I got scammed too.

[HDCharger]

I bought (or thought I bought) a 1992 Dodge Stealth R/T ($3000) from a seller on autotrader.com.  Car was listed in Jackson, TN but when I contacted the seller he said the car was currently in California (Red Flag) since he was training fixing to go to Iraq.  He said he could ship it at no extra charger to me (Red Flag).  He stated he has no paypal and could only accept Moneygram for both our protection.  Anyway once the $ was sent I never heard from him again.   Left me with $14.  I was going to use the car as my daily driver.  As some of you know I recently sold my 2 69's after being laid off work for a while.  On the bright side I have went back to work and I have 2 job offers.  One in Iraq, 3 months deployed and 3 months home, $700 a day while gone and $300 while stateside.  The other is from homeland Security, Immigration, Customs, Enforcement (ICE) working about 60 miles from home for 45,000-50,000 annual starting. 

Here is what I know about the scammers:

Email address:   morton_26@hotmail.com and brendarozz@juno.com
Name:  John Morton
10938 Wilshire Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90024, United States
Ad address:   Jackson, TN
Phone # in Ad 731-506-4096
Email From Seller: Hello. As I told you at this moment I am in California in a military base getting ready for Iraq. This mean that I do a special training program. I am not allowed to get out of the unit or give calls whenever I want. The shipping can't be a problem. I can do it at no cost for you. You will receive the car along with all the documents. As for the payment I can start a transaction through www.autotrader.com. All I need is your full name and address so i can contact them and after that they will contact you regarding this purchase. They act as a third party and will protect both of us in this transaction. You will have 5 days inspection period on it . If the car have any problems or you do not like it a full refund will be done no questions ask. I am waiting your e-mail. Thank you.

Attached a pic of the car

[69charger2002]

man this is unbelievable 

[HDCharger]

Trav, man I'm sorry about your fiasco.  I too overlooked several red flags but I had never been really burned and I trusted people.  Autotrader was no help at all.  What else can you do?  Somebody has got to stop these lowlifes.

[69charger2002]

what some people fail to realize is 1. it's easy to get caught up in the moment and let emotions of a good deal get the best of you.. me more than you as i was dumb enough to send cold hard cash. 2. these people are professionals. sure they may give you a couple "what the hell" moments, but nothing they say or do makes you feel super uneasy about the transaction. i mean i do not consider myself dumb, nor very easily duped. i have been around the block for my age(30). these people give you just enough info to keep you strung along and just enough info to make everything believable. remember, my guy kept in touch for 2 whole weeks, story after story, (basically the longest trip from south carolina to louisiana on record) but through it all, it was bad luck after bad luck, family member dying, and there i was being so concerned and honest with the guy. hell at one point early on this guy said he may have to sell his 68 R/T also, (he was trying to get MORE cash out of me, i didn't know this at the time.). what did i do?? i offered to give him the $9k for the car if he brought it to me, and then when he got the $9k to pay me back  i'd let him buy it back. to get him out of a "bind".. of course he ended up not having to sell it, for obvious reasons now.. but even then he had NO conscience about me being a good person. looking back it's easy to pinpoint the red flags now.. but like you i have always been too trusting i guess. don't lock car doors, send money first ask questions later. etc. not anymore. sadly i will become one of those non trusting asses who won't do anything without cold proof of something anymore. tis life i guess.  surely blows, i know that much. i know i will never get my money back, but i want to just catch them. principle...

[kab69440]

How do I go about applying for that 3 months in Iraq and 3 months at home job? Any special skills required?

[HDCharger]

Intelligence Analyst.  Top Secret Clearence.  Special Forces Background.  Prior Combat Experience.

[1969chargerrtse]

Everytime I read these scams it scares me if it could of happened to me with the car I bought sight unseen on ebay?  He was sending me the title and I never got it?  I did get the car though, but I got ripped off with what he listed and what I got.  That sucks big time.  Sorry for the lost of money.     They be scum. 

[dodgecharger-fan]

Sorry about that man. It plain sucks.

I know it's a bit too late, but I'd point out that the grammar in that e-mail is a screaming red flag. It really makes me think that the sender has English as a second language. Think Nigerian scammer - like those that target car sellers with the "I'll pay you extra via cashier's check so you can pay my shipper in cash...." scam.

[charger01]

Yeah, he cant call call you at anytime, but arranging shipping wont be a problem?  Lotsa red flags on this one too, but like 69charger2002 said, you get caught up in the excitement of the deal

[Nacho-RT74]

How do I go about applying for that 3 months in Iraq and 3 months at home job? Any special skills required?

Intelligence Analyst.  Top Secret Clearence.  Special Forces Background.  Prior Combat Experience.

being an internet scammer too ?

[kab69440]

Intelligence Analyst.  Top Secret Clearence.  Special Forces Background.  Prior Combat Experience.

Well, I guess I am out of the running for that one. I can't analyze much of anything intelligently. I have squat for clearance, and have to duck the top of doorways on occasion, it's certainly no secret. Lots of people tell me how "special" I am, how much force that carries, I am not certain?  I have never had to battle any Priors, nor am I sure what a Prior looks like even if I did need to fight one.

[hemi-hampton]

Another red flag is the 5 day inspection period. They say this to sound honest & make you feel you can trust them, In reality they know your 1,000 miles away & wont personally inspect but they know the offer will help sucker you in. When you tell them your brother lives in that town & will come inspect then suddenly they dissappear. Another red flag is they have a Sob story to make you feel sorry for them, Wife & kids just killed in freak car accident, flood washed there house away & they had no insurance & whole family living in a card board box & or trunk of car, ect, ect, ect, You get the point of these examples. I had a scammer string me along with So many different sob storys. All part of the scam. LEON.

[jaak]

David, sorry to hear that. I hope you can re-coup some of your loss with the info you got.

Good luck,
Jason

[Silver R/T]

Intelligence Analyst.  Top Secret Clearence.  Special Forces Background.  Prior Combat Experience.

Well, I guess I am out of the running for that one. I can't analyze much of anything intelligently. I have squat for clearance, and have to duck the top of doorways on occasion, it's certainly no secret. Lots of people tell me how "special" I am, how much force that carries, I am not certain?  I have never had to battle any Priors, nor am I sure what a Prior looks like even if I did need to fight one.

[Charger-Bodie]

What with the pic Silver??

[kab69440]

As much as I'd like to go off on a "What an ignoramus Silver R/T is..." tirade right now, that's pretty f'n funny!

[bull]

What with the pic Silver??

That's a pic of Silver that his mom took last Halloween while trick-or-treating just before he got an atomic wedgie from three 8-year-olds.