Help - Was Scammed!

[c0reyann]

For those who know what they are doing, yes. But for those like the person in the story (who sounds a lot like the OP) who are new to renting DVC points, it can be confusing. They did the due diligence of checking references and still got ripped off. Heck, even if the scammer made the reservation and linked it to the renters MDE the scam could have still happened. The scammer could have cancelled the reservation after receiving payment. The biggest risk or renting points is trust, because at the end of the day the owner controls the reservation and can cancel it after payment. There is really no way to eliminate that risk.

And that's exactly what he did with many of the victims, he made valid reservations and canceled once they linked.

 

[cvjw]

I just read your blog, wow is all I can say. So sorry this happened to you and all the others. The only real red flag you had was trying to pay him and all the options telling you he was a scammer. Everything else - talking to his references and looking up his deed, you did your due diligence.

I hope this man can be prosecuted. It is awful what he has done to so many families. Hopefully you have put out a strong enough warning to save other families from the same fate.

 

[Tess]

One of the other victims told him about it to see what his reaction would be and he was very angry and claims the police and lawyers are after me.

And rightfully so! I hope they arrest this fool!

 

[c0reyann]

I just read your blog, wow is all I can say. So sorry this happened to you and all the others. The only real red flag you had was trying to pay him and all the options telling you he was a scammer. Everything else - talking to his references and looking up his deed, you did your due diligence.

I hope this man can be prosecuted. It is awful what he has done to so many families. Hopefully you have put out a strong enough warning to save other families from the same fate.

That is definitely my mistake. He had a good story for Paypal - I've randomly had those flags in the past too where they want me to verify a purchase and it my trusting idiotic brain it made sense it was hard to prove he rented a timeshare to someone.

My bank is annoying at the best of times when using Apple Pay so I just assumed it was my bank being its normal annoying self. NOW I know better and will do better.

Thankfully with the news story making the rounds I am hopeful that he's done. I just worry about what kind of scheme he's up to next.

 

[robinb]

https://www.news5cleveland.com/news...f-nearly-5-000-by-disney-vacation-club-seller

In this instance, the red flags are pretty strong.

There is a reason why "Con Man" is short for "Confidence Man". They gain your confidence and smooth away any red flags with perfectly reasonable explanations.

Take the time to read the OP's blog. Mr. Scammer scammed many people with multiple schemes and good Photoshop skills. It was a "long game" that he initiated last year by setting people up with actual and real reservations so he could have references before he preyed on others. He then contacted people directly through FB Messenger without posting on their threads so people didn't see that he was "helping" 20+ other people at the same time. He selected people with trips months and months away so they wouldn't figure out there was a problem for a while. Then, when questioned by people who had issues with the "reservations", he came up with different excuses why he couldn't help them right away to string them along and put off the inevitable crash of his scam. My personal favorite excuses were the photos of both his grannies having been beaten by some unknown assailant, each granny sent to two different people. (Note, I do feel sorry for the actual woman who were really beaten and their photos stolen by him. They were victimized twice. In fact, @c0reyann, you may want to blur out their faces on your blog post.)

This guy is a scummy scammer. Sure, there were plenty of red flags and the OP's problem with trying to pay said scammer was probably the more egregious one. But again, Mr. Scammer had a reasonable explanation of why she was having problems and was reassuredly patient while his fish flopped on his line. Apparently, his whole electronic world is full of "glitches" but he can wait for things to get settled.

I am glad that she is sharing her story here and elsewhere. It's a good PSA to back out if there is ANYTHING that makes you uncomfortable. It's not worth it.

 

[c0reyann]

There is a reason why "Con Man" is short for "Confidence Man". They gain your confidence and smooth away any red flags with perfectly reasonable explanations.

Take the time to read the OP's blog. Mr. Scammer scammed many people with multiple schemes and good Photoshop skills. It was a "long game" that he initiated last year by setting people up with actual and real reservations so he could have references before he preyed on others. He then contacted people directly through FB Messenger without posting on their threads so people didn't see that he was "helping" 20+ other people at the same time. He selected people with trips months and months away so they wouldn't figure out there was a problem for a while. Then, when questioned by people who had issues with the "reservations", he came up with different excuses why he couldn't help them right away to string them along and put off the inevitable crash of his scam. My personal favorite excuses were the photos of both his grannies having been beaten by some unknown assailant, each granny sent to two different people. (Note, I do feel sorry for the actual woman who were really beaten and their photos stolen by him. They were victimized twice. In fact, @c0reyann, you may want to blur out their faces on your blog post.)

