Bad Guy Deon Collins/dnkreptiles (sic)/ D.C (sic)

[Scott A Wright]

This post details my screwed-up dealings with Deon Collins (Also goes by "Roosevelt Collins", "dnkreptiles", or "D.C" in Kingsnake's classifieds. I've left the typos that he put in his name and email...)

Deon posted a proven adult female striped amel corn for $75. It looked like a good deal so I sent him an email inquiring about her. He said she was still available so I sent him $129 via Paypal... $75 plus the $54 shipping he quoted me.

Before he shipped her, I saw another of his ads with a snake I also wanted. It was for an unproven adult female Jurassic milk listed at $95. I called him and asked if he could ship them together and what the total would be if he could.

At this point things go Sour. I received this email:

"scott this is dnkreptiles we talked on the phone i decided to keep the snake hope this does not alter ur plans please call me when u get and i will refund ur money i have not been on the computer in the last couple of days once again i am sorry for the inconvience"

I called him again and he said he had decided he was going to keep the corn and asked what I would like to do. I was shocked that someone would go back on a deal after he had already gotten the money. I was going to express my disappointment but I decided that he had my money and I had nothing, and since he was willing to go back on his word it would be a good idea to stay cool and try to come out of this with something.

I told him that I would be OK with the female Jurassic for the money I had already sent. He agreed, and shipped the snake.

Then things get strange: The box arrived on time, well packed and professional looking. I opened it and found... Two ball pythons. They were healthy looking and the top of their deli cup said "Poss het pied". Under them was the female Jurassic. He called to check on the shipment and said that he had included the balls because he felt bad for going back on the deal with the corn.

But things get worse: It turns out the Jurassic is very thin and weak, has diarrhea, and is a male instead of a female. I have dosed him with Panacur and Flagyl and will decide what to do with him if/when he regains his health. As for the balls, I didn't bother to ask him who produced them or what percent het they are. I figured that by this time there was no way I would get any reliable response. Besides, isn't every baby ball a possible het pied?

So here is the score: Deon has my money and the corn I wanted, and I have two probably worthless baby balls and an adult male Jurassic milk I didn't want. In quarantine.

At this point I am not interested in any other dealings with him. Not even a refund would fix this clusterf**k. Has anybody else dealt with him?

 

[Allee Toler]

Hmm... See... if I wasn't happy with the condition of the animal, be it he had my money or not, I would of called him to tell him I wasn't happy with the snake provided. Since you didn't pay anything for the BP's, then why not just rehome them after quarantine? It wasn't any money lost, so if they're worthless what does it matter? If you call him and tell him you're not satisfied with the Jurassic you received he might step up and give you your money back, and you can ship the two ball pythons back at his expense.

I think you jumped the gun on the bad guy thread. He may of sold a sickly animal to you, but I don't see anything stating you messaged him about the condition of the animal, or posted any replies from him in regards to you receiving a male instead of a female.

 

[Scott A Wright]

Response

All the other details were just to explain how bizarre this experience was.

The main reason I posted this under "Bad Guy" is the one thing that you didn't mention: That he sold me an animal (The corn), took the money, then went back on his word, saying he decided to keep it.

This means I can't trust him, correct? How can I trust him if he offers a refund? I could still be waiting for it. He's already lied to me and I don't want to get deeper into a deal with someone who has already done me wrong!

Bottom line: If someone can't sex their animals and breaks a deal after they've got the money, I'm gonna post as a bad guy. If you think otherwise, go ahead and buy from him.

 

[atheris978]

I have to say that I've dealt with Deon on many occasions and have always been pleased. He's always come across as a good guy and I think in this situation he truly felt bad about the issue that came about. He has also thrown in extra animals when I've purchased groups of animals. Sorry to hear about the situation.

 

[Allee Toler]

The main reason I posted this under "Bad Guy" is the one thing that you didn't mention: That he sold me an animal (The corn), took the money, then went back on his word, saying he decided to keep it.

Does he have a TOS? On my TOS I post I have the right to cancel a sale. I've canceled a sale before simply because the animal turned out better than my other holdback, so I swapped them. The buyer had no problem. Even I sent her extra geckos to make up for the going back on the sale. She gladly bought the other gecko after I gave her the option, and gladly accepted the pair of het RAPTOR leopard geckos I sent her as a bonus.

Just because someone messed up the sex doesn't warrant a bad guy, imo. Especially if you never contacted him to tell him what was up, or give him a chance to correct the problem. The only thing I have a problem with the transaction is the sick animal. That is the only thing I see he did that was on purpose. Hey, if you weren't happy with him cancelling the sale, then you should of asked for your money back. I bet you he would of given it back with no questions asked. So if him going back on a sale warrants a bad guy, then you're saying you bought from a bad guy on purpose, no?

