recognise any scammers

kiwipilot

I was wondering if anyone has heard about a person from the USA wanting to buy a villa in the Candidasa area but wanting to pay for it by having the seller open a bank account that he is affiliated with for him to pay into. I smell a scam but haven't worked out how the scam will work.

Markit

I also see no "scam" here. I can also imagine that the buyer would like to go 100% that the seller gets his money without it going through various agents/notary/etc. If the seller then wants to pay these other that's his business.

kiwipilot

he wants the account to be particular bank in the USA because he says he cant do an international transfer without physically going to his bank . e is suggesting making a large deposit and yet has not physically seen the property ?

spicyayam

Sounds like a scam, especially if he hasn't seen the property. Probably some kind of variation of a Nigerian scam.

Mark

Nothing strange, per se, to arrange an offshore payment for Indonesian property, especially if the property is owned by an Indonesian nominee who will remain after the transaction. However, it would be monumentally stupid for the seller to accept to open an account at a bank specified by the buyer. This would imply all manner of potential scams, including but not limited to money laundering, as the buyer seemingly doesn't want a large and by definition suspicious transaction to be sent through the US banking system.

kiwipilot

spicyayam wrote Sounds like a scam, especially if he hasn't seen the property. Probably some kind of variation of a Nigerian scam.

yes i really think it is and am hoping he hasn't scammed people in Bali

harryopal

It is not unusual with scams for the scammer to indicate that he or she wants to send money. This is often followed by some kind of "problem" that may then require the victim to make some kind of "deposit" to open the system for the funds to be forwarded. In selling a car in Australia before leaving I had an email offering to pay a bit more for the asked price if I immediately withdrew the advertisement. The person then wanted my bank details and I suggested Paypal. Then there was some ridiculous notion of an agent in China arranging inspection of the car and making payments. Despite assurances the money was on the way nothing happened. Joining Paypal is easy and asking for a payment through that system might soon determine if the "buyer" is genuine.

mugwump

Really sounds suspicious to me. We all know those US deals are devious. Shiver shiver!

kiwipilot

It is devious This guy is definitely a scammer. I want to warn people about him as it seems he has scammed a friend who was living in Candidasa into helping him. Have not been able to work out how he has managed to get her into his scam He is using her as part of it. He is saying he has married her. I have actually communicated with her.

Markit

As I live near Candi Dasa please tell me "her" contact details and I'll contact her to find out... Or is it all BS?

kiwipilot

Markit wrote As I live near Candi Dasa please tell me "her" contact details and I'll contact her to find out... Or is it all BS?

she no longer lives there unfortunately

dav733

kiwipilot wrote I was wondering if anyone has heard about a person from the USA wanting to buy a villa in the Candidasa area but wanting to pay for it by having the seller open a bank account that he is affiliated with for him to pay into. I smell a scam but haven't worked out how the scam will work.

It's a Scam,,like the Nigerians were doing,,always a problem and Need funds to release money,,it's obvious,,

kiwipilot

dav733 wrote It's a Scam,,like the Nigerians were doing,,always a problem and Need funds to release money,,it's obvious,,

not quite but somehow this person has involved someone who used to live in Candidasa. I spoke to her . She sounded nervous

dav733

kiwipilot wrote not quite but somehow this person has involved someone who used to live in Candidasa. I spoke to her . She sounded nervous

Yes mate be super careful with this one .just walk

kiwipilot

dav733 wrote Yes mate be super careful with this one .just walk

i have but want to warn people as he is using someone who used to live there to gain trust The purpose of this post is to warn people

harryopal

A new scam every minute. Here is a link to a new trick reported just today. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-08/queanbeyan-farmer-was-scammed-while-trying-to-sell-things-online/11089096 And, as I reported earlier, be wary of people wanting to send you money. In response to the story above a friend in Colorado gave this information on another variation. ".....Three times in the past year someone tried a similar scam on me. I went along with one of them and the deal was, if they sent me a $5,000 check, and the item they wanted was only $3,000....then I would refund them the extra $2,000 to their bank. I got the $5,000 check and then started investigating and found they were using a church bank acct and the church had no idea! They were sure glad to hear from me. I never found out how much money the criminals ran thru their bank like this. I reported all the info to the US Postal Service and FBI. Never heard back from either one. "

harryopal

SamD wrote Somebody actually sent you a cheque for $5000? How is that a scam? Am I missig something?

The cheque had been fraudulently drawn on a church's account. So the $5000 stolen from the church is cleared into your account and the scammer then gets sent the $2000 "overpayment" to their account. The chickens come home to roost when an audit picks up the misappropriated funds from the church and you are then called to pay back the $5000.

SamD

A new scam every minute. Here is a link to a new trick reported just today. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-08/queanbeyan-farmer-was-scammed-while-trying-to-sell-things-online/11089096 And, as I reported earlier, be wary of people wanting to send you money. In response to the story above a friend in Colorado gave this information on another variation. ".....Three times in the past year someone tried a similar scam on me. I went along with one of them and the deal was, if they sent me a $5,000 check, and the item they wanted was only $3,000....then I would refund them the extra $2,000 to their bank. I got the $5,000 check and then started investigating and found they were using a church bank acct and the church had no idea! They were sure glad to hear from me. I never found out how much money the criminals ran thru their bank like this. I reported all the info to the US Postal Service and FBI. Never heard back from either one. "

Somebody actually sent you a cheque for $5000? How is that a scam? Am I missig something?