Well, if you map the address, you will see that a winery cannot possibly be located there - and this has been discussed on the PPA website a couple of times.
I would probably cease emailing the scammer, if not for the fact that you are wasting your purportedly valuable time, but also for the fact that every piece of information you provide can be used in a plot to steal your identity or involve you in more scams. I am pretty free with the information I provide online but even I know that there are some boundaries that aren't supposed to be crossed (like how using your real name in correspondence to a random individual should be kept to a minimum).
Writing a bad check on purpose is probably the most thoughtless thing to do, since companies that record and track bad check deposits can send those records to credit reporting agencies and it can show up on your report or cause the bank that you actually have deposits with to drop you as a customer.
mdude85 wrote:
Well, if you map the address, you will see that a winery cannot possibly be located there - and this has been discussed on the PPA website a couple of times.
I would probably cease emailing the scammer, if not for the fact that you are wasting your purportedly valuable time, but also for the fact that every piece of information you provide can be used in a plot to steal your identity or involve you in more scams. I am pretty free with the information I provide online but even I know that there are some boundaries that aren't supposed to be crossed (like how using your real name in correspondence to a random individual should be kept to a minimum).
Writing a bad check on purpose is probably the most thoughtless thing to do, since companies that record and track bad check deposits can send those records to credit reporting agencies and it can show up on your report or cause the bank that you actually have deposits with to drop you as a customer. ...Show more →
I am fully aware there are no wineries located in Malayasia.
I have "wasted" all of 15 minutes sending three email.
I use throwaway email addresses and a PO box I maintain for snail mail spam.
No personal information is being provided....including my real name.
I don't consider it a waste of time to be able to fully document how this scam is carried out.
It is kind of a waste of time to keep replying to scammers when you are fully aware that you are dealing with them, but I suppose everyone is entitled to spend his time as he sees fit
nathanlake> I don't consider it a waste of time to be able to fully document how this scam is carried out.
If it's fun for you and also wastes the scammer's time, go for it! Just keep us updated here so we can keep track of the progress. Of course, we are spending our time reading this too. Tune in tomorrow for more of "Messing with Scammers!".
Best,
Andy
P.S. The classic source for these is www.419eater.com
I received the exact same message a couple of weeks ago. I responded to the first by asking what part of Texas they were moving to. They gave me a response by saying Houston, but not what part of Houston.
Not everybody realizes the size in square miles that Houston covers. (Houston covers more miles than the State of Rhode Island, just for the record).
At that point I quit communicating.
I have to wonder about some of the advice given in these links. The first one says....
1. DO NOT RESPOND TO THE 419 SOLICITATION.
2. Notify your Own Nation's National Law Enforcement Agency and your Own Nation's Foreign Office.
3. File a Complaint with the Nigerian Embassy or High Commission in your nation. It used to be possible to email complaints and 419 materials in to the Central Bank of Nigeria and to the Nigeria Police, but those email addresses have not worked for some time.
I can live with #1, but #2 and #3 are just a bit ridiculous.
Here is the next round....Received this email today.
I was contacted by my associate (Steve Brown) today that the deposit payment has been mailed out from New York to your given address before he traveled out to London. The payment was mailed out to you via USPS mail, so the it will get to you in 3 to 5 working days .
The Payment was made in form of Money Order, so make sure you get back to me as soon as you receive this message so I can be sure that you are aware that the payment is on the way and you are watching out for it.
Moreover please inform me immediately you receive the deposit payment before you take it to your bank so I can know you’ve received it.
Thanks so much and I will be waiting to read from you.
Regards
Joe John Akins
Winery Headquarters
92 Jalan Keranji,
Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia
01160173305450
I have acknowledged receiving this email and told him I would be watching for the payment.
Seems as though Joe is having issues with Yahoo.....
Due to the frequent technical difficulties experienced in accessing yahoomail on our server here I will be glad if you can reply me via my email address: [email protected].
Moreover did you receive my email notifying you that my agent has sent the deposit payment to your given address? If not please find below a copy of the email
I was contacted by my associate (Steve Brown) on Monday that the deposit payment has been mailed out from New York to your given address before he traveled out to London. The payment was mailed out to you via USPS mail, so the it will get to you in 3 to 5 working days .
The Payment was made in form of Money Order, so make sure you get back to me as soon as you receive this message so I can be sure that you are aware that the payment is on the way and you are watching out for it.
Moreover please inform me immediately you receive the deposit payment before you take it to your bank so I can know you’ve received it.
Thanks so much and I will be waiting to read from you.
Regards
Joe Akins
Winery Headquarters
92 Jalan Keranji,
Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia
01160173305450
When The Cheque/ order comes in, tell him you have recieved and banked it but unfortunately you just found out an hour ago you can't make the date anymore and you'll be sending a refund plus some extra for the inconvenience. Make sure you build the mongrels hopes up before you tear his heart out.
Maybe you could say you have a trusted friend in that part of Malaysia atm and you will get him to bring the money round in cash personally as you want to make sure the money doesn't go astray in the system.
Greetings,
I have been checking my email to know if you eventually received the deposit payment mailed to you by my associate. Since I have not heard from you I therefore assume that you have not received the deposit payment.I will hold till Thursday Dec 24th after which I will authorize that a new deposit payment be mailed to you. And finally due to a new development here, may I request if there is a way we can reschedule our photographic service booking to a new date of 25th January 2010,Before that time the new deposit payment to hold our photo anniversary appointment would have been received by you.
I will be looking forward to reading from you
Regards
Joe Akins
I replied that I had not yet received the deposit, which is the truth, and would check my mail again today. I did not respond to his request to reschedule the shoot. I am curious to see how important that is to him. I am not quite sure how that fits into the scam.
