UPDATED w/ New Info! In desperate need of help (DC & ARLINGTON people)! Shipped laptop to DC but no money received

[kendogg]

I was corresponding through email with BigC. Its not that I dont trust his work but hes out of town at the moment hence my post. I think im running out of time. Maybe someone near his home town could help me out. Heres the emails with BigC and I


Hello there. This is kendogg from AT Forums. sigh...I dont know where to start. Actually this is not what you think it is. Its actually a deal outside of AT. Its from the recycler. I put an ad up for my dell inspiron 8200. The buyer calls me (his name is Harold Perkins and lives in virginia) and claims that his wife works in Orange county, Souther california. He said that she needed a laptop and she saw my ad in the recycler, then forwarded the info to Harold. Stupid STUPID me suggested a cross shipment. I sent the laptop out fedex 2day air. And he said that he would send a check in the amount of 1645 shipped. So we agreed to call eachother the day of and exchange tracking #'s. Well I did my part of the deal and tried calling him but his phone would go straight to voicemail. So I did not hear from Harold that day (monday November 18). November 19th Harold calls me in the afternoon and says, "hey I didnt hear from you yesterday" I told him that I couldnt get through because it kept going to voicemail. He stated that his phone has bad service... so then I gave him the tracking# but he claims that he dropped his envelope in the fedex drop box late Monday night and had the tracking# at his house. He said that he would call me back later on that night, yet no call was made.

He received his package yesterday.. and I should have received mine yesterday.. so i was hoping it would come today.. but nothing. I attempted calling him throughout the day .. I just cant get a hold of him. Im at a total loss here. Just dont know what to do. This guy is in virginia.. and im in california.. do you have any suggestions on what I can do? Im sorry .. im speechless.. everytime i think about it.. it just eats away at me. should have used common sense.. seen it over and over and over again.. never ship to a newbie..etc. Ultimately this is my fault.. and I just asked for it. I guess Ill learn the hard way. TIA BigC.

-Kenny



Kenny,
Man..this is not looking good.If you sent it via USPS you would have more recourse...but with fed-ex your kinda SOL.


I would start below..But you have to follow through..keep everything that was involved in the transactions,receipts,addresses,calls,ect.This is his state attorney genrals office:
http://www.vdacs.state.va.us/consumers/complaint2.pdf

This is a long process,weeks,maybe months.But it would be worth it..I would definately file the complaint.You could also file a complaint with your local police dept..but that rarely does anything.Give it a try though.

I wish I could suggest more..but that's all I can think of.LMK how it turns out..Keep calling the SOB.

If you need anything else contact one of the other guys @ trollhunters??I just got off work.I'm on my way out of town at the moment.

If you send me his address I'll send a threatening type of letter when I get back into town.

Curtis


Thanks so much for your reply Curtis. His phone is pretty much non existant. Sometimes Itll ring but hes not answering the damn phone. Well I'll go ahead and fill out that complaint right now. Would you suggest me posting a topic on AT FS/FT? Maybe a virginian around the same area could do me a huge favor.


Well Im still uncertain as to whether this guy is a crook or just a lazy person. From what I see though.. it appears this guy is out to rip me off... but I dont want to be too quick to judge. So assuming this guy is a crook.. Im not sure what truth he has told me (about his contact info)

Originally I was supposed to ship to his home address.. but he said that he wouldnt be home to receive the shipment.... so I shipped to his work addy. I have both addresses on file. The odd thing is that Harold Perkins did not sign for the package..
As per fedex tracking# 6138 5177 3975
Tracking Number 613851773975
Reference Number
Ship Date 11/18/2002
Delivered To Recipient
Delivery Location WASHINGTON DC
Delivery Date/Time 11/20/2002 12:26
Signed For By H.HAWKINS
Service Type FedEx 2Day Service

H. Hawkins signed for the package.


Well heres his home addy:
Harold Perkins
6001 Arch Stone Way
Alexandria, VA 22310

and work addy:
Harold Perkins
1610 Rigs PL. NW
Washington, DC 20009

Telephone# 571- 243 - 5875

youd be willing to send a threating letter .. im all for it. Would you want me to mail you some stamps?
Thank you so much Curtis.


So since my last email I havent heard from bigc cause hes out of town.
Ive tried calling that damn # but his phone is either off.. or he doesnt pick up the "rare" times it does ring.
He stated to me that he worked for the US treasury.. but later I went to their site and found this addy

Main Treasury
1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20220

General Information: (202) 622-2000

Its been a week. Am I being to quick to judge? Im just not feeling the vibes...