This guy is a scummy scammer. Sure, there were plenty of red flags and the OP's problem with trying to pay said scammer was probably the more egregious one. But again, Mr. Scammer had a reasonable explanation of why she was having problems and was reassuredly patient while his fish flopped on his line. Apparently, his whole electronic world is full of "glitches" but he can wait for things to get settled.

I am glad that she is sharing her story here and elsewhere. It's a good PSA to back out if there is ANYTHING that makes you uncomfortable. It's not worth it.

I've been told that is actually the same woman and is his wife's grandmother who fell (was not beaten up/robbed). I left her face because his friends started seeing the post and called him out and he's claiming it's a different man with the same name. While I feel bad she's caught up in this mess, I also wanted to show that this is the *same* man and I'm not lying.

He even went as far as editing the source of the website and would make a video of the 'glitch' so that it looked like he really was trying but in fact he'd broken the code so that the glitch would happen when loading the page.

I even went through my references and tallied the points of those renting from him + the stays he advertised and everything seemed to fit within his 200ish point budget if I counted last vs this year.

While I was dumb he also played a long con and knew what he was doing.

 

[kmorlock]

I’m pretty savvy about DVC but, we rented an RV last July to take my mother-in-law to see her sister-in-law for the last time since both were terminally ill. My MIL refused to put the security deposit down using a credit card. I know, huge mistake. Of course the owner kept it. Even going through the BBB, and Ohio Atty office, he still has yet to pay it back and probably never will. So, yes it’s easy to get scammed. We met this guy, he was neurotic about the RV, we returned it in pristine condition a day early. I knew it was a mistake to rent outside of the rental company and not use a credit card but, we did it anyway. I guess live and learn in our case. It was only $1,000. $5k or more? I’d be losing it!

 

[sndral]

I've been told that is actually the same woman and is his wife's grandmother who fell (was not beaten up/robbed). I left her face because his friends started seeing the post and called him out and he's claiming it's a different man with the same name. While I feel bad she's caught up in this mess, I also wanted to show that this is the *same* man and I'm not lying.
…

The authorities have been alerted, they are investigating. They will do so thoroughly & lawfully, let them do their job. Invading someone’s privacy to garner ‘proof’ that you aren’t lying adds nothing to an investigation or prosecution. Being related by marriage to a con man does not justify invading someone’s privacy by plastering an unflattering image of her on the internet. The image was likely used by the con w/out her permission & anyone who further shares the image w/out her permission is just further victimizing her.

 

[kes601]

The authorities have been alerted, they are investigating. They will do so thoroughly & lawfully, let them do their job. Invading someone’s privacy to garner ‘proof’ that you aren’t lying adds nothing to an investigation or prosecution. Being related by marriage to a con man does not justify invading someone’s privacy by plastering an unflattering image of her on the internet. The image was likely used by the con w/out her permission & anyone who further shares the image w/out her permission is just further victimizing her.

Agreed. It sucks that the OP got con’ed and I wouldn’t want that to happen to anybody, but she didn’t steal from the OP. He did. You’ve provided law enforcement with all the information you can. Enjoy the new trip you have planned and let them get this figured out.

 

[c0reyann]

The authorities have been alerted, they are investigating. They will do so thoroughly & lawfully, let them do their job. Invading someone’s privacy to garner ‘proof’ that you aren’t lying adds nothing to an investigation or prosecution. Being related by marriage to a con man does not justify invading someone’s privacy by plastering an unflattering image of her on the internet. The image was likely used by the con w/out her permission & anyone who further shares the image w/out her permission is just further victimizing her.

Actually the authorities have all closed their cases. Since it is across state lines we've been informed that there's nothing we can really do and the FBI isn't interested in our case until he's stolen 1.5 million.

 

[c0reyann]

I updated the photos to blur her face out.

 

[DVCSunDevil]

Actually the authorities have all closed their cases. Since it is across state lines we've been informed that there's nothing we can really do and the FBI isn't interested in our case until he's stolen 1.5 million.

Did any of his victims live in the same state as him? Hopefully that would open it up to local authorities going after him. Karma is a b*tch either way. He will get his eventually. At least he is in the middle of lawsuits for his other “dealings”.

