I was stupid enough to fall for this guy's scam, but hopefully this posting will prevent others from being ripped off!
Basically, we agreed to trade (2) 2006 Mojave Ball Python females (my snakes) for (6) 2006 "100% het Piebald" Ball Python females (his snakes). We agreed to ship at the same time, and he received the Mojaves just fine the very next day, but I didn't receive anything.
(I was pretty worried at this point, as trade deals are always risky in general)
I tried contacting him many times to let him know that his snakes never arrived but I couldn't get a hold of him. I then tracked down the contact person who received the snakes at their place of business (City of Franklin - Virginia) and it turned out to be his "mother" (Susan Lassiter). She gave me his "girlfriend's" (Heather) phone number and after talking to her she said that she accidentally sent me an empty box; how the heck does that happen!?
(Now I'm extremely worried that I got scammed)
She apologized and said that she made a mistake and that she would immediately ship the snakes and get me a tracking number right away. I received the tracking number within an hour and received 6 female Ball Pythons the next day.
(I was relieved, for a little bit anyway)
Now, here comes the problem. He said that he would provide photo IDs and a guarantee of their genetics (which any reputable breeder does/should do), but they were not in the box. After many WEEKS go by he finally calls me (just to play games - which is why I KNOW it is a scam) and I requested that he send me the paperwork. He stated that I have his "word" as a guarantee, and that a piece of paper is worthless. And he said it in a very condescending way (as if, yeah right). He also added that I wouldn't find out until at least 2 years anyway.
He then starting making stuff up about him and I being in business together, calling our business "Black Jack Herps". I asked him what the heck Black Jack Herps was and he said that he just made it up.
(I think he may actually be demented at this point - he even called me "Josh" a couple of times [that's suppose to be his own name!])
I told him that he and I have nothing to do with each other and I just wanted the paperwork on the snakes he sent me, or my 2 Mojaves back. He said to send him $25 via Paypal and he'll send me a paper guarantee.
(Since when does it cost $25 to mail a piece of paper?)
He kept refusing to provide a guarantee on them, so I said that our deal is off and I want to reverse the transaction, since he didn't keep his part of the deal (to provide some kind of paperwork/guarantee for the 100% het Pieds) - and for being such a jerk about it. He then refused to send back my Mojaves, giving me a very sarcastic reason as, they're too beautiful and he's too attached to them and will cry for days (laughing about it).
(he made MANY smart aleck remarks like this throughout our entire conversations)
And just out of nowhere he even had the audacity to state that Cryptosporidium is a killer in snake collections! I'm not sure if he's trying to scare me about getting the Mojaves back with Crypto, or that the snakes he sent me has Crypto!(?) Either way, I'm not deterred and will continue to seek justice on this matter. I just hope nobody else has to deal with him; you'll quickly regret it!
The good news: He messed up by using an accomplice who works in a government building, to where he had me ship the snakes to. I have ALL the information I need on this person (Susan Lassiter - who signed for the snakes) and will be prosecuting for internet fraud. I can provide further information regarding this scam (shipping address [Franklin, VA], phone numbers [area code 757], etc.), if desired.
This guy is a real piece of work; cocky/arrogant attitude. He think's he too smart to get caught, but he'll soon realize he scammed the wrong person.
P.S. It's very difficult to portray his character via internet posting, but believe me, if you'd like to talk to him yourself I'll give you his number. You'll quickly realize that he's a scam artist, and I'm not his first/only victim.
TIP: Don't trust anyone who isn't well known! No matter how nice/honest they come across. However, there's a lot of good guys out there who aren't well known, but with them, get MANY referrences and make sure you verify them all!
Best regards,
Robert Coral
www.ReptiCulture.com
(feel free to contact me for any further information - I'll be updating this posting as the prosecution progresses)