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Inquiry Eric Akaba aka rareturtle

turtledan77

turtledan77

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Does anybody know if username rareturtle is legitimate? Wants me to ship him over $1000 worth of diamondback terrapins before he will pay for them. Says his name is Eric Akaba and he has 30 years of industry experience with tons of references. Just seems odd that he only has 2 posts on his profile. Anybody have any insight here? Thanks.
 
There is an Eric Akaba who has done extensive work with tortoises. He is from California as far as I can tell. You might want to verify his identity but he seems legit. Don't know how I feel about shipping first though...
 
This is from a quick google search. Hope this helps.
 

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Thank you Celtic. I guess the main question to answer here would be, "is rareturtle on this forum actually Eric Akaba?"
 
I don't know that I would ever ship first... Not how I do things but I understand why some people require it. I would just verify its him by asking about his role in the herp industry.

You don't have to let him know that's what you're doing. Just make small talk. See what he says.
 
Eric is a stand up guy. I've known him for just about 30 years. In all that time I've never heard a bad thing about him.
 
I don't think you should ever be expected to ship your animals before you receive payment.I would strongly suggest you not send anything until you receive your money. It's much easier for a customer to get money back in a bad situation than the seller to get the animals back after they've been shipped across the country.

When you receive a PayPal payment (assuming that's the method you're using) you'll also see the name and address on the account.
 
turtledan77 said:
Thank you Celtic. I guess the main question to answer here would be, "is rareturtle on this forum actually Eric Akaba?"
Click to expand...

The user name "rareturtle" posted a contact phone number in one ad. That phone number matches the phone number posted elsewhere for Eric Akaba.

The email address used here also matches the email address listed as Eric's on two different sites.

That is all I can tell you.
 
How a man does business, and what terms he has, are up to him. A reminder of how someone else does business is all well and good, but harping on not doing something because you don't don't approve is kind of over the top.

Eric is reliable enough for many people in this business to send him animals without payment up front, myself included. Until an opinion is asked for, giving yours more than once is more than necessary. No one here is a newb.
 
I'm not sure if that was directed at me but my statement wasn't to never send animals first. I was urging he verify the identity of the person with whom he was in negotiations was in fact that person. Sounds like Eric Akaba can be trusted based on my google results.

Dennis just confirmed his fauna info matches that of his online presence.

Good luck with the sale!
 
Wilomn said:
How a man does business, and what terms he has, are up to him. A reminder of how someone else does business is all well and good, but harping on not doing something because you don't don't approve is kind of over the top.

Eric is reliable enough for many people in this business to send him animals without payment up front, myself included. Until an opinion is asked for, giving yours more than once is more than necessary. No one here is a newb.
Click to expand...

I'm a newb! :yesnod:

I appreciate the insight and help everybody. As a newcomer, I'm still learning the ins and outs of this industry and I just don't want to make any missteps. Thanks again.
 
Hello I am the real Eric Akaba in California.
I was verifying that I do have references to assure you that I am an honorable buyer/seller and was hoping you could provide the same as I couldn't find anyone that has dealt with you to know if you are a safe and reputable seller.

E
 
I do know Eric Akaba and he is a good guy. I met him about 20 years ago at the Hollywood, CA chapter of the Southwestern Herpetologists Society. I have bought animals from him in the past and the animals were nice and healthy.

Hope this helps,
Eric Russell
 
The telephone number listed on the California Turtle and Tortoise Club newsletter was when I was a President some years ago. That is no longer my number.

Eric Akaba
 
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