More auction fraud - laptop

What is the name of your state? Iowa

In May I purchased a laptop on Yahoo auction from a private seller in South Bend, Indiana - we will call her Jessica (since that is her name).

I promptly mailed a personal check, which Jessica cashed upon receipt. After about four weeks of excuses and stories of damaged shipments and wrong addresses, I asked for a refund. I even sent her (by certified mail) a self addressed stamped envelope. She has since stopped responding to e-mails.

I filed a small claims court case in my county and hired a paper server to serve her the papers but the only address I have is her parents in law and they aren't being helpful.

Do I have any recourse here? I have a copy of the check from my bank with her signature on the back and I imagine since she used the US mail to conduct this fraud, there are some penalties for that...

Please any info is appreciated!

You made a couple of errors. You can sue an out of state person all you want but technically the sale occurred in the sellers state. The judgment you receive in your state won't be worth the paper it's printed on unless you domesticate the judgment in the seller's state. It would have been easier to file in the seller's state to begin with. And you can't claim fraud with the USPS unless the offer to buy the laptop came through the mail too. The US mail was not used as a direct tool to defraud you.

My advice would be to file a complaint with the seller's local police agency then depending on the amount, contact an attorney in the same locale.