Out of state rip off

[9erMan]

What is the name of your state? California

In January of 2007 I sent a $3770.00 cashiers check via Fed-Ex Overnight to a guy in Ohio for a custom built BBQ grill. He was supposed to deliver it within 3 to 4 weeks of the date the check cleared which was around January 25, 2007. He still hasn't delivered it, refuses to give me a refund and has cut off all communication with me now.

I posted a complaint in the comments section of the website that had done an article on his BBQ grills and from where I originally found him. Someone else who lives in Alabama saw what I posted and emailed me. It turns out he did the same thing to them. We contacted his local police department and the investigating officer talked to him and got him to promise to send the grill on a specified date. He still didn't send it.

The investigating officer talked to the prosecutor and was told that it was a civil matter and that they weren't going to file charges against the guy we sent our money too. I contacted the Federal Trade Commission and the Ohio Attorney General's Consumer Protection Agency and no one will do anything about it.

I know I can file a small claims case here in California but I don't know if that will do any good or have any teeth to it since he lives in Ohio. I could also file a small claims case in Ohio but the max amount I can seek there is like $2500.00 and then I would have the travel expenses etc.

I really can't afford a lawyer right now so it looks like I am screwed and this guy is going to just keep my money, never send anything to me and law enforcement is going to do nothing about it.

Even if I file a small claims case here in California I don't know how I would have him served, if he would have to honor the court orders from California or if I would ever be able to collect the money even if I win the case.

Am I screwed or is there something I haven't tried that might convince him to return my money or send me what I paid for?

I am going to send a link of this to the folks in Alabama that are dealing with the same thing from the same guy. They might choose to comment on it too.

Thanks in advance for any help anyone can give.
Andrew

 

[Happy Trails]

What is the name of your state? California

In January of 2007 I sent a $3770.00 cashiers check via Fed-Ex Overnight to a guy in Ohio for a custom built BBQ grill. He was supposed to deliver it within 3 to 4 weeks of the date the check cleared which was around January 25, 2007. He still hasn't delivered it, refuses to give me a refund and has cut off all communication with me now.

I posted a complaint in the comments section of the website that had done an article on his BBQ grills and from where I originally found him. Someone else who lives in Alabama saw what I posted and emailed me. It turns out he did the same thing to them. We contacted his local police department and the investigating officer talked to him and got him to promise to send the grill on a specified date. He still didn't send it.

The investigating officer talked to the prosecutor and was told that it was a civil matter and that they weren't going to file charges against the guy we sent our money too. I contacted the Federal Trade Commission and the Ohio Attorney General's Consumer Protection Agency and no one will do anything about it.

I know I can file a small claims case here in California but I don't know if that will do any good or have any teeth to it since he lives in Ohio. I could also file a small claims case in Ohio but the max amount I can seek there is like $2500.00 and then I would have the travel expenses etc.

I really can't afford a lawyer right now so it looks like I am screwed and this guy is going to just keep my money, never send anything to me and law enforcement is going to do nothing about it.

Even if I file a small claims case here in California I don't know how I would have him served, if he would have to honor the court orders from California or if I would ever be able to collect the money even if I win the case.

Am I screwed or is there something I haven't tried that might convince him to return my money or send me what I paid for?

I am going to send a link of this to the folks in Alabama that are dealing with the same thing from the same guy. They might choose to comment on it too.

Thanks in advance for any help anyone can give.
Andrew

It sounds like you are doing everything I would have done so far.

Did the other person that was swindled make a complaint with the police too?

If you did end up suing in small claims court and win, you would still have to try and collect the judgment.

The person that is scamming others would be in violation of - 18 USC § 1341 'Frauds and swindles". However, convincing the DA to prosecute seems to be the problem.

Have you tried posting at "Rip Off Report" and see if you can find others that have fallen victim to this guy's scam?

 

[Zigner]

You would have to serve the defendant in the State of California - see http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp/smallclaims/serve.htm#servedefendant

Of course, as you mentioned, you could travel there and file the case...

 

[JETX]

The person that is scamming others would be in violation of - 18 USC § 1341 'Frauds and swindles". However, convincing the DA to prosecute seems to be the problem.

And of course, that is all crap.

The US Code you provide pertains to MAIL ORDER FRAUD, which we have no evidence that the mails were used.
Second, being a FEDERAL law, would require a FEDERAL prosecutor to bring the charges in FEDERAL court.... which is NOT going to happen for a claim like this.

