Port resident warns of online scam
By COLIN ATAGI
Daily Tribune Staff

Online selling and purchasing is popular this time of year, but one Port Edwards resident says she was targeted by a scam artist and warns others to be wary of Internet sales.

Kris Gildenzopf was trying to sell a sewing machine online when a potential buyer contacted her and sent her a check with an odd request. He wanted to send her nearly four times the amount he owed and have her return the rest of the money to him.

There was no watermark on the check, and I kind of knew right away that it was a bunch of baloney, she said. I just went to the bank, and a friend of mine checked into it.
Gildenzopf was asking $1,450 for a 1-year-old Kenmore 19001 computerized sewing and embroidery machine she posted on rummageads.com. A buyer identified himself as Hunter King from Holland and claimed to be a husband and father of four children.

King sent her a $5,500 check and asked her to cash it and return the difference. A client of his, whom he identified as Nwankwo Emeh Felix, would pick up the sewing machine at a later date.

I was irritated, Gildenzopf said. I thought I had the sewing machine sold, and all of a sudden, it's not. He e-mailed me again on Friday (Nov. 21) and wanted to know if I could send the check.
Gildenzopf posted the sewing machine online on Sept. 27 and was first contacted by King three days later.
Lt. Bob Levendoske of the Wood County Sheriff's Department said similar incidents have been occurring lately.

A guy was trying to sell a car on the same concept about a month and a half ago, except the alleged perpetrator was from London, he said. He accepted the check of the potential buyer, but smelled a rat. So he took the check and rather than putting it in an existing account, he opened a special account and deposited the check in there.
The seller closed the account when he learned the check was a forgery and still has his car.

Levendoske said it's difficult to prosecute criminals because they usually are out of state or country, and local law enforcement is unable to handle those situations.

Because these individual crimes are of a minor nature, it doesn't reach the level that sparks the interest of federal authorities, unless that crime can be linked to a number of crimes in this country, he said. Because they move their computers around, it's hard to track them down.
Levendoske said victims should try ignoring any suspicious inquiries because the perpetrators might give up on the product - they don't have any real investment in the sale to begin with.

He added victims should contact the state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection when this occurs. Glen Loyd, public information officer for the state agency, recommends that people never do online business with anyone from outside the United States and never accept a check for an amount higher than the asking price.

It's likely to be a rip-off, he said. Unfortunately, this is becoming quite common. People all over Wisconsin are being ripped off by criminals outside the country, and our laws don't do any good in Holland.
Loyd added that some victims were forced by their banks to take out loans to pay off the money from the fake checks.

When that happens, the money is pretty much gone, he said. They say they're from Holland, but they could be from Canada. (Internet scams) occur most often from Canada and Africa.
Anyone selling something online can be targeted by thieves, because they often let their guard down when they assume they're going to make a sale, Loyd said.

Gildenzopf said she will continue to sell and purchase products online but will be more cautious about it.

I'm really leery of everything, she said. I've got it listed on eBay right now, and someone asked if I would accept a bank check. I said no.
wisinfo.com