View Full Version : Possible craigs list scam ... help me out...


Hyper
10-19-2007, 10:53 AM
So a few days ago I emailed this person in regards to a bike he has for sale. An S-Works Tarmac 2007 for $2200. Ridiculously good bike at half the price. A little red flag popped out so I thought I should just investigate if its legit. Below is my email trail:


Hello there,
Do you have this bike still for sale?

Would it be possible for me to come by and check it out?

Thanks,

Z




Hello,
About my 2006 Specialized S-works TARMAC SL the price is $2200. First I have to let you know that the bike is located in Berlin,germany. I've moved here 2 months ago with my husband and I've tried to sell it here but I didn't found a buyer that is willing to pay this price for a bicycle. I will pay for the shipping and third party agency service so you will not have to pay additional taxes, just the price for it.The bike is in excellent condition, it's a 56cm size, The bike has never been raced or crashed. The geometry of the bike results in a very comfortable ride without sacrificing stiffness or speed. Please let me know if you need more pics.
I will appreciate a fast answer from your part

Arnold


Hello Arnold,

I am still interested in the bike. Could you send me some more detailed pictures? Take one from any angle, the more detailed the better.

Would you be interested in doing a transaction over paypal? Would you be interested in doing a transaction through a third party so that way both of us are protected from fraud/misleading/etc?

How many miles have been put on the bike? When was the bike originally bought? Is there a warranty on the bike?

Thanks,

Z



Z, the bike will be shipped from Berlin (Germany) and everything will be done through Schmitz Logistics. I agree to use their third party agency and cover all the shipping costs.That is the reason that I chose to sell it worldwide. I will ship via Schmitz Logistics and once it arrives to your closest airport it will be delivered to your house address by one of their agents .Shipping takes less than 2 days.You will not have to pay additional taxes, just the price for it. Also, after you will receive the bike, you have 10 days to inspect all details. The bike has never been raced or crashed. The geometry of the bike results in a very comfortable ride without sacrificing stiffness or speed.
web site is www.Schmitz-Logistic.us
Here is how you are protected by Schmitz Logistics third party agency, in case we have a deal:

If you will not receive the bike as i described to you, although this is not the case, Schmitz Logistics will refund you with 100% from the whole amount which you sent. Even in case you will not receive the bike, they will refund you the money.
After you receive and see that the bike is the one you want, you just notify Schmitz Logistics to forward me the payment details in order for me to pick up my money.

E-mail me asap if you agree with my terms and we will have a deal.
I will need your address where you want the bike to arrive.
PS. Please send me your full name and address (for delivery) and I will email to Schmitz Logistics.
More info about bike :
Final price : $2200 USD
Year: 2006
COLOR Carbon/Red
FRAME S-Works FACT 10r carbon frame, Az1 construction, compact race design
FORK S-Works FACT monocoque carbon fork; full carbon legs, crown and steerer
STEM AND HANDLEBAR S-Works Barmac, carbon bar/stem combo, superlight integrated carbon design
FRONT BRAKE Shimano Dura-Ace
REAR BRAKE Shimano Dura-Ace
BRAKE LEVERS Shimano Dura-Ace STI, 10 Speed
FRONT DERAILLEUR Shimano Dura-Ace, 10 Speed
REAR DERAILLEUR Shimano Dura-Ace, 10 Speed
CASSETTE Shimano Dura-Ace 11/23T, 10 speed
CHAIN Shimano Dura-Ace, 10-speed
CRANKSET S-Works FACT carbon crankset, integrated oversize design with integrated bottom bracket
CHAIN RINGS S-Works 39/53
WHEELS Mavic Kysrium ES wheelset
FRONT TIRE Specialized S-Works Mondo 127tpi, 700x 23c
REAR TIRE Specialized S-Works Mondo 127tpi, 700x 23c
SADDLE Body Geometry Toupé Team saddle 143mm Width
SEAT POST S-Works Pavé SL, FACT carbon w/ Zertz insert, 27.2mm

You have some pics with the bike as attachment.

Best Regards

Arnold

-----------------------------------------


Now what worries me is that:
- his english is not that good
- its being shipped from germany
- he wants to use some website that I never heard of
- does not want to do paypal or some other trade
- needs my address
- amazing deal
- pics of the bike look great




What are your thoughts about this. Any advice would be helpful.