Have you notified him of this thread? I'd like to see his response to this since you clearly aren't communicating with him over the mixup or the sick animal.

 

[Wolfy-hound]

Personally, while annoying, him cancelling the sale of the corn wouldn't make him a 'bad guy' as long as he promptly returned the money. You asked for the changed deal of the $95 milk instead of getting a refund, so he gave you a better deal which you asked for.

Once he sent a missexed snake that was sick, you should have immediately contacted him to let him know the snake was missexed(which can happen even to pro's) and sick(which if it's underweight and sick isn't excusable). Because you didn't contact him to let him know, he can't make it right. So you haven't given him the chance to refund your money, exchange the snake(s) or whatever solution works for both of you.

I don't happen to agree with sending extra animals WITHOUT warning the buyer. What if I don't have space for two ball pythons? Sure I can resell them(and be labeled a flipper), but that takes time, and in the meantime, I have to house(in quanentine, no less) and feed them. IF it has been arranged to send extra free animals, then that's a WONDERFUL thing for a seller to do, but only if it's not a 'surprise'. Just my opinion there.

Also, no, not all baby ball pythons are "poss het pied". Poss het pied means a parent carried the gene and there is a XX% chance that the baby carries the gene too.

 

[Scott A Wright]

Reply

I guess we disagree on one point: I don't think it's OK to sell an animal, take the money, then change your mind and go back on the deal. It seems obvious to me that this is an unacceptable business practice.

All other points that have been brought up require me to have some kind of faith in him doing the right thing. He had already proved I couldn't trust him by that point... I would be stupid to try to work out another deal with somebody who had already proved themselves untrustworthy. It seems way too likely that if we worked out another deal, he would just change his mind about that too!

And yes, to an unscrupulous person every unproven ball is poss het pied or any other recessive gene, because it is possible that they carry the gene. Only the ones that are labeled with a percentage have a parent that was pied or het, and even then you need to be able to trust the person you get them from.

 

[farfrumugen]

i have bought and received at least 20 snakes from deon and have NEVER had a bad dealing. all his animals have always been healthy and good eaters. not sure what happened in this situation exactly.
i will be calling deon to let him know about this thread so he can come and explain the situation himself.
also the pos het pieds were bred by him and are 66%. the sire and dam are proven and produced 5 pieds last year.

adam jeffery

 

[farfrumugen]

ok so i just got off the phone with deon and he said he will be on here later to defend himself.
he spoke with scott after he received the animals and scott said he was happy. he also informed scott that the animal was thin and that he would be sending 2 66% HET PIED ball pythons and scott said that would be awesome. if scott changed his mind( which your allowed to do...lol) and decided he was not happy. then he should have contacted deon to make good BEFORE POSTING ON HERE.
it really makes me mad when people come here to bash others with out even letting the other person know that their even is a situation.
take the time to talk to a seller and if a situation isnt handled correctly THEN come on here. you can do a lot of harm by jumping the gun.
adam jeffery
olean ny

 

[Scott A Wright]

Resolution w/ Deon

Deon just called me and we came to an agreement that I consider satisfactory.

He asked why I didn't call him directly with my problems and I explained that I didn't think I could trust any deals to make up for the problems since he broke our first deal. He said he understood that viewpoint and apologized for what he said was something he regretted doing.

He said that he produced all of the animals in question and that the Jurassic has always been skinny. There was no explanation for its runny stools, but I guess maybe those things happen. He also said that the balls were 66% hets that he produced from animals that have produced pieds.

I have to say that when he called he was a stand-up individual who carried on a level-headed conversation. All he wanted was to make things right, and that's all you can ask from a guy.

Thank you to the BOI, to Deon, and to all who responded to my original post.

 

[chazzz]

Glad this situation was resolved!
Deon sounds like a Good Guy to me!!

 

[farfrumugen]

im glad this had been resolved!!

but for everyone elses information: after speaking with deon many times today it came to light that he sold scott these animals back on august 3rd. seems funny that a post is just made now a month and a half later.
alot can happen to a snake in a month and a half that could cause it to have diarrhea and a runny stool....
adam jeffery

 

[Scott A Wright]

Almost anyway...

I'm not sure what Adam is getting at here... Deon said that he understood my position, not wanting to deal further after the first deal was reneged on. That's why I didn't call him about it. Like I've continued to say, why would I work another deal with someone who just broke our first one? If that's good enough for Deon since he understood, it should be good enough for Adam, who was not involved in this deal.

Also, this sentence in Adam's post makes no sense: "he also informed scott that the animal was thin and that he would be sending 2 66% HET PIED ball pythons and scott said that would be awesome."

I was not informed until today's conversation that Deon knew about the Jurassic being thin. And I was NEVER "Informed" that 2 66% het pieds were on the way. They were a total surprise to me. Even a note in the box would have helped it make more sense.

