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UK Buyers? INFO

S

South Dixie Dragons

South Dixie
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I currently have several ads running here on Fauna and also on another site. In the last 2 weeks I have been contacted by 3 possible buyers in the UK wanting to purchase animals.
My first question is: Why does someone in the UK want to buy reptiles from someone in the US? Do they not have good sources for reptiles in the UK?
Second question:
It seems a little strange and suspicious to me that all of these buyers wanted to pay by money order and also wanted to send the money order for way over the amount of the animal to cover shipping cost with their shipper. I was instructed to cash their money order and then use the extra funds to pay for their private shipper. Has anyone else been approached like this by potential buyers?
I hate to sound like a paranoid person :>poke2<: but this seems like it has the potential to be a scam of some sorts. How I do not know exactly, but I find it hard to believe that so many people over seas are willing to take such risks and pay such an inflated price on using private shipping companies. Perhaps for a large shippment of reptiles, but not for 1 or 2.
I also am not comfortable with having a gecko or dragons in a box for 3 or 4 days with no climate control or care. These folks seem fine with taking the risk but I am not! :hot: I have a hard time sticking my babies in a box and hope they survive the trip overseas. :bawling:

Please let me know if anyone has had similar experiences.
Thank guys!
Michele Misurelli
 
This is a Nigerian scam. Delete those replies and save yourself a headache.
 
Yeah..it sounded like a scam to me also but I had to ask to make sure that I am not being paranoid. :hehe:
How are they scamming people?? I mean how are they pulling this off? what do they do exactly? Give me the specifics PLEASE! :)
 
they send you the money order/cashiers check for a lot of money and then you send them the extra and two weeks later your bank holds you responsible for the money because the check was a fraud. Then you are out the whole amount..whatever you sold your reptiles for and whatever you sent back to them...check out the brian dorber(uk) post that was me being scammed. i posted all the emails.
-brian dorber
 
I get offers like that all the time... and they go straight to the trash. NEVER accept a money order for more than the price of the sale. Those guys are all scammers. (Just wait until you get the one from the Nigerian Colonel wanting to split millions of dollars with you... that one is a hoot!)
 
Well I just got a hell of an education! Brian I am so sorry that these people ripped you off.:angry: I have been researching thru the posts here and reading about what has been going on. I am glad that I asked about this. I wasn't sure but my gut said something about this does not seem right.
I did just do a search using http://www.geobytes.com/IpLocator and the IP address came back Lagos Nigeria..:bandhead0
Thanks to everyone!
Now...what can we do about this? :AR15firin
 
Are you allowed to use profanity when you reply to these pigs? I'm tired of receiving their trash, :toiletcla these people have the mentality of a retarded clam if they think I will fall for obvious stupid scams, These people should get a job. :raspberry
 
Sad thing is, that obviously people still DO fall for their scams, or they wouldn't still be doing it.

My mother was selling a boat about 6 months ago, and she would have fallen victim to them if I hadn't yelled at her about it until she listened. They got as far as receiving the "cashiers check" from the scammer.....they ended up just taking it to the bank to have the bank check it out. (Her hubby STILL didn't want to believe me, OY) They didn't even give it a second look at the bank, as soon as she explained the circumstances, they told her not to even bother trying to cash it. So, at least the banks are getting wiser to it, if they know the facts.
 
I think the biggest problem is that not enough people know about these scams going on. I mean I had NO idea until my gut told me something sounded funny with this transaction so I posted a tread asking if I was just being paranoid (read first post)
Perhaps an area(s) here on Fauna would help folks, "SELLERS BEWARE" or "SCAMS" or in Brian's case "BUYER BEWARE" just a section where the good folks here at Fauna can get educated like I did. I can say that anyone is at fault being stupid falling for one of these scams and it is a shame that our fellow herpers are getting taken by these scumbags over seas.
I wish there was really something that could be done about this...or should I say to these low lifes
 
I don't think any of these dirt bags understand English enough for the profanity to be effective (unfortunatly)
Have you see the grammar used in some of these emails? a huge red flag! I mean someone from the UK who doesn't know the queen's English??
Anyone know how to curse in Nigerian??
 
No I don't know how to curse a Nigerian, But I know the first thing to throw to a drowning one, "THE REST OF HIS FAMILY" :rofl: :hehe: :rofl: :raspberry


Hey maybe that's the answer ridicule them out of business! :slamit:
 
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