Dave Hickey
10-19-2007, 10:58 AM
Run don't walk away. scam scam scam................... Did you happen to notice that "Arnold" has a husband?...

"I've moved here 2 months ago with my husband"

Dave Hickey
10-19-2007, 11:01 AM
Let me add that I've been in the international transportation business for 25 years and I've never heard of Schmitz Logistics....There are many large freight forwarders/logistics companies in Germany and Schmitz isn't one of them.. a quick google search seems to confirm this. most of the search links are trying to resolve the IP host. no real links....

Hyper
10-19-2007, 11:07 AM
Let me add that I've been in the international transportation business for 25 years and I've never heard of Schmitz Logistics....There are many large freight forwarders/logistics companies in Germany and Schmitz isn't one of them


I just assumed that Arnold was gay. No biggie.

That website looks totally bs. And yeah, thanks for confirming that this is a scam.


its kinda weird that scammers are posting bikes instead of emailing people who post their bikes .... weird ....

bikeboy389
10-19-2007, 11:10 AM
its kinda weird that scammers are posting bikes instead of emailing people who post their bikes .... weird ....

Not really. He/She/It wants cash, not bikes. So they sell you vapor in exchange for your cash. The other way around, they wind up with a bike, not cash.

I agree with Hickey that this one really smells. I'd steer well clear.

OneGear
10-19-2007, 11:14 AM
I don't think poor english is a sign of a scammer although all the other factors do point to scammage. I'd avoid this one, he's obviously trying to make a quick 2k off you.

Hyper
10-19-2007, 11:29 AM
I don't think poor english is a sign of a scammer although all the other factors do point to scammage. I'd avoid this one, he's obviously trying to make a quick 2k off you.

well usually these craigslist scammers have bad english ... im just generalizing ..

is there anything clever i should respond with?

Ape0r
10-19-2007, 11:41 AM
Hyper,

See if you can get him to send you pictures of himself doing silly things.

Ex: http://www.419eater.com/html/video.htm

Hyper
10-19-2007, 11:54 AM
Hyper,

See if you can get him to send you pictures of himself doing silly things.

Ex: http://www.419eater.com/html/video.htm

hahahaha
that would be hilarious

... ill try my best

Chain
10-19-2007, 12:19 PM
If you have time and a sense of humor, string the guy along. Tell him you have a friend in the Army stationed over there and will have him stop by with his buddies to check it out and if it's nice they will just pick it up. Army buddy can then ship it home with his stuff when he comes back next month. See what his response is.

Hyper
10-19-2007, 12:56 PM
If you have time and a sense of humor, string the guy along. Tell him you have a friend in the Army stationed over there and will have him stop by with his buddies to check it out and if it's nice they will just pick it up. Army buddy can then ship it home with his stuff when he comes back next month. See what his response is.


oooh thats good
after he replies to my email I will try to set something up like that

thanks on the idea ...

ill keep you guys posted

Chain
10-19-2007, 01:12 PM
oooh thats good
after he replies to my email I will try to set something up like that

thanks on the idea ...

ill keep you guys postedIt looks like the 3rd party shipper is in Berlin. Keep your buddies close to there Try and find out where he's at and then start the I have friends close by story. He will come back and say he is far away. Push to find out where and then say your buddies are going out of leave for a week and don't have a problem heading his direction. This could be fun.

My Own Private Idaho
10-19-2007, 01:25 PM
Judging from the English, I would say this originated in the Philippines. The main language there (Tagalog, AKA Filipino) is gender-neutral, plus some of the other mistakes are common for Filipinos.

Bocephus Jones II
10-19-2007, 01:30 PM
Let me add that I've been in the international transportation business for 25 years and I've never heard of Schmitz Logistics....There are many large freight forwarders/logistics companies in Germany and Schmitz isn't one of them.. a quick google search seems to confirm this. most of the search links are trying to resolve the IP host. no real links....
It's an elaborate scam though...the website was not put up in 10 seconds. Why would a German company have a ".us" DNS name though? Also interesting they only take payment through Western Union.

I registered when prompted that I was in a members only area under a made up name and email and it let me into the site. Not the way a real commerce site works. There would be a comfirmation email sent that I'd have to get before my account was valid. This thing is really fishy.

