(Topic ID: 198126)

I got scammed for $2.7K Beware

By Soulrider911

6 years ago


Topic Heartbeat

Topic Stats

  • 211 posts
  • 116 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 6 years ago by vid1900
  • Topic is favorited by 6 Pinsiders

You

Linked Games

Topic Gallery

View topic image gallery

Capture (resized).JPG
Capture (resized).JPG
IMG_0037 (resized).PNG
IMG_20170921_121205.jpg
IMG_3431 (resized).PNG
Danny Barnes (resized).jpeg
IMG_1496 (resized).jpg
IMG_1497 (resized).jpg
IMG_1490 (resized).jpg
IMG_1491 (resized).jpg
IMG_1492 (resized).jpg
IMG_1494 (resized).jpg
IMG_1500 (resized).jpg
IMG_1827 (resized).jpg
IMG_1829 (resized).jpg
IMG_1502 (resized).jpg

There are 211 posts in this topic. You are on page 1 of 5.
16
#1 6 years ago

So I just had a very unfortunate situation and realization that I got taken for $2700.00by a scammer on a Terminator 2 pinball machine. I will be adding a video here as its too much to type here but is the short story. But I will try to summarize.

If you have been following my recent posts at all you will see I have been searching for a T2 for a while. I did recently buy a local one from a guy in Sacramento. But what I have not posted is that I actually had already purchased one a week before from a seller out of state who sad my ad on Pinside.

I hadput up a post in the wanted section of Pinside about 3 weeks ago: https://pinside.com/pinball/market/classifieds/archive/53310.

A seller calling himself "Danny Barnes" reached out to me stating he has one. My first question was are you on pinside... He said "no" immediate red flag should have known better. He proceeded to tell me the condition and he was actually fairly knowledgeable as I was asking some technical questions, I mean this guy was good. He sent me lots of photos of the machine - I attached to this post. I was sold we agreed on a decent price he said he was going to ship via U-Ship.

At this point I was having hesitations so I asked to see a photo ID, so he sends me a photo of his passport. I was too nieve to do the math at the time… As in a text, he told me he was 56, yet on his (well the fake passport) it said he was born in 1969, which would make him 48. He continued to assure me as he stated he “was a man of age, and I have nothing to worry about.”

He kept pushing for a bank wire (another red flag) or friends and family. I said NO, ill send normal payment so I get buyer protection, which I did.

He receives the money but PayPal (because they were protecting me the buyer) was going to hold the funds for 25 days until I received the product. I talked to PayPal and the reason they do this is for sellers who either have a bad reputation/history with PayPal, OR they do not use PayPal often enough. Another red flag

He then tells me he can not wait for 25 days, and how about he gives me a refund, and that he will send me photos of the machine packaged and provide tracking to me then I pay him via wire. “Wow, ok” I'm thinking.. “he must be legit if he is going to give me a refund.” Again, this guy was good. The reason why he was giving me a refund is he knew He would never see the money through papal because the machine would never arrive to me.

So he sends me a text stating UShip was not open in his area ( i should have just called them) and that he is going to use a local “trusted” shipping company:

He sends me photos of the machine palleted and honestly looked totally legit… BUT after looking closer all the images were super blurry, if he had a cell phone of any modern age, the photos would not have been at the low quality they were… Another red flag

I get this from him:
I have successfully completed shipping.
Local shipper website : http://www.1aamotorcycleson.com/en
Tracking #: ES768990111

I check and the site appeared legit and the site did provide tracking.

I after the fact researched and found this was a fake/proxy site based off a real one: https://www.1aamotorcycles.com/ and they Looked identical!! and if you try to visit the old one its gone…. I called the legit shipping company and to my amazement, the representative says they get calls like mine all day long!! and that she has seen sites that pop up and then disappear that “copied our site” her words. Then it hit me… I lose….anyway back to the story

So he convinced me to send him a wire, and provided information to his “accountant” who handles his transactions:
Bank name :Chase bank.
Account name: Gloria Hernandez
Account number :000000561829933
Routing number :071000013
Swift code CHASUS33
Bank address : Bank address: 3451 Kentucky Ave, Indianapolis, IN 46221
Account holder’s address: Account holder address: 5351 Eel River Ct Indianapolis IN 46221

