Bank Transfer Scam - Razer Laptop

LRogerrr on 04/01/2020 - 00:45
Last edited 04/01/2020 - 09:50 by 1 other user

I recently got scammed $2050. In hindsight, it was extremely foolish and naive of me and Im just looking to see if anyone has a similar experience with this particular person or experienced a similar scam in the past.

Scam:
Purchase a razer laptop off facebook marketplace. Transfer 2 payments of $1000 and one payment $50 to the scammer. After a few days, scammers left facebook chat and block me on instgram and facebook. Have reported case to NSW police, scamwatch and commbank. I was supposed to pick it up but realised the address is in wodonga and not Sydney where I live.
We then agreed to ship it over. Im unsure if he actually lives there.

General Discussion

Comments

  • bobbified on 04/01/2020 - 00:48
    +14

    Pay cash with one hand and take the item with the other. There's no other way these transactions should be done.

  • Mechz on 04/01/2020 - 00:49
    +3

    Yeah, always pay in cash in person for high value items. At least if you get mugged you have a name and address to report.

    • resubaehtgnolhcs on 04/01/2020 - 02:02

      don't have a name and address if you meet in a public place - but might have CCTV footage ;)

      • Mechz on 04/01/2020 - 06:59
        +1

        Unlikely someone will mug you at Maccas and you can sit to inspect the product too.

      • imcold on 04/01/2020 - 12:12

        Best public place is in the bank, if they mug you there they might as well get more from the bank teller for little more effort.

        Plus I would have asked for video evidence they had the actual item. Like Snapchat opening a news website.

  • aNoPHeLeS on 04/01/2020 - 06:31
    +1

    Its happened before and it'll happen again. Expensive life lesson learnt. Money is gone - probably fake/stolen fb account to begin with. Sad that people take advantage of our trusting instincts and gullibility but that's the world we live in…

    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/469955

    • Rogerrr on 04/01/2020 - 11:21

      Thank you for this. I am pretty sure this is the same person.

      • Flossy08 on 02/03/2020 - 13:12

        Hi Rogerr, I think I've been scammed by the same person. I have reported to my bank and the Cybercrime website, do you have any further details on this person I could add to my 'Barry the Scumbag' file?

  • jackinyourbox on 04/01/2020 - 07:41
    +2

    Can the bank reverse the transfer ?

    • Rogerrr on 04/01/2020 - 11:21

      Unfortunately they can only do a trace and recover with no guarantee.

      • Gorian4 on 03/02/2020 - 21:47

        Should be fairly easy to trace, is the BSB number under the same branch that you use?

  • pantsparty on 04/01/2020 - 09:04
    +8

    Lol. The foolish things that people fall for amazes me. Why on earth would you transfer money to some random person and just trust them?

    • lunchbox99 on 04/01/2020 - 12:29
      +2

      Amen brother. Also, pants party!

  • [Deactivated] on 04/01/2020 - 09:32

    Anyone know how the scammers get around the ID requirements setting up a bank account?

    • thatonethere on 04/01/2020 - 10:58

      The ID check is pretty light weight I imagine.

      Or the bank account is a load and go visa etc

      Or a mule account

      • Rogerrr on 04/01/2020 - 11:23

        I am hoping police/bank can identify him through his account details, which will then allow me to press charges.

        • p1 ama on 04/01/2020 - 12:57
          +3

          I am hoping police/bank can identify him through his account details, which will then allow me to press charges.

          It's unlikely the police or bank would actually do anything. When you decide to bank transfer someone, plenty of warnings come up saying that it's final. From their perspective, you may well have received the laptop and are now trying to reverse the payment. The payment might well have been for something else rather than a laptop…etc.

          I'd definitely try to contact them and see what happens, but I personally wouldn't hold my breath.

    • vikvance on 04/01/2020 - 11:22

      I wouldn't be surprised if the bank account was in the person's real name.

      The "seller" might have just got greedy when they received the $2k. (This is a very large amount for someone living on benefits in Wodonga. Lol.)

      So, they just decided to keep the cash and the laptop & just blocked OP in chat.

  • Melb69 on 04/01/2020 - 09:54

    FB and Gt are rife with these scams. On the bright side it could have been $4k not $2k. Maybe try the bank to see if they can help get money back. I'd say probably not.

  • Ughhh on 04/01/2020 - 10:09
    +3

    anyone has a similar experience with this particular person or experienced a similar scam in the past.

    Maybe not person, but yes to similar scams for 100s of people since these markets went live. 100s of the exact same scam warning made on every forum.

    You're not the first and won't be the last.

  • whooah1979 on 04/01/2020 - 18:31
    -5

    This is why buyers should always use PayPal.

    • DASHCAM NOW DUDE on 04/01/2020 - 20:51

      If you're making a purchase on Scamtree or Fraudbook, just go cash and in person.

    • deme on 05/01/2020 - 11:21
      +2

      This is terrible advice. Do not use PayPal for gumtree they will not cover you.

  • DASHCAM NOW DUDE on 07/01/2020 - 21:26

    If you're making a purchase on Scamtree or Fraudbook, just go cash and in person.

  • Rogerrr on 18/01/2020 - 07:52
    Merged from Laptop Scammer - Facebook Marketplace

    Facebook event to message the scammer!
    https://www.facebook.com/events/168300701092806/

    Please send help send him a friendly message and refund the $2050 he stole

    • Melb69 on 18/01/2020 - 08:12

      How do you know its the same seller? No doubt the FB page is made up. You need to do face to face transactions, so at least if it all goes to crap you can at least take pictures of the culprit or if done in a public place with surveillance cams you have footage. As long as people keep getting sucked in to thinking they can get a cheap computer without potential loss of money from a scam seller its going to keep happening. Its been going on for ages. That's how they work.

    • Ocker on 18/01/2020 - 08:12

      A fool and his money are soon parted

      • Melb69 on 18/01/2020 - 08:21

        That's how the scammers operate. The good thing is that once it happens to you you never let it happen again. Just can be a costly learning curve.

    • jimbobaus on 18/01/2020 - 08:40

      I suspect this Facebook page will not last long
      It falls under Harassment Policy on FB and they will remove it one would think

  • Crowing on 07/11/2021 - 18:47

    Sorry to hear. I just got scammed by the same person yesterday. Selling Razer laptop with location in Sydney but apparently based in Wodonga. I stupidly paid a $100 deposit and was going to pay reminder tomorrow before he would send it. I should’ve realised. Kept asking him for video of the laptop and kept coming up with excuses of not being with it but sent me photos as well as invoice. I asked for serial number this morning and the fb account is no longer available. Lesson learnt. I have called up CBA to see if they could assist recover the amount. Lesson learnt!

    Has anyone had any luck with retrieving the money back from CBA?

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