UPDATED 12-7-02

The person I dealt with is NOT "Harold Perkins".. that name was used as an alias. Thanks to furor I have his REAL info.

Harvey McDaniel
1804 N Quinn St
Arlington, VA 22209

date of birth february 18th, 1964

202 - 463 - 9047 < - home
571 - 243 - 5876 < - other cell

I did a mapquest from Harveys addy to 1610 Riggs Pl (this is where the laptop was delivered). Harvey lives 3.xx miles away.

This is an revised email I sent to BigC..

In this link you will see1610 Riggs PL. addy listed 3rd
from the last. Ive already tried calling that # listed but unfortunately
its disconnected or no longer in service. So for the heck of it I tried
calling other numbers listed on that site in hopes that someone would know
about Riggs PL. addy. So I finally get through on the last listing
which is the Latin-American Management Association. I actually got to speak
with the President/Ceo. His name was Steve, very generous and helpful
person. I proceeded to ask if he knew anything about the Washington D.C
Latino Chamber of Commerce... a pause of silence.. He replies no.. I then
asked if he knew anything about 1610 Riggs PL. yet another pause.. and he
says YES they were planning on building or making a Chamber of Commerce at
that addy but never did. He asked what I was looking for... I told him ..
well I dont know if im speaking to the right person about this.. and he said
no just go ahead... I ended up telling him my laptop situation. He then
said "I think I know who it is, can I ask what the name of the person who
you were dealing with?" I told him "Harold Perkins" I then asked him what
the name of the person he thought it could be. He says Max Salas. I asked
why he thought it was Max. He then explained to me he was known as a
"shady" business person. He was kicked off a number of organizations
(reasons were not disclosed). I guess a couple years back Max used to work
for Steve so he had his contact info on file. Steve faxed me over a copy of
Max Salas's contact information. I decided to call his cell# on a
private/blocked# but he did not answer.. but rather Max's voice was on the
greeting, it did not sound like the person I was dealing with (harold
perkins)


Thanks to corn he provided info about owner ship of the house (1610 Riggs PL.), Vickie Bruff.
Furor found some very interesting information.
PIC of Vickie Bruff and Max Salas
A little info on Max Salas - appears to be another trouble maker

So im assuming Max and Harvey are working together. Im going to call his "other" cellphone after my friend gets back to me on some legal issues. Furor and I have already tried his home# but that seems to be blocking our numbers.. we are uncertain what it is... gives weird beeps...

Ill post more as I find new info

 

[bizmark]

no, you're not being quick to judge! you've been ripped off!

sorry to kick you when you're down, but, I've gotta say it, DAMN you're a dumbass! Cross-shipping a $1600 laptop to someone with no refs????? If it's been a week, you'll be lucky if you ever see your laptop or that money. Geeze and you have 69 heat?! I feel for you man, but Jesus Christ, that's like giving a stranger the keys to your house! I'd definitely help you out if I were in the DC area, but I'm not. Do you have ANY written or electronic documentation about this deal, or was it all done over the phone? I hope that you can find somebody who lives in DC, and you can get this straightened out, but I'd put your chances at near 0. Post a thread in FS/FT too, maybe they can help you out there. Good luck, and sorry for the insult, but it had to be said....

people who callously take advantage of others' good natures deserve a terrible punishment :| I hope you catch the guy.

 

[kendogg]

No, you dont have to be sorry. Its my fault.. I cant do anything about it now, whats been done is done. All I have is the fedex tracking #.. No docs.. no nothing.. it was all done over the phone/verbal. I wasnt going to post at first but it was just eating away at me... everytime I think about it it just brings me down

okay im gonna try and get some sleep.. got work at 10am

 

[T2T III]

He received his package yesterday.. and I should have received mine yesterday.. so i was hoping it would come today

So, you should have received the payment on Saturday and you were hoping to receive it on Sunday/Monday? I'd wait until the mail arrives - but, still pursue contacting this individual. What does your tracking number state? Is the envelope close to you? Or, is it an invalid tracking number? Sorry about the bad questions, but it's 5:30 A.M. here. I live in N. Va - probably 20 miles from this guy, though. I'd offer to go over and kick the guy's ass for you, but I'll have to wait until my life insurance policy gets activated - in the event I lose. I'd hate to put my wife and daughter in a bad position if something were to happen to me. Keep in mind that the D.C. area is a moving/active/happening area. He could have gone away for the weekend. I've dealt with people before who were not the best people at following-up, which was quite frustrating since I try to communicate frequently to an individual that I'm transacting with.

