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December 21, 2012
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Dang!
I thought I found a great buy on Armslist until my sixth sense told me something wasn't right with the deal. My first clue was that it seemed to good to be true (it was a scam). Next was the style of the sellers communication which is very similar to the Nigerian money scam e-mails.
Here's the Armslist auction listing:
Then after my spidey-sense kicked in I found this on Gunbroker:
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=353729634
Added to this weirdness is the fact that the seller wanted me to send a USPS money order to a name and address in Georgia, when his listing is for Nevada and the real gun is located in Texas.
I could easily have been out $450 if the seller had been smoother in his communication. Am I glad he wasn't!
March 27, 2013
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Well, the seller (Jeffrey Middlebrooks) was a bit smoother with me. I actually sent him that USPS money order you were talking about in the amount of $450. His request for an FFL and the use of a USPS money order is what got me. I mean you can't cheat a USPS money order. If for some reason I don't get my merchandise I can get a refund by filling out a stolen money order form. It's pretty damn secure, not to mention it's a felony to violate that money order.
Now for the good part. Your timely post allowed me to get to the post office and issue a Package Intercept before the envelope was delivered. The envelope was set to be delivered tomorrow so hopefully the intercept will go through. If I see the tracking number come up as delivered tomorrow I will be going back to the post office to cancel the money order. Canceling the money order is a $5 fee and the intercept was $11.
The postwoman at my local post office was very helpful. I showed up at 4:45 and by 5:00 she was on the phone with the post office in Georgia. Now it's 6:00 in Georgia, but for some reason someone was still there working and answered the phone. Amazing! The lady on the other end of the line stated that there have been several Intercepts regarding Jeffrey's address.
Jeffrey Middlebrooks
1230 Kirkland Rd.
Covington GA, 30016
The postwoman here asked if the reason I was trying to intercept the letter was that I had an issue with the other person. I responded that the gentleman is a scammer online. She said that she would report the incident to the US Postal Service Inspection Service as well as issue my intercept.
So we'll see tomorrow if the tracking number shows my letter headed back to Houston. After I see that it's coming back I will start other measures to deal with Jeffrey. For one I will be contacting the local Sherrif's department. I also have his phone number (801) 210-9763 so we'll see what I can do with that.
So, yes buyer beware. I was almost taken here, not the end of the world, but still damn pissed off about it. If the deal is too good to be true then it usually is.
Marksman, I owe you a beer buddy. Thanks
Nathan
Dans Club
March 2, 2008
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This is one of the times that we will leave personal contact info up on DWF (re: Jeffrey Middlebrooks)
Good call on the Heads Up for our DWF Brothers.
Steve
I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman "Were is the Self Help Section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
George Carlin
December 21, 2012
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Yep, Jeffrey Middlebrooks is the scammer. Or at least that's what the scammer sent me as far as contact information. I didn't get the phone number but from SMKYTXN's post it is a Utah area code. The Armslist ad has a Las Vegas origin, the contact address is in Georgia, and the contact telephone is a Utah number. Man, this guy gets around!
I contacted the Gunbroker seller (the real seller) and let him know about the scam. He asked for, and I provided, all the information I could send and he will be in contact with the ATF about this. I didn't think about contacting the local sherriff's office in GA. Good call SMKYTXN.
My suspicion is that Jeffrey Middlebrooks is an alias or an unsuspecting component of the scam. I'm guessing that although the scammer has poor grammar skills, he is a very cunning individual and is probably intercepting the mail that arrives at 1230 Kirkland Rd. while the homeowners are at work. Or maybe the house is for sale or abandoned and the culprit(s) don't even have to worry about anyone being there.
In a couple of weeks I'm going to be in Atlanta and will swing by this address to see what I can see. Google satellite doesn't show it to be a particularly bad neighborhood (no cars on blocks, in yards, etc.), but who knows how old that photo is. Anyway, I'll check it out when I'm down that way.
August 28, 2009
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I almost got taken by the EXACT same type of scam about a year ago. I came close to mailing a check on a "steal of a deal" for a SuperMag. There were too many signs it was a rip-off and I backed out. Ever since then, I learned that in these types of transactions talking to the seller is a MUST.
March 27, 2013
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So far so good on getting that money order back to Texas. The tracking number still has the letter sitting in the Covington post office and not delivered. I'll feel better about it when I see some progress back this way.
I did call the Covington Sherrif's office today as well as the Newton County Sherriffs office. The address is actually in the county so the Covington folks don't have any jurisdiction. Unfortunately I have been instructed that I will have to initiate the report here in Houston. The Houston investigator will have to contact Newton. I was really hoping to deal with some small town cops as they're much easier to deal with. I'll be giving HPD a call tomorrow to see who I need to talk too.
December 21, 2012
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Good to hear the money order didn't get delivered, and good luck with getting the investigation started. Let me know if any information I can provide would help. I'd very much like to see the law catch up with this scammer.
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