So I preface this story with – part of me hopes it really was a scam, and all that happened was I was saved a massive headache.  However, most of me believes this is true, which then becomes one of the biggest “one that got away” stories in a long time.  So, I see a Craigslist post this weekend – two big LEGO sets - $800. 

I check it out and BAM!  10179 and 10030 being sold as together for $800.  Immediately I think this must be a scam.  NIB together for $800?  No way. How about $4000+.  So, not one to miss out on a chance at greatness in a box or some good detective work I send a reply that I’m interested, pay cash, etc… to the Craigslist email account.  I get an email back in about 30 minutes that says you can just call or text this number – I’m first.  Okay so I call (a real number BTW not like an 800 number or something) goes to voicemail (normal actual person message voicemail) so I leave a text as well. 

 

 

 

The weekend goes by and nothing.  Oh well, must have been a scam.  So today I get a text this morning.  “Sorry for the delay, we have been moving all weekend.”  No worries – are you still interested in selling the sets?  “Yes, but this issue is we moved before I could sell them this weekend.”  No problem, I’ll drive to you.  “That will be an issue...We’re in KY.”  Oh, this is going to be a problem since I’m in Houston.

 

 

So, part of me still thinks scam, but I’ve been messaging back and forth and gone this far, so I offer to buy it through Paypal, so at least I know if there is an issue and it is a scam I can get my money back.  So I text them that I’ll buy it that way and pay fees and shipping too, since if I can get my hands on these two sets for $800 – I’ll happily throw in $75 more bucks for the trouble.  They come back with they have posted it for sale on boxes online and they send me the link.

 

 

Crap!  Real link - real sale, and an actual offer to buy the pair for $800!  Sweet!  I go to buy through the site – you can only buy through the mobile app.  No worries I think I’ll download the app.  Sorry – this app is only through Apple – we’re working on the Android app.  Damn you Apple!  Try as I might, I can't get it to work.  As the sense of urgency begins to take over I go to my trusted friend at work – hey can you download this app so I can purchase this item?  Sure, no problem.  Oh, I have an old iphone, it takes a while to download stuff.  We literally spend the next 15 minutes downloading the app and updating the Apple info, and an eternity later when it finally finishes – the boxes online sale refreshes and is now marked SOLD.  NOOOOO!  I close it and open it back up, "we're sorry - this page no longer exists."

 

 

I just keep telling myself, it had to be a scam – it had to be.  But sadly, I honestly think it was real – and someone vigilant iphone user just got the deal of their life.  BTW – if that someone is a Brickpicker, would let me know if it was real?  Wait, maybe better not so I don’t think about the thousands of dollars I just lost out on.  My white whale – that is all.

 

 

Somebody saved you some trouble. 

I had a similar thing happen on craigslist.  A vintage sansui stereo for $40 which was only posted for 18 minutes.  I thought I was lucky, but apparently it was already sold. Apparently a guy in his neighborhood had picked it up.  I would have made over $1000.

 That however was only one of my many heartbreak stories on craigslist.  

chance to be a scam are high... everyones will check the values opf a new old sealed set.. mom's and pop's are checking it, how many adds you now see with *** price on amazon, only asking ***....

I would beware of the listing where the seller all of a sudden moved to a different state when you contact them.  There were listings last year in the Los Angeles and Orange County in CA area for hundreds of star wars minifigures, UCS sets like Death Star 2, and other old star wars sets for $400 to $500.  When you text them or email them back, they also say they moved out of state suddenly.  If you pay with paypal, they would be happy to mail them to you, etc etc etc.  I passed.  I told them that I only meet in person for CL ads.

and who chooses to sell their valuable goods through a website where purchases can only be made via their mobile app which is only available for Apple? Sketch-jobs that's who.

Edited January 25, 201610 yr by HappyHawkeye

37 minutes ago, TargetZero said:

chance to be a scam are high... everyones will check the values opf a new old sealed set.. mom's and pop's are checking it, how many adds you now see with *** price on amazon, only asking ***....

Not 'everyone'.  You can still pick up old sealed sets for well below value but it is extremely rare.

 

The original post should be required reading for any new members.

23 minutes ago, redghostx said:

Not 'everyone'.  You can still pick up old sealed sets for well below value but it is extremely rare.

 

The original post should be required reading for any new members.

sealed? .. having both sets like this sealed?  It could... but chances are extremely low. 

 Used ok just got a tie interceptor for 250$. Worth 650 now on BL.

bough 1100$ worth of harry potter for 120$ too, 

 

but two sealed... valued at 7000$US, for 800US.... I just don't buy it. 

the whole story seems funny.

Edited January 25, 201610 yr by TargetZero

This is actually fraud! I got the same as on my craigslist in Michigan and the same message back. I also work for the State of Michigan and am a government scientist but I encounter credit skimming devices and inspect for them in gas pumps. I have had much training on these types of fraud. These people now have your email from your craigslist initial response and phone number from you texting them sometimes even your name. They also now know around where you live. They can use that to look up addresses. Now this information can be sold for the going rate of around $.040 per person or can be used to apply for stuff in your name

be very careful... If you want more info I can send some info from the Feds and state of Michigan websites to help you.

haha told you. 

This link may help for some of you who live to read government documents  for those who don't basically there are places in the world where credit fraud and such are not prosecuted and information can be sold to people in those places. A not so bad case is the people who made the ad are just trying to get information for telemarketing, but now watch for calls and texts wanting account information. Report this info to your bank if you feel necessary

https://www2.fbi.gov/publications/fraud/immfta.htm

Long live burner phones and disposable email accounts.