I'm like ok it's on its way… I check the next day and it still says “shipment accepted” meaning it had not left, and “Danny” the fake sealed assured me it just can take a day or so. Well, I try to check it later that day… website is gone:
http://www.1aamotorcycleson.com/en <—-fake URL
https://www.1aamotorcycles.com/ <—-Real URL

I try to track on the real site… says it was delivered:

Contract number: ES768900
Ship from: MC LEAN, VA 22102
Ship to: OAKLAND, CA 94612
Actual Pickup Date: 10/31
Actual Delivery Date: 11/08
Shipment status: Shipment has been delivered
Delivery signed for by: MIKE

After talking more with a real representative at https://www.1aamotorcycles.com/ she informed me their tracking numbers don't start with ES at all...

I'm now very confused and I contact “Danny” the fake seller, and tell him I want a refund, as it appears this is just not right. He tells me that he is in Florida helping the family in the Irma hurricane (how low is that) and that he will give me a refund this week… this week turns into later this week as I continue to text him, later this week turns into Friday (today) I contact him this morning… nothing MIA, and then it really hit me… I totally got scammed.

Without going into anymore more detail I just want others to be aware of this, as this guy used Pinside as a method to scam me. Typically this type of scamming happens on Craigslist, and if this seller had come from CL I would have bailed on the deal immediately. But I trust people on Pinside.

It's not Pinsides fault at all, its mine. I just want you all to be very aware that this is happening and these scammers are getting better and better. I feel like a total moron, and I'm such a kind trusting person that this really affected me, super bummed but the only positive thing I can do is try to warn you all. This is real, and people are not all good, trust your instincts, as I should have from the beginning. I love this hobby and Im not going to let it taint it for me in any way. Hard lesson learned, and thank god it was not like a 10K+ machine -Brady

#2 6 years ago

Photos he sent me of the T2 machine, supposedly in his house.

QA2kvyDF (resized).jpegQA2kvyDF (resized).jpeg
W6sO9e4K (resized).jpegW6sO9e4K (resized).jpeg
orfL0ew8 (resized).jpegorfL0ew8 (resized).jpeg
UkME9pGC (resized).jpegUkME9pGC (resized).jpeg
X6KzHGYk (resized).jpegX6KzHGYk (resized).jpeg
IMG_2212.PNG (resized).pngIMG_2212.PNG (resized).png

#3 6 years ago

Photos of the Machine "being Shipped" by a fictitious shipping company that matched a real one:
http://www.1aamotorcycleson.com/en <—-fake URL
https://www.1aamotorcycles.com/ <—-Real URL

aaRiyEby (resized).jpegaaRiyEby (resized).jpeg

iNkUJRbE (resized).jpegiNkUJRbE (resized).jpeg

vHi2WG9Y (resized).jpegvHi2WG9Y (resized).jpeg

1cRpiig2 (resized).jpeg1cRpiig2 (resized).jpeg

Ss8OM48S (resized).jpegSsM48S (resized).jpeg

KMcbk0o8 (resized).jpegKMcbk0o8 (resized).jpeg

GOIpaLyS (resized).jpegGOIpaLyS (resized).jpeg

EAWUYeWK (resized).jpegEAWUYeWK (resized).jpeg

42StLWmA (resized).jpeg42StLWmA (resized).jpeg

#4 6 years ago

Fony Passport with matching name

unnamed (resized).jpgunnamed (resized).jpg

#5 6 years ago

Damn, sorry to hear that happened to you. You can never be too careful. There seemed to be many red flags along the way. Thanks for sharing though and just consider it like an expensive course you took. Now you have a scammer identification certification.

#6 6 years ago

Feel bad ..... Sad very sad .....

#7 6 years ago

Yikes, sorry to hear this. That passport photo is a terrible photoshop job though and would have stopped me dead in my tracks. The font for name doesn't even closely match and isn't aligned properly. And for someone named 'Danny Barnes'... it's an unusual signature!

Can see how it might be overlooked though if you're optimistic and trusting

14
#8 6 years ago

Lol @ "I'm a man of age, and you have nothing to worry about."

