Scammer - BEN61
Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2019 9:07 pm
A warning to everyone:
There is a scammer on the loose in here, goes by the member name of BEN61. He uses the following gmail addresses/forum names:
1. sidneysbotha@gmail.com (cell number 073-266-8052) : says he is Sidney Botha and claims to be from a game park in the Free State
2. benvstraaten61@gmail.com (cell number 060 457 8202): says he is Benjamin van Straaten
3. Leonvr (Cell number 073 640 3926): says he is Francois Le Roux
4. He also has the audacity to use the gmail address aircooledvwsa@gmail.com!
I have reported 1 and 3 to GMAIL, but I have some sage advise for everyone now that I have been burned myself:
1. Ask for pics of the items taken in the open and new (not pics that could easily be downloaded from e-bay)
2. Buy local to you and ask to meet in a public place to view the item; if he isn't local, arrange for someone in the area to view for you
3. Before you make the payment ask him to confirm his address using a WhatsApp pin drop
4. Ask for legitimate banking details and - if he provides these - a copy of his ID
5. NEVER pay to a cell phone number via an e-Wallet
6. If you can't make an EFT then ask him for a PayPal account and provide your e-mail address so he can generate an invoice and payment via PayPal.
7. Lastly, research his legitimacy on the forum; if I had ONLY taken the time to check I would have discovered the posts from all of you and saved myself the loss of R900!
Sadly it has come to this: you can't trust ANYONE...and there is no guarantee anymore so if he can't wait for his payment via PayPal or provide convincing proof of life, then it's simply not worth buying from him!
Feel free to add to this post and ensure that we track all the scammers on here and Gumtree/OLX/BidorBuy, etc...at least we will have a common thread to revert to in need.
There is a scammer on the loose in here, goes by the member name of BEN61. He uses the following gmail addresses/forum names:
1. sidneysbotha@gmail.com (cell number 073-266-8052) : says he is Sidney Botha and claims to be from a game park in the Free State
2. benvstraaten61@gmail.com (cell number 060 457 8202): says he is Benjamin van Straaten
3. Leonvr (Cell number 073 640 3926): says he is Francois Le Roux
4. He also has the audacity to use the gmail address aircooledvwsa@gmail.com!
I have reported 1 and 3 to GMAIL, but I have some sage advise for everyone now that I have been burned myself:
1. Ask for pics of the items taken in the open and new (not pics that could easily be downloaded from e-bay)
2. Buy local to you and ask to meet in a public place to view the item; if he isn't local, arrange for someone in the area to view for you
3. Before you make the payment ask him to confirm his address using a WhatsApp pin drop
4. Ask for legitimate banking details and - if he provides these - a copy of his ID
5. NEVER pay to a cell phone number via an e-Wallet
6. If you can't make an EFT then ask him for a PayPal account and provide your e-mail address so he can generate an invoice and payment via PayPal.
7. Lastly, research his legitimacy on the forum; if I had ONLY taken the time to check I would have discovered the posts from all of you and saved myself the loss of R900!
Sadly it has come to this: you can't trust ANYONE...and there is no guarantee anymore so if he can't wait for his payment via PayPal or provide convincing proof of life, then it's simply not worth buying from him!
Feel free to add to this post and ensure that we track all the scammers on here and Gumtree/OLX/BidorBuy, etc...at least we will have a common thread to revert to in need.