Check Scams, Debt Collection scams and other financial scams.
#213931 by steelahlive Fri Aug 08, 2014 6:39 am
So I don't know where to post this as I am a completely new to this site, and wow i've been up all night as I was recently "almost" scammed by someone. But it made me think back on another scammer that I busted outright and I did a quick search and didn't find his name on here but felt I should warn anyone if it comes up. Admin's please move this to the correct location if necessary, as this is the reverse of a "charity" scam. I am a disabled vet - retired and had a youcaring.com donations site up for a while when my spinal injury and subsequent living costs began to rise. Before my VA decision was fully completed, I set up a donations site for myself to assist with monthly living expenses. NOW - Flash forward two years, and I received an email from a man who identified himself as Gerald ...Something, I cannot recall, but his email address was NOT the same last name. Again, a quick search here yielded no results on the name. His email address was [email protected]. We began corresponding, and I initially thought it was odd that he had even found my donations site, since i had not updated it in over 1 and a half or so years. But still i didn't detect much in the way of suspicious behavior, only because i had been contacted like this before, and the people were genuine in their efforts to help.

He began by befriending me with his story of he and his wife were retired now, and living in hawaii, he was retired military too, and had made large sum of money through business dealings and now spent their time helping others. Long story short he got to the point of requesting a video call to verify himself to me and what not before just loaning out money, but insisted on using yahoo messenger...(suspicion grew) he then asked if i could provide him with some details to my condition and how much i would need to get back on my feet. Now I wasn't financially secure at this point in my life and wasn't running any pc tech services at the time, so i could use the money and told him I'd seen better days. He offered to send me 3k into my bank account as a fellow vet to help out.

I obliged the yahoo idea against my better judgment, but did it anyways, and he was on video for all of 3 minutes, a burly gray headed man that didn't look quite like his yahoo ID picture, but again, time could change someone, still red flag numero 2 - so we get done with the call and he didn't even ask me anything while on video, infact he didn't talk at all, and just simply sat there, waived once, and then went to typing. Said he and his wife were having a second "honeymoon" and wanted to show me something, sent me a screen grab of which I'm looking for to see if i still have it, of his wells fargo account having multiple millions of dollars in it, and that to, please keep that private ya know, i dont just go sending this out to anyone. (please bare with me here as this is all from memory) - He then said I've got to go but if you can send me your bank info I should be able to wire you the money this evening.....hrm....ok....I can give you the account info and you can wire it there, but why not just send it to the youcaring site? Oh i'd rather you get it direct.... but I have to go now so email it to me, as the wife is in a hurry to get out and i can't keep her waiting....now i'm done at this point and decided to see how far this guy would go. I felt it was long overdue i call him out on the few areas of security and phising scams I had done while in the air force, and he didn't respond back for a few hours.

He finally comes back to me a few hours later and says, Hey you want this money or not and got angry with me, so i chose to call him out on the spot. I told him here's what doesn't add up, you're asking for x,y,z - everything you would need to start or gain access to my account and i've given you nearly all of it EXCEPT that one final piece you would need, and you can't tell me why you can't just send it to me thru the initial way you "found" me. He blew up at this point stating look at my bank account, why would i need to steal money from you, I'm not that kinda person, I just want to help. He got angrier and more violent in his remarks, till i finally said look man - you contacted me to help and now getting mad cause I don't want to give you my personal information, the exact same information you just "sent me" and asked me to MAKE SURE I didn't share with anyone, the exact information you would need if you wanted access to my account, sorry I am not comfortable with giving you that info and feel you are doing nothing to really help your own case here. Why not contact me when your "wife" isn't pressuring you to leave, why are you always in a hurry to get this info and off the messenger...

SO i finally said sir, I appreciate your willingness to help but i am going to decline the offer. HE again blew up on me for calling him a liar, and how dare I question his integrity, he just wanted to help me. I said again, i don't believe your willingness is in good faith but if you truly want to help then just send me money using that site, however long it's "going to take" since he was pressed for time, i've been disabled for 2 years and will still be when you "can" help, otherwise do not contact me again.

3 weeks later, I still want to make this right, if you could just give me x info i can have you a check tonight, lol - i finally told him all the cardinal rules he'd broken and how my former job in the military was detecting email scams such as this one and i would be reporting him. He ended the convo and deleted me from his contacts, and has since not contacted me.

I am disgusted at my own shit now here of having been duped and out of practice, but thankfully neither of the two times i've been targeted have they gotten their desired result.

So if anyone knows or has had this similar happen - here's the place to comment.
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#214066 by Bubbles Sat Aug 09, 2014 5:17 pm
Welcome to ScamWarners steelahlive You did the right thing by not giving this scammer any additional information. He was trying to gain access to your bank account and would have drained you dry.