What an odd thing to say. Doesn't really explain why he told you he was 56 and his passport said he's 48, but we all get confused sometimes.

#9 6 years ago

Yup I lose, but some of us have to learn the hard, and im one of them

#10 6 years ago

That really sucks. Glad you posted to war now others. If this had happened to me I know I wouldn't post about it out of extreme embarrassment.

#11 6 years ago

The photo shop of the name is pretty bad. Did you try alerting the bank you sent the money to? They should shut that guy down at least at that bank.

13
#12 6 years ago

Sorry to hear.

There were several red flags you described throughout the entire ordeal.

For anyone who hasn't seen this before, this is required reading, especially if you aren't picking up a game in person:

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/how-to-not-get-ripped-off-in-pinball-vids-guide/

Did the guy message you from a pinside account, or did he reach you some other way?

Folks need to be careful when dealing with brand new accounts that have no posting history on the forums.

#13 6 years ago

Did you talk to Chase Bank? What did they say?

#14 6 years ago

Looks like the palatalized game images were stolen from here:

http://www.myhomegameroom.com/pinball/tech/pallet/index.htm

The passport probably came from a fake ID template site, and they photoshopped the text.

The photos of the game itself doesn't seem to pull up anything in a reverse image search.

#15 6 years ago

Worst photos ever are always a red flag...uff.

#16 6 years ago

TheLaw right! I know i had all these signs right in front of me, he was so convincing and I was buying it. ForceFlow he contacted me via the phone number listed on the wanted ad. And I will contact the bank

#17 6 years ago

That sucks dude hope you get something back.

#18 6 years ago

So when I first received the tracking information the email WAS not flagged as you see in the photo... it only became flagged roughly a day after the site disappeared

Screen Shot 2017-09-15 at 11.25.10 AM (resized).pngScreen Shot 2017-09-15 at 11.25.10 AM (resized).png

#19 6 years ago

This is the reason I'm afraid of buying or selling a machine that needs shipping. I'm really sorry this happened to you and I hope the scammer gets some type of kharmic retribution, like nut cancer.

#20 6 years ago
Quoted from Soulrider911:

And I will contact the bank

Try to do it sooner rather than later. As soon as the amount was transferred to the account he gave you, it would probably moved through other accounts and banks, making it harder to track. From what I understand, once that happens, law enforcement needs to get involved, and that takes some doing to get the necessary warrants and follow the trail.

Also:

http://www.dfi.wa.gov/consumer/alerts/wire-transfer-fraud

#21 6 years ago

Man, that sucks! Not sure what you can do about it, but thanks for warning the forum so hopefully the same thing doesn't happen to others.

#22 6 years ago

Also contact your local police department....at least make a report.

#23 6 years ago

That sucks man !!! Sorry to hear this.

#24 6 years ago

This situation really sucks but I would be on the phone with the bank and police before taking the time to post this situation on Pinside. Very sorry for you...I hope you can recover funds and the scammer gets prosecuted.

#25 6 years ago

That really sucks. Sometimes we think too much with iur heart when we need to think with our head and listen to the warning signs in front of us.

#26 6 years ago

stpcore yup its on the list of todos, but i have work and honestly, im not getting the money back. yes, I will report it, but it also took me a week to realizes I actually had been scammed... so the "timeliness" is long gone.

#27 6 years ago

Thanks for sharing your experience. If it helps one person heed the red flags next time it's worth the post.

#28 6 years ago

It really sux the world we live in today and how many bad ppl are out there trying to do bad things. Sorry to hear and thanks for sharing.

#29 6 years ago

Im sorry this happened to you. But didn't you read the HOW TO NOT GET SCAMMED post?

The ONLY way to safely buy/sell when it's not a local CASH sale is to use an escrow service! Escrow.com or safefunds.com.
I just sold a GB Premium and it went SUPER smooth. Buyer and I Facetimed once, and then handled the payment through the escrow service.

No worries this way! Very difficult to get scammed.

#30 6 years ago

http://user.xmission.com/~daina/classified/data/machines_for_sale_recent.html

Scroll down to September 2nd postings and see the infamous Danny Barnes

#31 6 years ago

that sucks

#32 6 years ago

damn, I wonder if he had any intention of shipping the game.

