breeder got scammed by nigerian check cashing scam

katie 2222 · 11-11-2004, 11:20 AM

hello,
I am letting everyone know about what happened to me. if you are selling your puppies watch out for the people that scam and get away with it. if you are selling your puppies and someone says that they will be sending you a cashiers check make sure you call the bank and make sure it is not a fraud check. i recieved 2 of them and no one will do anything about it because they are from overseas. so warning watch out!!!!! Katie

Bruce H · 11-11-2004, 11:40 AM

Have you come up with a good way to not have the problem again?

My wife and I have been tossing around ideas since we had a bounced check; a cashiers check was one of those ideas. We have also considered cash only for final payment (we require 50% down when someone reserves a puppy) or final payment 10 days prior to picking up the puppy. We don't send in the AKC papers til checks have cleared, but I'm sure some people don't care about that.

Let us know if you have any other ideas.

Bruce

Doc E · 11-11-2004, 01:31 PM

These scams (and other similar versions) have been going around the net for a few years. There have been countless warnings about this rip-off all over the net. I know this may sound "harsh" to you, but if you fall for this kind of stuff, you deserve to get ripped off. Sorry for my bluntness.

Bruce H · 11-12-2004, 05:01 AM

Doc E:
The way I read the post was she got a phony cashiers check for the sale of a puppy from someone who happened to be Nigerian; some forgeries can look pretty darn good. I assumed she wasn't shipping the puppy overseas, but to somewhere in this country.

So, Katie, which one was it? Help us out here!

Bruce

Doc E · 11-12-2004, 07:31 AM

There actually wouldn't really have been the sale of a puppy. It's a "transfer of funds" scam, where you actually end up putting some of your own money into the deal (which ends up going to the scammer). You will find out that it was a scam before you ever send the pup.

As I mentioned in my first post, there are quite a few variations to this scam, but the most common one is where the "buyer" sends you a "cashiers check" for too much money -- so you are asked to wire the difference (like through Western Union) to the "buyer" before the transaction (shipment of puppy) is completed. By the time you find out that the "chasier's check" was bogus, they already have your "refund" in hand. Often, they will tell you that the "cashiers check" will come from someone who owes them money (that's why the check is for more than the price of the puppy), and that you should wire them (the buyer) the difference.

Yes, you are correct, these "cashier's checks" are very good forgeries -- that's why it usually takes a week or so before anyone finds out that they are fake -- and by then, the bad guy already has your money (that you sent him because of his "overpayment").

They also usually have their own "shipper" (person who will "ship" the pup) -- and you are usually asked to send the shipping fees to the "shipper" as well..........The "shipper" is also part of the scam.

Also, as I said above, variations of this have been around for quite a few years, but people are still falling for it.

katie 2222 · 11-12-2004, 07:50 AM

Everyone probably thinks i am stupid but if you had read their e-mails and talked with them over the phone they sounded and acted real i require information on the people i sell my puppies to. The first one was from france and i sell tri-springer spaniels and she told me alot of what i wanted to hear on what she was going to do with the puppy. also i fiqured for a tri-springer spaniel male in france you can pay over 5,000.00 dollars and i am selling mine for 550.00 dollars. Also my bank told me a cashiers check was like gold so i put in it my bank and sent the rest to the shipper. this was my first time i ever did this and definetly will be the last. also the cashiers check was from the usa and also water marked looked very real. and no one will go after these people so they will keep scamming.

katie 2222 · 11-12-2004, 07:56 AM

No i got the check from someone in the usa and the shipper was staying in Nigeria and the police told me that i got scammed by the nigerian scammers. I was going to ship the puppy to France so it was overseas and that is why they can not do anything. i had put an ad on pets.com. i guarantee it will be my last time i do that again.

katie 2222 · 11-12-2004, 08:04 AM

Hello Bruce,
I will never take a cashiers check again i would sooner take a check because if it ever happened again a personal check will catch them and i never sent the puppy or the papers i do the same and hold the papers until the check clears unless they pay by cash. i really advise you and your wife if you do take a cashiers check call to see if the bank has it in their record before you do anything with the check i did that on the second one and it turned out to be fraud too. i suggest that you take either cash or a personal check because if it happens to you then you may be able to do something.

katie 2222 · 11-12-2004, 08:23 AM

Mr. Doc E,
I understand that this may have been going on for awhile and some one like me who knew nothing on this scam. I am a mother of three and self employed who hardly ever gets any time i do not read the papers or heard nothing on this scam. so to you who seems to know alot about this you must have alot of time. My kids ages are 7, 4, and 3 which my oldest is in alot of things for the school and it seems i am constantly running around. I am just trying to warn other people of this scam and that is all. But you were right i still have the puppy and they had me wire some money to the shipper but also i told my banker what i was doing and she told me not to worry because cashiers checks are like gold and i would not have a problem so i guess that is why also i fell for it being a bank teller told me that and also because over there answers over the phone and e-mail. like i said i try to put my puppies in a great home if they can't answer a question or answer it with a wrong answer i will not sell the puppy. My other litters i sold previously over 2 years i never had a problem like this. so like i said i am trying to warn people of this because no one else is.

Doc E · 11-12-2004, 08:33 AM

Quote:

ORIGINAL: katie 2222

Mr. Doc E,
I understand that this may have been going on for awhile and some one like me who knew nothing on this scam.

I am just trying to warn other people of this scam and that is all.

i am trying to warn people of this because no one else is.

Very Cool. This is how people find out about it.

Sorry you got ripped off.