Just as he deleted you from his contacts, we advise victims to delete scammers from their contact and IM list. It is great you recognized the scam before it went too far.

Please do us a favor and post the email address he was using and the Header from an email. It helps us and other potential victims.

Bubbles, former Scamwarners moderator.

Rest in Peace 24 June 2015.

Gone, but never forgotten.
#214232 by steelahlive Mon Aug 11, 2014 3:27 pm
Bubbles wrote:Welcome to ScamWarners steelahlive You did the right thing by not giving this scammer any additional information. He was trying to gain access to your bank account and would have drained you dry.

Just as he deleted you from his contacts, we advise victims to delete scammers from their contact and IM list. It is great you recognized the scam before it went too far.

Please do us a favor and post the email address he was using and the Header from an email. It helps us and other potential victims.


I had already deleted all traffic from this individual, and only had a referenced email address of the contact to go with in the deleted contacts section of a yahoo account. Here is the email address they used.

[email protected]

And thanks for the welcome, I feel totally miffed that I even allowed it to get this far, as an IT professional, and one that did email scams for the Air Force myself. THIS however, had me more interested than possibly believing it on face value. - Thanks again for the welcome to the forums, and as I begin my new job opportunity in the next few weeks, this site will most likely become a wealth of knowledge for my users to assist with identifying scams.
#214245 by Bubbles Mon Aug 11, 2014 8:45 pm
steelahlive wrote:. - Thanks again for the welcome to the forums, and as I begin my new job opportunity in the next few weeks, this site will most likely become a wealth of knowledge for my users to assist with identifying scams.


This is exactly our goal. I hope you will read around the forum as we have detailed descriptions of various Advanced Fee Fraud (419) scams. I hope you will consider checking in regularly as an active member of our group.

Feel free to send people you encounter to this site if they need further information or support.

Scammers hit people of all walks of life. They put a lot of energy into their evil craft and are therefore experts at tricking people. We work to expose their tactics and support victims. Thank you.

Bubbles, former Scamwarners moderator.

Rest in Peace 24 June 2015.

Gone, but never forgotten.
#225642 by Okie Dokie Fri Oct 31, 2014 7:47 pm
Same thing happened to my husband and me. The name given was Gerald Cella and the email was [email protected] - his phone number is/was 703-982-0694. Same deal - wanted to help a vet with medical bills - we also had a donation site set up. It got to a point where I didn't trust him or believe what he was saying.... he didn't get anything but there was some damage done.
#225683 by Mike Wilson Sat Nov 01, 2014 1:56 am
The telephone number (703) 982-0694 is a computer based VoIP number so this con artist could be located anywhere in the world that has a high speed internet connection.

It is ALWAYS a scam
If the pet seller or shipper asks for money to be sent via Western Union, Money Gram, any brand of gift card. Walmart To Walmart , Zelle , PayPal friends and family option, or mentions Cameroon
#231843 by DMiller Tue Dec 23, 2014 1:39 am
I gave this mfer my account routing number phone number and access to my online banking today. He seemed very sincere. My family is going through financial difficulties and I posted on Craig's list about my situation and asked for financial help. Good thing my credit is screwed up and I'm in the negative in the bank. After I gave him all the info he emails me and says hurry call your bank and find out if they do mobile banking. Which I had already asked before Igave him access. I should of researched his name before all this mess. But I didn't I acted on desperation because I'm at the point my lights and water are getting cut off and eviction court is going to see me and him saying he could help me with 2k made me act on desperation. I have two kids I'm struggling to care for. What prompt me to check out his name is I replied to his last email and no response. 2 hours later no response so i send him an email asking if he figured out how to do the online banking. No reply from him. I decide to search his name a nd here he is using a dead bankers name. I haven't blasted his ass yet but plan to. I changed my log in info to my online banking abd I checked to see if he could get my social but my personal info is no where on there thank GOD other than my mother's address. Which is scary because now all kinds of things are running through my head. How do i report this person? I already sent an email to my bank for fraudulent activity abd told them to call me asap. I'm the type that will get this person. All these people I've read he scammed. They are going to wish they never came across my path.
#231844 by AlanJones Tue Dec 23, 2014 1:50 am
You will not "get" this person. As Mike posted above, he could be anywhere in the world.

You should also NEVER give anyone access to your online banking. They do not need it to send you money, only to be able to transfer money out of the account.

Please do not tell scammers that they are listed here - it will take them seconds to change their fake details and their new details will not be listed for any future victims to find.

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