Bizmark, Don't you think you're a bit rough calling Kendogg and dumbass? Clearly, some of the best judgements may not have been used - but 'dumbass' is a bit extreme.

 

[kendogg]

Originally posted by: wje

He received his package yesterday.. and I should have received mine yesterday.. so i was hoping it would come today

So, you should have received the payment on Saturday and you were hoping to receive it on Sunday/Monday? I'd wait until the mail arrives - but, still pursue contacting this individual. What does your tracking number state? Is the envelope close to you? Or, is it an invalid tracking number? Sorry about the bad questions, but it's 5:30 A.M. here. I live in N. Va - probably 20 miles from this guy, though. I'd offer to go over and kick the guy's ass for you, but I'll have to wait until my life insurance policy gets activated - in the event I lose. I'd hate to put my wife and daughter in a bad position if something were to happen to me. Keep in mind that the D.C. area is a moving/active/happening area. He could have gone away for the weekend. I've dealt with people before who were not the best people at following-up, which was quite frustrating since I try to communicate frequently to an individual that I'm transacting with.

Bizmark, Don't you think you're a bit rough calling Kendogg and dumbass? Clearly, some of the best judgements may not have been used - but 'dumbass' is a bit extreme.

Sorry if those emails were not clear to you. I suck at writing. anyways we cross shipped. I should have received payment the same day he received my package. He never gave me a tracking #.. his excuse was that he left it at home and would call me later, but I have not heard from him since then. wje life insurance lol.. i totally understand... Id be weary myself. sorry for being so selfish and inconsiderate ... i didnt stop to think about what the guy could be like..

well about following up.. if one has in posession, merchandise that is not paid for and is not theirs till they pay for it (especially valued over a grand)... id imagine quick follow ups... that goes for me of course.

 

[rudder]

Did you verify that his work address and place of employment is legit? I hope you did at least that before x-shipping. If you did, then you should be in decent shape. Don't threaten him at work or anything, but maybe work with somene there to resolve the issue.

 

[dpm]

I'm afraid that i'm no longer DC based, so I can't go look him up for you, but from memory, his work address sounds pretty fishy. Riggs Place is a tiny little residential street, from what I remember, and is away north from where businesses and, especially, government offices are.

I can't say for definate, because its been a couple of months since I left dc (although I used to walk right past that road every day for six months, up New Hampshire Ave), but it doesn't sound legit - not a business street, but full of typical NW DC rented houses.

good luck, though. Everyone makes stupid mistakes. I just hope that it doesn't cost you too much to learn from this one. There must be someone on these forums from the area.

 

[TurtleMan]

damn.... anyone else can help him out ?

I was thinking reporting to dell this is a stolen laptop, if that person ever getting some support from dell,
maybe they can do something to it ? ........ maybe not..

 

[Linflas]

Is the 517 phone number supposed to be his Virginia/DC one? That area code points to Michigan, not Virginia.

 

[isekii]

Originally posted by: Linflas
Is the 517 phone number supposed to be his Virginia/DC one? That area code points to Michigan, not Virginia.

it's 571

I thought DC area code was 202~


maybe it's a cellphone//prepaid cell phone ?

 

[AvesPKS]

DC Area Code is 202.

 

[kendogg]

Yes this is his cellular phone ..

When I call his cell, this is the message I get. By chance do you know which wireless co provides this message, its a female voice.


"your call has been forwarded to an automatic voice message system. 571 243 5875 is not available at the tone please record your message"

Could I possibly call the provider and get info about the owner at this tel #?

EDIT: His phone is ringing.............. and he is NOT picking up:|

Would it be worth a try to contact the police dept over in dc/virginia? Although this was all done over the phone.. and its clearly my word against his.

 

[TurtleMan]

anyone else can help hiM out ? pleeeaasseeee

 

[isekii]

why dont you try calling the police ??

I doubt they'll do much tho...~..


but it's worth a shot~

also why dont you try calling with your number blocked ? ?

maybe he'lll think it's someone else and pick up..

 

[kendogg]

Originally posted by: isekii
why dont you try calling the police ??

I doubt they'll do much tho...~..


but it's worth a shot~

also why dont you try calling with your number blocked ? ?

maybe he'lll think it's someone else and pick up..

I tried calling with private #. That doesnt help me any much.. it just takes me straight over to voicemail.

Okay time to search for virginia pd.

 

[Sukhoi]

Since it's a Dell laptop do you have the service code written down? If so I'd call Dell ASAP and see if that can flag that code in their system.