#33 6 years ago
Quoted from hocuslocus:

damn, I wonder if he had any intention of shipping the game.

Given that the Mr Pinball ad places him in Texas and the address for the Chase account holder is Indiana, I would say no.

#34 6 years ago

Nope moonduckie78 I had not, I should have. I guess I just did not educate myself enough, nor was I aware scamming is something of commonness with Pin sales.

#35 6 years ago

Thanks for sharing. I got scammed once for a much lower amount ($100) for a PF on mrpinball and paid through postal money order.

My rules are now:
1: No funky payment methods (postal money order - wire transfer, etc)
2: PayPal only for remote purchases (paid with CC so I have 2 layers of protection)

My 3rd unwritten rule is that I'm pretty sure I'll never buy multi thousand dollar items remotely - unless it's someone I know or know of.

I'm lucky I learned my lesson on a relatively low dollar amount.

Basically don't pay by a means that allows the "seller" to claim money without having to do anything.

#36 6 years ago
Quoted from pookycade:

http://user.xmission.com/~daina/classified/data/machines_for_sale_recent.html
Scroll down to September 2nd postings and see the infamous Danny Barnes

Do you think he would list it there to make it look like he had the game so if OP searched he would see it listed for sale on Mr Pinball?

#37 6 years ago

this sucks, but it is a learning lesson in the long term of life, you will bounce back from this and be stronger then ever.

dont let these scammers discourage you. my buddy did nearly the same thing in high school and lost more then you trying to buy his first motorcyle. long story but they used ebay and western union to do it. he never got a motorcycle and was bummed for a long time over it. the problem is its probably not one person and a whole team of experts that do this all day long like a job.

I almost fell for one too, awhile back and these guys were real pros even with a website and live customer service!!! all a scam.

its sad and unfortunate but again it could have been more and things have a way of coming around.

I have seen lonely women scammed for more then 100k by these broke crooks.

I would also like to add, I will never buy something without seeing it in person now.... UNLESS I can afford the risk. which most of the time is not worth it to even take a chance. if its something small and stupid then okay under a 100 bucks I would but you start climbing higher and the risk is not worth it.

#38 6 years ago

Again, I'm really sorry this happened to you, @soulrider911.

#39 6 years ago

Cant someone just trace where that bank account is? I mean someone has actually get the money from their bank right? go find out who it is , go to Indiana.. find them.. and put their ass in jail and give them 15 lashes. Thats what I would do.

#40 6 years ago

Isn't this where your money went? 5351 Eel River Ct Indianapolis IN 46221

go there, knock on their door and give them a lashing.

#41 6 years ago

Damn. Sorry man.

Real good of you for sharing this though. You'll save others from the same fate.

-1
#42 6 years ago

Here is the residents that live at this address past and present.

https://www.spokeo.com/IN/Indianapolis/5351-Eel-River-Ct

Give them a lashing!

#43 6 years ago

This person recently filed for bankruptcy :

MEECE, CINDY
5351 EEL RIVER COURT
INDIANAPOLIS, IN 46221

#44 6 years ago

thank you for sharing this story. It sucks you got scammed and it's not your fault.

but JEEZ were there a lot of red flags! even PayPal was like "look buddy .. this guy's a scammer." :/

sorry about your loss. better luck next time.

#45 6 years ago
Quoted from Oneangrymo:

Cant someone just trace where that bank account is?

The money has already been transferred out to another account and little chance of tracing it. That's why wire transfers are more dangerous than others. I can almost guarantee all the info he provided was fake including the address you keep referencing.

OP, it was brave of you to post this here, but sending money with all the red flags was pretty dumb. Everyone gets blinded when it is a machine that you really want. It could be ignoring condition issues, overpaying, or rushing to buy like you did.

#46 6 years ago
Quoted from Black_Knight:

The money has already been transferred out to another account and little chance of tracing it. That's why wire transfers are more dangerous than others. I can almost guarantee all the info he provided was fake including the address you keep referencing.
OP, it was brave of you to post this here, but sending money with all the red flags was pretty dumb. Everyone gets blinded when it is a machine that you really want. It could be ignoring condition issues, overpaying, or rushing to buy like you did.