Google Voice for me

Oh, look, here's another one in East, TX:

https://easttexas.craigslist.org/tag/5418942450.html

Perhaps the scam was for you to download the app.  Was it a free app?  

I would be very interested in an overview of most commonly used scam techniques in Lego trading (in a blog perhaps). TS and others such as myself could learn from it.

The idea would be to bundle knowledge in a 3-4 page document (rather than having info like in this thread scattered throughout the forum), trying to fight these swindlers. 

I can't imagine I'm the only interested person in such a blog or knowhow text. 

15 minutes ago, Pedilego said:

Oh, look, here's another one in East, TX:

https://easttexas.craigslist.org/tag/5418942450.html

Same photo as included in OP

58 minutes ago, Roy vd M. said:

I would be very interested in an overview of most commonly used scam techniques in Lego trading (in a blog perhaps). TS and others such as myself could learn from it.

The idea would be to bundle knowledge in a 3-4 page document (rather than having info like in this thread scattered throughout the forum), trying to fight these swindlers. 

I can't imagine I'm the only interested person in such a blog or knowhow text. 

I can sum it up really quickly:

1.  See sets on CL listed for retail price but are now 4+ years retired and worth 6-10x original price

2.  Move on to next listings

end tutorial

My UCS millennium Falcon mistake

So in the early years my Lego collecting/investing, I came across what now I'm believed to be the deal of a lifetime and I screwed it up.

In 2008 Toys"R" Us had a online deal of buy one get one 1/2 off (this was before sites started to exclude particular sets). I knew immediately what to do, go after the Most expensive and iconic sets. At the time it was a no-brainer Millennium Falcon UCS. I maxed out my credit cards to the tune of 10K. With my deal I ended up paying about $350 each! I held them for about a year and slowly started to disperse them throughout the holidays, because of my low cost I was brought blinded two over $800 each that year. Within the year I was down to two sets, I'm feeling good about my investment return. When the economy took a fall did not pay much attention to the Pricing....Flash forward to 2014 and these things are over 3k each! I was shocked I sold one immediately , now just 1 (that I will probably keep forever). Last time I checked their around 5k...smh  If I knew then what I know now, I probably wouldn't have a mortgage.

Just got hit with this same scam.  Actually saw one a few weeks ago for 900 for two retired NIB UCS sets.  Emailed but they never responded.  Just two days ago I see a similar add but this time with all four major UCS sets..falcon, ISD, SSD, and Death Star 1 for 500 dollars each.  No way I thought as well..lol  Could this really be???  I email and get a number back just like OP the next day.  The number has a female voice message.  Call twice nobody answers so leave a message and text message.  A day later I get a text back they have moved about 500 miles away and only has the falcon left..  Busy moving this past weekend...lol  I offer the same thing as OP.  I'll pay to get the item shipped.  She says she doesn't use the internet much.  Okay..maybe that accounts for the 500 price tag...lol I'm laughing as I write this because our own greed keeps us in this devious scam.  And they make you wait...they make you want it to be true.  The next message set the alarms off as if I should not have had blasting sirens already going off a long time ago.  She says that she can accept payment via her chase account.  Jig is up...common lady.  At this point I let her know that for my financial safety I just have to give up on this (scam), but if she is ever in the area to let me know.  20 minutes later she replies with WOW.

Long story short be careful out there.  I can only imagine how many people have sent this group or person money.

I was hoping for a little more meat in this interview (like how his scam works for him, what scam he pulls etc) but Infoworld has an interview with a Craigslist scammer. Funnily enough he describes himself as a "business person" for running his scam.....

http://www.infoworld.com/article/3086304/cyber-crime/interview-with-a-craigslist-scammer.html

53 minutes ago, Phil B said:

I was hoping for a little more meat in this interview (like how his scam works for him, what scam he pulls etc) but Infoworld has an interview with a Craigslist scammer. Funnily enough he describes himself as a "business person" for running his scam.....

http://www.infoworld.com/article/3086304/cyber-crime/interview-with-a-craigslist-scammer.html

Too bad there's no explanation given at all how they actually do the scam. From the text I read they look for people offering stuff and they email them. But it's hazy how their scam works.

there was a scam going around where someone would present a cashier's check for more than the value of the items and offer to give the seller more than their asking price if they would then reimburse them for the remainder of the cashier's check.

Item=$25

Cashier's Check = $200

"It would really help me out if you could take this and cash it yourself, I'll take $150 back."

5 hours ago, Haay said:

Too bad there's no explanation given at all how they actually do the scam. From the text I read they look for people offering stuff and they email them. But it's hazy how their scam works.

When it's an expensive item, outright offering to buy the item without ever looking at it (or haggling.. who doesn't haggle?) is the first clue. After that, unusual methods of payment, all of a sudden mentioning "Im out of town right now," needing to hire a moving company for large items (who doesn't have a friend with a pickup), etc are warning signs.

 

As everyone has mentioned.... SCAM 100%.

 

Don't feel bad about missing something that was never there to begin with.  Retro gaming is one of my main hobbies and craigslist is flooded with "too good to be true" ads.  They generally list their email in the listing along the lines of ....fake****e mail (at)@ gM ail.com. If you try and contact them they direct you to an "auction" site where they got the deal.

Something quick that has helped me determine scams is do a reverse image look up in google.  Chances are that image will turn up in blogs, articles, old listings, practically everywhere.