List of fake sites like this:

http://db.aa419.org/fakebankslist.php?cmd=reset

-------------------------------------------------

<table class="ewTable" summary="Overview for the fake scammer bank Schmitz-Logistics"><tbody><tr><td class="ewTableAltRow">19702 </td> </tr> <tr> <th class="ewTableHeader">Url </th> <td class="ewTableAltRow">http://www.schmitz-logistics.us (http://www.schmitz-logistics.us/) </td> </tr> <tr> <th class="ewTableHeader">Domain </th> <td class="ewTableAltRow">schmitz-logistics.us </td> </tr> <tr> <th class="ewTableHeader">IpAddress </th> <td class="ewTableAltRow">66.226.64.2 </td> </tr> <tr> <th class="ewTableHeader">Site Name </th> <td class="ewTableAltRow">Schmitz-Logistics </td> </tr> <tr> <th class="ewTableHeader">Web Host </th> <td class="ewTableAltRow">OrgName: Abacus America Inc.
OrgID: ABAC
Address: 10350 Barnes Canyon Rd.
City: San Diego
StateProv: CA
PostalCode: 92121
Country: US

NetRange: 66.226.64.0 - 66.226.95.255
CIDR: 66.226.64.0/19
NetName: ABAC2002A
NetHandle: NET-66-226-64-0-1
Parent: NET-66-0-0-0-0
NetType: Direct Allocation
NameServer: NS1.ABAC.COM
NameServer: NS2.ABAC.COM
Comment: ADDRESSES WITHIN THIS BLOCK ARE NON-PORTABLE
RegDate: 2002-01-31
Updated: 2003-03-27

RTechHandle: AD384-ORG-ARIN
RTechName: AplusNet DNS Administrator
RTechPhone: +1-858-410-6900
RTechEmail: dns@aplus.net

OrgAbuseHandle: APLUS-ARIN
OrgAbuseName: AplusNet Abuse
OrgAbusePhone: +1-858-410-6900
OrgAbuseEmail: abuse@aplus.net

OrgTechHandle: AD384-ORG-ARIN
OrgTechName: AplusNet DNS Administrator
OrgTechPhone: +1-858-410-6900
OrgTechEmail: dns@aplus.net </td> </tr> <tr> <th class="ewTableHeader">Email </th> <td class="ewTableAltRow">stefannsc@gmail.com </td> </tr> <tr> <th class="ewTableHeader">Status </th> <td class="ewTableAltRow">dead </td> </tr> <tr> <th class="ewTableHeader">Whois </th> <td class="ewTableAltRow">Domain Name: SCHMITZ-LOGISTICS.US
Domain ID: D14489396-US
Sponsoring Registrar: ABACUS AMERICA, INC. D/B/A NAMES4EVER.COM
Sponsoring Registrar IANA ID: 52
Domain Status: clientDeleteProhibited
Domain Status: clientTransferProhibited
Domain Status: clientUpdateProhibited
Registrant ID: HCKVF
Registrant Name: Michael Martino
Registrant Address1: 511 Newhaven Street
Registrant City: Oak Park
Registrant Postal Code: 91377
Registrant Country: United States
Registrant Country Code: US
Registrant Phone Number: +1.8185546203
Registrant Email: stefannsc@gmail.com
Registrant Application Purpose: P1
Registrant Nexus Category: C11

Name Server: NS2.ABAC.COM
Name Server: NS1.ABAC.COM
Created by Registrar: ABACUS AMERICA, INC. D/B/A NAMES4EVER.COM
Last Updated by Registrar: ABACUS AMERICA, INC. D/B/A NAMES4EVER.COM
Domain Registration Date: Tue Oct 09 22:20:57 GMT 2007
Domain Expiration Date: Wed Oct 08 23:59:59 GMT 2008
Domain Last Updated Date: Tue Oct 09 22:21:01 GMT 2007 </td> </tr> <tr> <th class="ewTableHeader">Date Added </th> <td class="ewTableAltRow">2007-10-18 08:36 </td> </tr> <tr> <th class="ewTableHeader">Updated </th> <td class="ewTableAltRow">2007-10-19 13:48 </td></tr></tbody></table>

Hyper
10-20-2007, 06:13 AM
haha thats hilarious! I should have done a WHOIS search on the website

oh man, i want to make this scammer do silly things ... brilliant!

Hyper
10-23-2007, 06:58 AM
its kidna sad, arnold never replied...

thought i found a bunch of similar scams on craigslist ... shame shame shame