Pelicans in San Francisco?

[Tom '74 911]

Hi -

I recently made a Porsche related eBay purchase and think I may be getting the runaround by the seller. A bit more info here:

I might be getting scammed on an eBay purchase in San Fran.

Might there be someone in San Fran. that I could run the name of the seller by or that may even be willing to meet w/the seller for me to just verify that the guy and my purchase is legit? I have tried to arrange a meeting between my cousin who lives there and the seller, but something always seems to come up. I'm being intentionally vague and not naming names at this point, as I'm trying to keep the faith that it will work out.

It will be 2 weeks tomorrow since the transaction though and I'm getting nervous. . .

Thanks,
Tom

[Mahler9th]

I see that Car 911 says he can help. He is a most excellent fellow. If I can be of assistance, I offer that as well.

Is this seller in the city of San Francisco or just somewhere in this area?

[tmarx]

I can help, too, if necessary.

I'm in Marin (North of SF) and work in SF, Mahler9th is in the East Bay on the South side, and Car 911 is in the South Bay, so between us we should be able to help.

Nate

[Tom '74 911]

I appreciate the offers. My plan is to give the seller through tomorrow to deliver the item to Paso. After that, the only way I will NOT start the resolution process is if he is willing to be "verified" by someone else in San Fran. for me. Once again, thanks for the offers - I may hit you guys up to see if one of you might be willing to meet this guy for me.

Thanks again,
Tom

[PCA7GGR]

I'm in the East Bay and wiling to help if needed.

[Porsche Head]

I can help if the seller is in the south bay (i.e. San Jose).

[Tom '74 911]

Well, it's official. I have been scammed. I did some more digging and found out that the buyer from the original auction didn't back out after all. The seller has his money too.

So the seller sold the same engine to both of us under two different official eBay auctions. I emailed and spoke to the other buyer on the phone this morning - I wish we could have met under different circumstances as he sounded like a great guy!

Both of us have filed claims against the seller. We'll see what, if anything, happens.

Thank you to all that have offered help. If I find out where this bozo lives exactly . . . well, I will cross that bridge when I get to it.

Tom

[MichiganMat]

There is at least 1, if not 2, well known Porsche-related crooks running cars and parts around the Bay Area. They are individuals, not established companies, and Im not surprised to see them still up to no good.

Best of luck in the resolution process, I hope the seller gets all that they deserve.

[Mahler9th]

That sucks, I hope you and the other guy can somehow recover.

I have only used e-bay for a few things I have bought... generally I am pretty afraid of it. this despite the fact that one of my college classmates runs e-bay. (ceo).

Best of luck.

[juanbenae]

tom, i have put out feelers here at our local BAP board & a shop i know of & nobody has heard of him. maybe time to post his name here?

thanks for the kind words mike.

t

[Tom '74 911]

Originally Posted by car 311

tom, i have put out feelers here at our local BAP board & a shop i know of & nobody has heard of him. maybe time to post his name here?

thanks for the kind words mike.

t

I thought about posting his name, but I'm not sure what good could come of it. I'd be surprised if it's not an alias etc... Also, with pending cases against him, I'm not sure barraging him with angry emails and messages is a great way to go.

Also, thanks for the help car 311, I really appreciate it.

[rnln]

most likely he took all the money out of his paypal account, so Paypal won't be able to help you. Look like your only bet is your credit card company. Give them a call. If you pay by your bank account, look like you already lost your money.
I recently had similar situation.
Good luck.

[JeremyD]

I'd call the police -

[Joeaksa]

Tom,

Do you have any direct emails from him? If yes then they should have an IP address. You should be able to track him down in this manner. A cell phone, no matter what the area code is, can only be tracked by law enforcement, but an IP address is pretty easy...

Joe A

[Tom '74 911]

Joe -
I do have a number of emails from him. How do I find the IP address from them?
Tom

[Joeaksa]

You have my email, pls send me a couple of his emails. Need the "raw" form with all the header intact.

Joe

[chstephens5219]

Joe

I think he is responding via a mobile phone which may make tracking more difficult. I'll look at these closely tonight and let you know. By the way, Tom and I have become pretty good friends over this situation!

Craig (i.e. the other guy who bought this engine.....)

[Joeaksa]

Craig,

Thanks and glad to help.

People like this are not needed in our community.

Joe

[chstephens5219]

Thanks Joe and I could not agree more. Real car guys would never pull this sh*% !!

Craig

[Augustus]

I'm in SF

If you have his address in SF, PM it to me..