Were you running any distributed computing projects on the laptop at the time you sent it? If you were and the program was set to connect to a private proxy server you may be able to find out the IP address the laptop is connecting from.

Is the guy you sent the laptop to on the AT forums? If he is than the mods have his IP and from that you can locate roughly where he is.

How many H. Hawkins live in D.C.?

 

[scorpioLP]

The work address on Riggs Place seems a little weird... just a couple years ago it was home to this guy.

The home address at Archstone is legit though. It's a new development a couple miles from where I live.

I also work in downtown DC.

571 is definitely a new No. VA area code. Wife has one of those, too.

kendogg, if you want you can go through me to get the money, if you ever get a hold of him. You can have him drop it off or messenger the money to my office in DC. I can then FedEx it to you.

I work at a law firm, so you can always just let him know someone from my firm is expecting payment within X number of days.

Unfortunately, I don't think the police will do much for you. But you never know.

 

[bizmark]

ttt

(trying to make up for that dumbass bit and hopefully someone in the DC area will see this tonight!)

 

[snooker]

dang that sucks

 

[tantos]

dude, why ship before payment? I feel bad for you but still...come on now.

 

[TurtleMan]

ANY DC OR VIRGINIANS?

 

[klah]

I would attempt to figure out what business resides at 1610 Rigs PL. NW, and contact them.

The closest I could find was:

Categories: Associations | Non-Profit Organizations
Dupont Circle Citizens Assoc
1616 Riggs Pl NW
Washington, DC 20009-6417
Phone: (202)265-3222


Perhaps they will tell you what is located at 1610 and maybe even have some contact info for them.

Also; what is the confirmed information you have on this individual?
Have you ever contacted him using that cell# you listed?
The only time you mention speaking to him began with him calling you; did you get a number on the caller ID?
Was the email he used from an isp or just web-based?

From what I see the only information you have on the person you shipped it to is the address in DC and whatever they signed when they received the package.

The rest: home addy, cell#(did you ever talk to him using this #?), name, he could have just gotten from the phone book.

edit: ':' + '(' =
It would be nice if we could disable these little faces.

 

[ScrapSilicon]

^

 

[kendogg]

Originally posted by: klah
I would attempt to figure out what business resides at 1610 Rigs PL. NW, and contact them.

The closest I could find was:

Categories: Associations | Non-Profit Organizations
Dupont Circle Citizens Assoc
1616 Riggs Pl NW
Washington, DC 20009-6417
Phone: (202)265-3222


Perhaps they will tell you what is located at 1610 and maybe even have some contact info for them.

Also; what is the confirmed information you have on this individual?
Have you ever contacted him using that cell# you listed?
The only time you mention speaking to him began with him calling you; did you get a number on the caller ID?
Was the email he used from an isp or just web-based?

From what I see the only information you have on the person you shipped it to is the address in DC and whatever they signed when they received the package.

The rest: home addy, cell#(did you ever talk to him using this #?), name, he could have just gotten from the phone book.

edit: ':' + '(' =
It would be nice if we could disable these little faces.

Actually member Scropio has been able to dig up some websites that contain this 1610 Riggs PL. addy.

like this one http://www.americatel.net/comunidad/dc.htm

but the # listed on that site is disconnected. Although I called the last # listed on the page and actually spoke with the pres/ceo. Sorta got somewhere.. but dont want to get into it right now.

So to answer your question.. nothing is confirmed. For all i know this guy could have given me phoney EVERYTHING (name, addy) All I have is his mobil number which he doesnt answer to. I was able to contact him before I shipped the laptop. But never after he received it. So the only thing I can go on is the shipping address like you mentioned. Also H. Hawkins the person who signed for it could have used a bogus name also.. since fedex doesnt check for ID. The deal was strictly over the telephone. No emails or anything else were used.

 

[kendogg]

does anyone know of a consumer affairs office in DC?

Im looking for a form similar to this. http://www.vdacs.state.va.us/consumers/complaint2.pdf <-- curtis (BIGC) sent me that. But since the package was delivered to RIGGS PL in DC.. I think it would be more appropriate to look for the DC form.

Ive tried to dig around on my own but after a hour of calling, being transfered, and holding I finally got this # 202 326 2222
which is the number to the federal trade commission. The lady that gave me that number said that they would be able to help me. Any how I called and a gentlemen picked up the phone. I told him that this is a personal dealing with an individual, not a company. He said that he couldnt help me. I asked if he had a different number I can call? he said no.. and that I would have to contact local authorities.. he was very unhelpful.