 

[RX8]

Actually the authorities have all closed their cases. Since it is across state lines we've been informed that there's nothing we can really do and the FBI isn't interested in our case until he's stolen 1.5 million.

And there you go, that is why people keep getting scammed. Absolutely no consequences for stealing $80k+. He will be back, along with more scammers. Why steal $5K from a bank and get 10 years in prison when you can steal $80K+ from multiple people and not even get a slap on a wrist? Heck, a number of years ago a guy got 25 years for stealing a slice of pizza (3 strikes rule) yet this guy can continue scamming. The judicial system is messed up.

And because of this all potential renters need to do their due diligence to the max to reduce their risk before paying.

 

[maryj11]

And there you go, that is why people keep getting scammed. Absolutely no consequences for stealing $80k+. He will be back, along with more scammers. Why steal $5K from a bank and get 10 years in prison when you can steal $80K+ from multiple people and not even get a slap on a wrist? Heck, a number of years ago a guy got 25 years for stealing a slice of pizza (3 strikes rule) yet this guy can continue scamming. The judicial system is messed up.

And because of this all potential renters need to do their due diligence to the max to reduce their risk before paying.

Exactly! We were scammed on Facebook also. Not a DVC rental, but something else. I contacted everyone I knew to stop this scammer! I was determined to stop him from cheating others more than getting my money back. I have never gotten the money back. His Facebook page and website have disappeared. These internet scammers are perfecting their skills for online and getting away with thousands of dollars. There should be a stiff punishment for them. It just makes me so mad! Low life thieves ! Go get a real job!

 

[Marypoppins14]

I've been told that is actually the same woman and is his wife's grandmother who fell (was not beaten up/robbed). I left her face because his friends started seeing the post and called him out and he's claiming it's a different man with the same name. While I feel bad she's caught up in this mess, I also wanted to show that this is the *same* man and I'm not lying.

He even went as far as editing the source of the website and would make a video of the 'glitch' so that it looked like he really was trying but in fact he'd broken the code so that the glitch would happen when loading the page.

I even went through my references and tallied the points of those renting from him + the stays he advertised and everything seemed to fit within his 200ish point budget if I counted last vs this year.

While I was dumb he also played a long con and knew what he was doing.

imagine if these con persons used their intelligence, creativity and perseverance, towards the greater good? Instead of their selfish efforts towards financial gain and power/control?

so sorry for the OP becoming ensnared in his nefarious net.

we are all vulnerable, depending on our individual circumstances.

heck, I’m the (very intelligent) daughter of a GC, and was recently scammed by an unlicensed contractor that similarly exploited “glitches” in online databases to obfuscate the fact that he was, in fact, unlicensed.

I had been looking at a gutted bathroom for 6 months after a different contractor (friend of a friend) walked off the job after saying (after the fac) that it was too complicated for him.

I had undergone emergency surgery and was vulnerable.

so I was scammed

point being, any and each of us may remain vulnerable

thats why theses con artists thrive, hit their marks, then recreate their scams, once discovered.

OP I hope that you are able to recover your funds!

 

[AnnaKristoff2013]

I hope he gets some kind of punishment for this! I know DVC & the parks are supposed to be separate and don’t typically become embroiled in these instances but, it would be great to see everyone get their $ back and see him get banned from the parks.

He has bigger problems then getting banned from the parks at this point.

 

[Annabell]

Actually the authorities have all closed their cases. Since it is across state lines we've been informed that there's nothing we can really do and the FBI isn't interested in our case until he's stolen 1.5 million.

So sad that nothing can be done. Unbelievable.

 

[c0reyann]

He has bigger problems then getting banned from the parks at this point.

Who knows, it seems like there's no real punishment until you go over 1 million so I'd be happy with any small annoyances like not being able to go to Disney with his family (which is something he does frequently).

 

[Sandisw]

I hope he gets some kind of punishment for this! I know DVC & the parks are supposed to be separate and don’t typically become embroiled in these instances but, it would be great to see everyone get their $ back and see him get banned from the parks.

Unfortunately it’s not something Disney could ever get involved in in any way as it has nothing to do with him visiting the parks…as much as It would be nice to see him get some consequence from it all.

 

[Narcoossee11]

Netflix has several programs trending right now able HUGE scammers . These people have a whole life style being a criminal

Maybe this guy can too be featured to get his story out there and the poor families can make some money by selling/telling their story.