SCAM???

[Real Bad Attitude]

Trying to see if this is a scam or not. A little background, I’m selling a motorcycle and have it on a few web sites. Looks like this guy found it on the AMA site and e-mailed me this.


Hello Seller,
   How are you doing today...Hope all is well with you...am hear by to
confirm if you still have the 2001 SUZUKI SV650S BIKE for sale..if yes get
back to me with the details, the final price, the conditionb including the
picture if available . Hope to read from you soonest.Thanks.

Best Regards,

I E-mailed him back asking for $3500. He responded with this

Hello Mark,
 
        Thanks very much for your response ,The reason I am sending you this email is to make final reconfirmation of the 2001 Suzuki SV650S BIKE, which is ok by me $3500, and also to let you know that payment will be by certified cashier's check. In view of this I need you to email me any information that may be required to send the payment as I do not want to send the check to a wrong location lest they get into the wrong hands. Regarding the shipping, I have a company that takes care of the pickup of my consignments for me and ship to my destination in anywhere in the U.S.A, you do not worry about shipping, the company will send down a representative to arrange the sales documentation and the pick up from your end for onward transfer to my destination. I also want to alert you on the fact that you will be receiving an overdraft check, which will cover the money for the pickup (pickup and shipping to the final destination) as well as the money to be paid to the company that will take care of the pickup and the documentation with you. So please, as soon as you receive the payment, go and cash it immediately, deduct the money that accrues to you, and send the balance to the Head Office of the company that handles the shipment via Western union.The check will be in your name to make it easier for you to receive payment, please reconfirm your details one more time.I will give you the details of the company that will be shipping the 2001 Suzuki SV650S BIKE as soon as we seal this deal.Once the money is received by the agent , the shipping agent will contact you immediately to arrange the documentation as well as the pick up immediately. So in view of the above, here are some of the details I will need for final issuance of the check to you.
 
(1) Full Name.........
(2) Mailing address....
(3) your direct telephone.....
{4} accept my offer...........
 
Once you get back to me with all the above, the check will be issued out immediately and it will be sent to you .Hope to hear from you immediately.Looking forward to your swift response.Thanks and God bless.
Best Regards,
So I E-mailed my full name, address and phone number.
He responded with this last E-Mail


Hello Mark,
      Thanks for the responce i will contact my personal assistant immediately to send out the payment to you on monday and you will definately recieve the payment this week . as soon as  he send the payment i will contact you with the tracking number so that you can track it and confirm that the payment as been sent out to you. Thanks once again and i hope to read from you.

My plan is this. If I do receive a check I’ll deposit it and wait until it clears. Then proceed with his wishes.

Thoughts??????

Thanks

[CBRXXBLACKBIRD]

Isnt a certified cashier's check good as cash  

[FlowBee]

Sounds legit to me.  Go for it.  Is he paying in Nigerian dollars?

[atypical1]

Yes. This is a pretty classic scam (typically these guys live in Nigeria). If you Google internet scam you can learn more about these.

james

[CBRXXBLACKBIRD]

Sounds legit to me.  Go for it.  Is he paying in Nigerian dollars?

I just saw that one on the news about the scams they run holy crap  

[Fat Boy]

Dont waste your time. Or get the check and call the police.

[motospeed9058]

This is a classic one.  They have typically changed by now, but this guy is behind the times.

[Mach VIII]

Without question THIS IS A SCAM!!!!!!!!  The check he sends you is bogus, but you don't find that out until after you've sent him the "overage."  After a couple of days your bank discovers that the check you deposited was no good (NSF), then charges the amount you sent on against your account.  There is no shipper.  There is no buyer.  It's just a scam.

If this person contacted you through the AMA's website, you should notify them so that person can be kicked off for the protection of others.

[hobbes]

Fake cashiers checks can take weeks to come back to your bank. DONT DO IT.

[dm_gsxr]

Scam. The cashier's check will appear to clear but in a week or so, your bank will come back and tell you it didn't clear and you're responsible for the funds if any. You're out the money and the bike. Cashier's checks aren't "cash" any more. When I bought the 'busa, the guy refused the cashier's check. We actually met at the bank and I paid him in cash and I got the signed over title in exchange.

Just "return to sender" when you get the envelope and send him a reply with a link to a scam site.

A recent newspaper article said people are still getting scammed out of an average $5,000 each (or thereabouts).

Carl

[CBRXXBLACKBIRD]

How about certified money orders same thing? What is the best besides cash the best route to go?

[R Doug]

How about certified money orders same thing? What is the best besides cash the best route to go?

Just as cash can be counterfeited, so can all other legal tender documents (personal checks, money orders, etc...).  The best thing to do is make it a policy to make sure whatever is sent clears before the bike departs your hands.

An electronic transfer is the best (wire, ACH, PayPal, etc...).

[CBRXXBLACKBIRD]

Frickin technology today.  

[JamesG]

When (if) the check arrives, frame it or put it in a scrap book so you can tell your friends and family how you once got one of those infamous Nigerian scams.

If you are feeling mean, you can mail the amount that you were supposed to "forward" to the "shipping company", in monopoly money.

[dm_gsxr]

Frickin technology today.  

Hey, anything that can be made my man, can be counterfited by man. All it takes is sufficient technology. It's easier now only because the internet makes it easier to reach out and touch more gullible folks. Heck, if I could get a buck from everyone in America (heck, it's only a buck), I'd be rich

Carl

[Chriscb750]

I didn't even read his response but I know it's a scam.   Just plain human behavior......there's way too much writting in the email response.  No legitimate buyer sends an email back that long for that bike (please don't take any offense).  If it was a collector's item, then it may be a different story.  Best to keep the sale relatively close to home.

[bizarro]

When (if) the check arrives, frame it or put it in a scrap book so you can tell your friends and family how you once got one of those infamous Nigerian scams.

If you are feeling mean, you can mail the amount that you were supposed to "forward" to the "shipping company", in monopoly money.

 

[greench440]

Isnt a certified cashier's check good as cash  

Not if it is counterfit

[trotsky]

When we were selling a car we had this exact same thing. He said he was in London, sent us a check for way more than the asking price, we went along with it to try and reel him in so we could report him to the to the police. When he sent the check it came from Nigeria via fedex and was a spoof bank supposedly in Buffalo. We went to the cops with the check and they said there was nothing they could do unless he actually got money from us...and even then it was unlikely they would actually catch him.

This is a classic scam (it was even on dateline a while back). If you go to craigslist you will see the SCAM warnings...this is in there...along with the "widow" of some foreign dignitary who is trying to smuggle her dead husbands money out of the country and she promises to give you a percentage. All she needs is your bank account info.

It never ends.

If you have a PO box or a work address to have the check sent to, you will be scamming him out of the Fedex fee to get it to you. I think if enough people do this these scammers will soon be out of pocket and stop scamming like this.

[RBEmerson]

It's a "Nigerian letter" scam, of course.  Simply walk away and don't waste time thinking about involving police, postal inspectors, etc.  They already know there's little to be done.  

Certified checks...  A friend, who is a boat broker in MD, sold a boat to a guy, got a certified check in payment, signed off the title, and the buyer went off with his boat.  The check was as bogus as a $3 bill.  The boat turned up, sold in VA, and the scammer is, AFAIK, still loose.  Asking my friend the broker about this episode doesn't make for a cheery discussion.