Victim Location 42223
Total money lost $500
Type of a scam Online Purchase
I have been searching for a rhodesian ridgeback puppy for several months so my other puppy could have a playmate.
In early December I was searching on Craigslist for rhodesian ridgeback puppies near where I live and came across a link for havenrhodesianridgeback.com that was based in Texas. I went to their site and found a puppy that I liked. I established contact via email ([email protected]) that was on their website.
According to "Fred Payne", the operator of Haven Rodesian Ridgeback that is based in Houston, Tx, the cost would be $500 and an additional $300 for shipping. My husband and I discussed our options before the Christm[censored]iday and decided to move forward with purchasing the puppy. We originally wanted to make the purchase well before Christmas but did not receive a response from Fred until Christmas Eve and at that time began communication through text as well, 281-819-6532.
Fred stated he would draft the bill of sale and get back with us as soon as it was done. On 27 December 2017, we received the bill of sale for $500 and were told that the puppy’s shipment would be arranged as soon as payment was received. Of note the shipping was not included on the bill of sale and their website had been changed to reflect "free shipping".
Fred stated he always handled payments through MoneyGram and that I would need to make the MoneyGram payment to his son Jacob Smith. We sent $500 via moneygram and confirmed that he received it. I also sent a picture of the bill of sale with my signature to Fred’s phone number.
On the evening of 27 December 2017, Fred stated we would be receiving the puppy the following day and that we would be receiving an email from the shipping company with the details. On the morning of 28 December 2017, I received an email from "Ultimate Pet Shippers", [email protected], stating that I would be receiving further details with the shipment and delivery of the puppy.
I was unfamiliar with that shipping company and decided to look them up online and became concerned when I could not find any information about any company under the name of "Ultimate Pet Shippers". This spawned further searches regarding the shipping company and Haven Rhodesian Ridgeback. While I did not find any derogatory about Haven Rhodesian Ridgeback on any searches, I was reading enough that led me to believe that I was being scammed.
A couple hours later after receiving the initial email from Ultimate Pet Shippers, I received another email from them stating that puppy’s shipment and delivery is delayed due to the puppy needing insurance and that we would need to send an additional $1200 that was refundable upon delivery via "the same method used for payment". The email stated further that if the $1200 was not paid that we would be charged for animal abandonment and such.
This confirmed that it was a scam as I had just gotten done reading about the exact same tactic used and found the same name "Raul Vermenez" for the Secretary of the Pet Control Department had been used on another family according to accounts on scamwarners.com. I texted Fred about the email from the shipping company and he replied, "Yes I received notification as well. And it clearly states why they need insurance. Kindly proceed as they recommend."
I immediately checked to see if the MoneyGram had been claimed in order to potentially stop it but it was already cashed. After that I called my local police department and told them what was going on and they agreed it was a scam. I filed a report with them and they stated that since MoneyGram was used and the scammers are claiming it in Texas that we would likely not get our money back.
I have since then been filing reports with the FBI and other law enforcement agencies as well as fraud complaints to help someone else not fall prey to a scam such as this.