling for this Western Union/Money Gram thing

Hello

Due all this i`m prepared to proceed this way:

You`ll arrange the payment via Money Gram for 200$,you`ll confirm it
to me,i`ll arrange the shippment and after you`ll recive and inspect the
goods you`ll arrange the other 200$ payment.

Is this Ok with you? If so give me your full name and address and
choose a shipping service you want me to use.

My reply:
I had a look at Money Gram's page and the closest branch they have near to me is 70 miles.

If you prefer to do this speedier, can I suggest C.O.D. - although not sure how it will work from your side or if it can be done.

Of course It could not be done.....How ignorant of me !!!

So there you go. - Make your own conclusions, Hell of a good price ? perhaps just a bit to good !!!!

As for the Policeman that posted previously.....Keep up the good work, and go to the address, and get my camera for me, in return I'll gladly donate 400$ for the Romanian police ball.

btw. I'm in Ireland and would even consider upping the 400$ to 400 EURO, now there is a offer for you !!! ;)

Before I forget....Turned to Yahoo as well for their advice which in a nutshell states that I should not trust people I don't know. Thanks Yahoo, Im glad that I and millions of other people can honsetly say that you have your shop in order.....

[DonKenny]

this happens on ebay all the time people from romania always request money to be sent there and never take paypal known to not "work" at the moment and so on since then i have never bother with romania EVER