Thats dumb that people can just open a bank account with fake info. Sucks! They should be punished! Can't let them get away with this.

10
#47 6 years ago

My biggest tell with these low life pieces of ___ is they way they talk. Usually they don't speak like normal people. For example - he said I'm a man of age? That right there would close out the deal. Really appreciate you informing others as this is crazy. Sorry!

#48 6 years ago

Nothing he can do that will reverse the money transaction? If not, hard to believe you are still able to scam people like this a get away with it. With that equifax breach we might see much more of this. Suck man, I would be pissed!!

#49 6 years ago
Quoted from MotorCityMatt:

Nothing he can do that will reverse the money transaction? If not, hard to believe you are still able to scam people like this a get away with it. With that equifax breach we might see much more of this. Suck man, I would be pissed!!

Equifax should be shut down. People have no clue how bad this is.

#50 6 years ago

What the hell does Equifax have to do with this? There probably wasn't even any identity theft here, it's not really needed to get accounts set up, you can make most of it up.

People have been running bank wire fraud ever since wires were created. They should never be used between people who don't know and trust each other.

Promoted items from the Pinside Marketplace
$ 14.95
$ 9.99
Eproms
Matt's Basement Arcade
Eproms
From: $ 399.95
Boards
PinSound
Boards
3,600
Machine - For Sale
Rancho Cucamonga, CA
$ 14.95
Playfield - Toys/Add-ons
ULEKstore
Toys/Add-ons
$ 36.00
Playfield - Other
Rocket City Pinball
Other
$ 21.95
$ 18.99
Tools
FlipMods
Tools
$ 15.00
Cabinet - Sound/Speakers
Gweem's Mods
Sound/Speakers
3,900 (OBO)
Machine - For Sale
Denver, CO
From: $ 159.95
Cabinet - Sound/Speakers
PinSound
Sound/Speakers
$ 49.00
Playfield - Toys/Add-ons
Lermods
Toys/Add-ons
$ 259.99
Cabinet - Toppers
Lighted Pinball Mods
Toppers
$ 95.00
Cabinet - Sound/Speakers
Pinball Mod Co.
Sound/Speakers
From: $ 399.95
Lighting - Led
Pin Stadium Pinball Mods
Led
From: $ 1.00
Boards
Slap Save Creations
Boards
$ 5.95
Playfield - Protection
The Pinball Scientist
Protection
4,500 (OBO)
Machine - For Sale
East Hanover, NJ
$ 49.99
Cabinet - Toppers
Lighted Pinball Mods
Toppers
From: $ 25.00
Playfield - Decals
Flashinstinct
Decals
$ 219.00
Gameroom - Decorations
Lit Frames
Decorations
$ 9.95
Eproms
Pinballrom
Eproms
$ 35.00
Cabinet - Other
Rocket City Pinball
Other
$ 79.99
Cabinet - Armor And Blades
PinGraffix Pinside Shop
Armor and blades
$ 649.95
Lighting - Led
Pin Stadium Pinball Mods
Led
$ 109.95
Electronics
PinSound
Electronics
$ 19.99
Eproms
Matt's Basement Arcade
Eproms
From: $ 1.25
Playfield - Other
Rocket City Pinball
Other
3,600 (OBO)
Machine - For Sale
Morgantown, WV
$ 27.50
Boards
Pinball Haus
Boards
Great pinball charity
Pinball Edu
There are 211 posts in this topic. You are on page 1 of 5.

Reply

Wanna join the discussion? Please sign in to reply to this topic.

Hey there! Welcome to Pinside!

Donate to Pinside

Great to see you're enjoying Pinside! Did you know Pinside is able to run without any 3rd-party banners or ads, thanks to the support from our visitors? Please consider a donation to Pinside and get anext to your username to show for it! Or better yet, subscribe to Pinside+!


This page was printed from https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/i-got-scammed-for-27k-beware?hl=mnpin66 and we tried optimising it for printing. Some page elements may have been deliberately hidden.

Scan the QR code on the left to jump to the URL this document was printed from.