please help need advice

[bagofpoop]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Indiana

ok with being out of work and all as I was searching for work on careerbuilder i noticed a survey company asking for workers to take surveys at different locations in Indiana. so after several emails back and forth this guy says that he will be sending me on evalautions up to 4 a week. and they pay a falt rate of $150 each. so i immediatley tell him via live chat that i am not putting any of my money up front to do anything and that i do not have a bank account. so a few days pass and he offers me a evaluation officer job, he said that i would be collecting cash via western union or picking up money orders and sending the cash to other members so a few weeks go by and yesterday he says that someone has sent me 3 money orders totalling $2250 and he even gave me the tracking number. so i ask him what i need to do and he says well when you get the money orders deposit them in your bank and western union the money to someone in nigeria and i would deduct my 8% fee before i western union the money.
again i tell him that i have no bank account, i tell him these scams are all over dateline lol so he says no this is legit. so at this point im trying to figure out what the scam is here.so this guy from the survey company gave me the tracking number, so i see the overnight mail left from the senders state yesterday and was in fact headed for Indpls. so this guy tells me that he gave the sender the wrong address for me. so this morning i go to the post office right as they open and the post office had my package. so they take my id and make me sign for the package. i open the package and there was 3 money orders 2 for $1000 each and 1 for $250 so i ask the post office to confirm if they was real money orders, these money orders was USPS money orders and the post office ran a check and said they was legit. so i was so dumbfounded as to why this guy whom i dont know would send me this money. this was arranged through this guy from the survey company. so im thinking this guy from the survey company has scammed this guy maybe. anyway i have cashed the money orders at a cash checking place and this guy wants me to send the money via western union to nigeria. so here is my question
what happens if i dont send the money to him ?
I know this is some sort of a scam, it has to be so does this sender have any recourse at all?
on all 3 money orders it says on the memo line for painting
i really dont want to send this money to nigeria

 

[bagofpoop]

any advice would be greatly appreciated

 

[eerelations]

It's not your money, and this IS some sort of scam (no matter what anybody tells you).

If I were you, I would:

1. send the money to Nigeria
2. immediately cease all communications of any kind with these people

 

[Antigone*]

You really messed up by cashing those money orders. That check cashing places is going to be out that money when they finally do come back counterfeit.

I don't know that sending the money to Nigeria is a good thing. Keeping the money is not the thing to do either. I would go straight to the police and speak to them about this.

 

[bagofpoop]

the money orders are not counterfeit the post office confirmed that they was good and they even cashed one of them

 

[bagofpoop]

so with the money orders not being fake, what is the scam here? here is what i think

the guy from the survey place scammed this person from wisconsin and had him send me the money orders, 3 of them all legit and not fake

or

the guy from the survey place and the guy from wisconsin is the same person and is just trying to get scammed funds to nigeria but if that was the case i dont see why he wouldnt do this himself.

 

[patstew]

the money orders are not counterfeit the post office confirmed that they was good and they even cashed one of them

I work at a police department, and this happens ALL the time. The USPS says they're fine, then later they turn out not to be.

Report it to the police. Like, yesterday.