InsectNet forum

I just received a message that "Chris Abbot" in the Classifieds would be a new account from Matthew Nochisaki who has been banned from the Classifieds last year for scamming people.

So be very careful. I have banned the Chris Abbot account too.

For info, Matthew contacted me few months ago, and asked several friends to write to me in his favour, to be reintegrated in the Classifieds.
I told him to fix his past deals and to apologize in the forum. As he never did so, and as he seems to be creating fake accounts, I recommend everyone to be very cautious while dealing with him.

As a reminder, the previous topic about Matt Nochisaki scamming activities : https://archive.insectnet.com/thread/96 ... ing-trader

I think I have been duped by him. Fortunately I haven't sent him any money. I ordered some moths from him at least a month ago. He told me he was waiting for them to hatch. Now I don't believe he even has them.

He may send you something. Just don't send any money in advance.

I wondered if Matthew the scammer had switched identities, as this Abbot persona was selling very similar livestock, I use the word "selling"
liberally, because Matt Nochisaki is a stonecold criminal scammer and if you send him money, expect to be ripped off, or wait for PayPal to
return it. What a scumbag. He tried scamming me, but I used my intelligence and goods and services, it took a few months to get my money
back. This guy just won't quit, Eumorpha species are his specialty, and any ads advertising Eumorhpa should be scrutinized.
I'm sure willing to write him a testimonial. He's written down in my notebook of traders, as if I'll forget him anytime soon.

I just received a message from someone who has been scammed by Nochisaki this month, using this Chris Abbot fake account.

So be careful. Never send money in Paypal Family & Friends with people you don't know, use classic Paypal so that you can get your money back.

Instead of starting a new thread, the issue of using "friends and family" is a serious one. I see many ads asking for people to use PayPal's
"friends and family" feature. I find this a little presumptuous, I would be the first to agree that PayPal's seller parameters have changed
to favor PayPal's bottom line, but that's beside the point. Asking strangers to send money in a manner that gives no quarter, no chance
whatsoever of a buyer recovering money if things go south, no arbitration, just the possibility that the seller has ethics, I have buyers
that I've known for years who still use "goods and services", do I whine about paying a little percentage to PayPal? No I do not. Do I
charge people extra for paying that way? No I do not. If a few bucks is going to kill you, you're probably in the wrong hobby.

For the past two years scammers have inundated sales and auction websites. They use shill bidders to buy small items which drives up the perceived good scores. PP
F&F is their preferred payment, as there is little recourse. Venmo is #2, but owned by PP it has the same problems.

Zelle is send and pray. That said it has to have a real bank account associated with it, so there’s a trace to a human.

Kevin, an ad that states payment by FF isn’t an “ask” it’s part of the contractual offer to sell. In buying or winning you have accepted those terms and must legally pay by the stated method or be in default of a legal obligation. Legally and contractually speaking, if you don’t like the payment terms, don’t buy or bid.

I don’t use PP because they screw the seller. I use Zelle to sell, sometimes for items costing thousands. Buyer sends payment via zelle, I get money. Period. If they insist on PP they get negative feedback as non paying buyers, and get blocked. I will not take PP.

One recourse for Matt types is to send payment via USPS MO. Failure of a seller to fulfill their end is a federal crime. USPS isn’t always good at prosecuting, but every now and then they nail serial crooks.

Always check the address of the seller BEFORE you send money. Be smart. Is it in the hood? Is it for sale? Crooks use the post boxes of unoccupied dwellings.

I’m on several no-nonsense forums. Everyone is pretty savvy, but now and then a bunch of members get scammed. Typically someone(s) local go pay a visit. I’ve never asked the outcome, but we never hear from the seller again. Except one guy who’s been “corrected”’a number of times and done time in federal prison twice, you gotta wonder about some people.

I do agree that PayPal does stick the sellers, it's just one of those things that have changed over time, in any event, I think most of us have our
own methods of making safe transactions. I think it's important for the community to be informed of scam activity though, I'm not sure if
the analogy chimes, but it's been ascertained that when someone is finally arrested for drunk driving, they've already done it about 50 times.
I see it the same way with people being scammed- don't just write it off to a bad deal.