Anyway, If Adam disagrees with me, I guess that's his right.

But the fact that he claims I "Bashed" Deon on here is ridiculous. All I have done here is tell the facts and how they affected me, and from my talk with Deon I believe he would agree that I have told the truth. After all, he did apologize and offer to do whatever to make it right. So Adam is mad at me for posting facts here. Meanwhile he is quoting erroneous "facts" from a situation he was not even involved in. Is that responsible behavior on the BOI?

 

[Scott A Wright]

P.S.

I only recently found out about the BOI, that's why I only recently posted here. And once again, Adam is showing how irresponsible he is. Suggesting that maybe the Diarrhea started under my care? Hell no it did not. I wonder what I'm going to be accused of next by this guy?!

 

[farfrumugen]

please quote where i have made an accusation at all.....

all i said is the facts as they have been told to me. deon said he had spoke to you about sending the pos hets back before they were sent as well as the jurassic being thin.
you never posted the date at which the transaction took place, so i did.
and i made a comment not an accusation that alot can happen in a month and a halfs time. this comment was made because its the truth, you start commenting a month and a half later saying the snake is sick. what you dont say is if it was sick from day one or a month later. their details YOU left out.
the post was made so you could fill in the details because deon was not informed of any of this, so he did not have the info to share.
adam jeffery

p.s. im sticking up for deon because i now what the b.o.i. can do to a persons reputation when it is used irresponsibly. and i believe it was used in a wrong manner here. im glad you came on and posted that the situation had been resolved but if you would have contacted deon in the first place this post wouldnt exist.
adam jeffery

 

[hhmoore]

I have no problem with you sticking up for Deon; but I think you should have let Deon tell his story himself, rather than parroting for him.

 

[JudyC]

... im sticking up for deon because i now what the b.o.i. can do to a persons reputation when it is used irresponsibly.....

First...I agree that the OP jumped the gun with the post he created here. He had a problem with Deon and did not give Deon a single opportunity to correct that problem before making a bad-guy thread. That was a bad move, regardless of the reasons behind it.

Second....if you want the OP to fill in pertinent details, then ASK the questions. A half-assed accusation (and that IS what it was) asserting that the OP might have caused the loose stools and is lying about their origin is not "detective work."

Third...Deon needs to come and speak for himself. You saying, "Well, Deon told me..." doesn't mean diddly. That's third-party hearsay.

Fourth...I've watched the BOI for years and years, and I don't know of a single reputation that was damaged that didn't deserve it. Deon's willingness to work things out (despite an unfair bad-guy thread) and the OP's willingness to publicly retract his "bad guy" statement doesn't damage Deon's rep at all...if anything it enhances it. Yes...an innocent person might get dragged through some mud...but the truth comes out and their rep stays good or even gets stronger, depending on how they conduct themselves. You "defending" Deon isn't helping him.

 

[farfrumugen]

I have no problem with you sticking up for Deon; but I think you should have let Deon tell his story himself, rather than parroting for him.

i told deon hes has to come on here and defend himself. i last spoke to him at around 7pm eastern and he had just recently got done speaking with mr. wright
he said he didnt know what he should write now that they had spoken and all was worked out between them.
adam jeffery

 

[JudyC]

i told deon hes has to come on here and defend himself. i last spoke to him at around 7pm eastern and he had just recently got done speaking with mr. wright
he said he didnt know what he should write now that they had spoken and all was worked out between them.
adam jeffery

Well, if DEON doesn't feel there is anything left to say, then maybe you should....

 

[farfrumugen]

Second....if you want the OP to fill in pertinent details, then ASK the questions. A half-assed accusation (and that IS what it was) asserting that the OP might have caused the loose stools and is lying about their origin is not "detective work."

i havnt lied at all , was it a half assed accusation. wasnt meant to be.
i was just stating that the OP LEFT OUT DETAILS. and that the runny stools COULD have started after the sale had completed. or it could have been before..but we as readers dont know because the dtails were left out.

Fourth...I've watched the BOI for years and years, and I don't know of a single reputation that was damaged that didn't deserve it.

who judges if it was deserved or not, we do as outside observers reading these posts. any negative post on the boi can cause lost sales and hash marks on a persons ability to do business. i should have worded my post differently. i didnt mean that anyone has lost their ability to sell at all and had to close up shop due to a bad post. what i meant was even though this thred was probably started with good intention it may still cost deon sales in the future.
adam jeffery

and at this point yes i do know i am not helping the situation. but ALL details have always been asked for in every post on the boi. this one is no differant. as for me parroting for deon....well i will do what it takes to help a friend out.
and i would only post if i THOUGHT it would help. imho if i hadnt seen this post, it wouldnt have gotten resolved TODAY..
adam jeffery