Posted: 5/31/2011 10:53:24 PM EDT
| First off...not a LEO bashing threat, I actually have a question about a scam going around on the Island for a while now. A couple times I've been approached by gentlemen in their mid-20s in a van wanting to sell home stereos that go for $3000 for like $300. It's happened to on the way to my old job in which I had to drive through Wyndanch on Straight Path. Now it happened when I was taking my Mom shopping near our house. I wanted to know if you guys can tell me how it works. |
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Its a major scam.
A few years ago I had a kid working for me that got suckered into buying a home theatre system in the same way. He calls me on the phone to tell me about the deal he just got. when he got back to the shop it turns out he got nothing but boxes full of rocks. It was the shop laugh for a few weeks. If its sound to good to be true...... |
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Quoted:
Its a major scam. A few years ago I had a kid working for me that got suckered into buying a home theatre system in the same way. He calls me on the phone to tell me about the deal he just got. when he got back to the shop it turns out he got nothing but boxes full of rocks. It was the shop laugh for a few weeks. If its sound to good to be true...... They still do that scam? I am amazed they can still find a sucker. I remember the guys standing outside the mid-town tunnel in the early 80's selling VCRs. They were just a box with a brick in it. Anyone who buys a VCR from a homeless guy at the entrance to the tunnel deserves it. |
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One of the longest running scams around. Assuming you actually get something other than a box of rocks it's going to be junk. http://www.scamshield.com/Sighting.asp?country=none&state=New%20York&article=1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_van_speaker_scam#Technology_and_quality_of_the_product |
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That happened to my uncle in the early 80's in manhattan when he was a door man. He opened up the box on the way back after purchasing and found bricks neatly lined up in the box. He dropped the box in the middle of the street and chased the seller, caught him and beat him down where he caught him.
Mind you, this was the early 80's, NYC and things were different. Don't try that shit today. |
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Some scams never stop making money!
Many times these scam artists had stopped by my shop and offered me deals of a lifetime. <Scammer>We were installing these systems and the manufacturer sent us two complete sets and we just want to unload this one!</Scammer> Bill |
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I had the same thing happen last summer in St.James. Probably the same people and same boxes full of rocks. Small van, early/mid 20s.
I asked them how they were in such nice condition when they obviously "fell off the back of a truck", I was assured that they were not stolen. I picked up a box and asked how many bricks they had put in them. They weren't to happy with that. |
| The equipment they are selling is low grade no name brand items that if they sold it at a retail store would go for less than 1/10th of what they say its worth. They make it more appealing by implying that it is stolen or obtained illegally. The benefit is two folds. They get to sell the item for more that what they could legitimately sell it for or what its worth and avoid having to report the income from the sales. If anyone see these guys out there kindly take the license plate of the van and post it here. Maybe we can put an end to them before they scam others. |
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Quoted:
Quoted:
Its a major scam. A few years ago I had a kid working for me that got suckered into buying a home theatre system in the same way. He calls me on the phone to tell me about the deal he just got. when he got back to the shop it turns out he got nothing but boxes full of rocks. It was the shop laugh for a few weeks. If its sound to good to be true...... They still do that scam? I am amazed they can still find a sucker. I remember the guys standing outside the mid-town tunnel in the early 80's selling VCRs. They were just a box with a brick in it. Anyone who buys a VCR from a homeless guy at the entrance to the tunnel deserves it. I remember going to work with my dad back in the '80s and seeing guys doing that on Delancy St at the base of the Williamsburg bridge. |
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Its quite possibly the oldest scam on in existance and your right there are still people out there doing it, which means that there must people enough people walking around that are actually still dumb enough to fall for it..
They tried propositioning me a few months ago with a set of home speakers, in a van, in a parking lot, while I was on my motorcycle, with helmet on.... its was surreal I think the catch is that althouhg its obviosuly a huge scam, it might not technically be against the law if they are simply selling you 20 dollar radio shack components at bose style prices, which is what they appeared to be offering. |