The ONLY real option is to file a small claims action, preferably in HIS state.... and hope to get a judgment... and hope the guy has sufficient non-exempt assets to enforce the judgment.

 

[Happy Trails]

And of course, that is all crap.

The US Code you provide pertains to MAIL ORDER FRAUD, which we have no evidence that the mails were used.
Second, being a FEDERAL law, would require a FEDERAL prosecutor to bring the charges in FEDERAL court.... which is NOT going to happen for a claim like this.

The ONLY real option is to file a small claims action, preferably in HIS state.... and hope to get a judgment... and hope the guy has sufficient non-exempt assets to enforce the judgment.

In January of 2007 I sent a $3770.00 cashiers check via Fed-Ex Overnight.....

If there are a lot of people that are being scammed by this guy, I would disagree that they wouldn't have a case.

 

[writingmyway]

We also got ripped off from this guy

We live in Alabama. In mid Dec. 2006 we sent $3,370 to this guy to build us a muscle car BBQ custom grill.
6 months later...no grill and no refund. We sent the money in the form of a Cashier's check. He still has a website up....and there is many online magazines that praise his grills. He also was in the cleveland.com paper yesterday, talking about his grills and he had one on display at the Grand Prix this weekend. He lives in OH...we also contacted the police, made complaints as Andrew did above. NOTHING. Althought the police detective in OH was helpful, he paid a visit to this guy, the guy promised to finish our grill and send it out...NOTHING. I dont' want to sit by and let him get away with keeping our money.
Thanks for any advice


Shawn and Donna

 

[9erMan]

If there are a lot of people that are being scammed by this guy, I would disagree that they wouldn't have a case.

Shawn and Donna were ripped off, I was ripped off and we saw at least 1 other complaint on the Ohio Attorney General website of the same thing.

Can I get confirmation that the guy would have to be in California for me to serve him with papers from the California Superior Court? It makes it impossible for me to file a claim here in California if that is indeed true.

I wouldn't file in small claims court in Ohio because I couldn't even get what I paid him back much less the air fair etc. for a court battle nearly 3000 miles away.

There has to be a way to at least threaten criminal charges against this guy if he won't deliver what we paid him for. He isn't going to vanish, he is just laughing in our faces because he knows we will have to spend a fortune to try and get a court order against him.

It just blows me away that someone can just take your money and laugh in the face of the law like this. I now know that "consumer protection" is a myth.

 

[Zigner]

Maybe you need to be contacting the media outlets that print his stories and also the other people who give him "praise". A little public humiliation might do the trick

 

[9erMan]

Maybe you need to be contacting the media outlets that print his stories and also the other people who give him "praise". A little public humiliation might do the trick

We are working on that. It just baffles me that guys like this can get away with something like this and that it isn't criminal.

 

[Happy Trails]

Can I get confirmation that the guy would have to be in California for me to serve him with papers from the California Superior Court? It makes it impossible for me to file a claim here in California if that is indeed true.

.

Unless the defendant falls under the two exemptions that is mentioned in the link Zigner gave you, you would have to have him served in California.

It is better if you filed in the defendan'ts county for a number of reasons, although it will be inconvenient for you.


Small claims court limit in Ohio is $3000.

http://research.lawyers.com/Ohio-Small-Claims.html

 

[JETX]

It just baffles me that guys like this can get away with something like this and that it isn't criminal.

No one, at least on this forum, said it was not criminal conduct. In fact it is. The problem here is that you are an outsider, with a relatively minor complaint against a local citizen (within their community). The local prosecutor simply has deemed it not worth his county's money to pursue your claim... especially since they are likely concerned as to whether you would pay to THEIR county to testify.

I am willing to bet your 'contact' with them was a phone call, correct??
Have you considered WRITING them a letter, sent by certified RRR??
And be sure to include your 'anger' against the conduct of this person and that you are adamant about prosecuting and testifying against them.

 

[9erMan]

No one, at least on this forum, said it was not criminal conduct. In fact it is. The problem here is that you are an outsider, with a relatively minor complaint against a local citizen (within their community). The local prosecutor simply has deemed it not worth his county's money to pursue your claim... especially since they are likely concerned as to whether you would pay to THEIR county to testify.

I am willing to bet your 'contact' with them was a phone call, correct??
Have you considered WRITING them a letter, sent by certified RRR??
And be sure to include your 'anger' against the conduct of this person and that you are adamant about prosecuting and testifying against them.

Now that is something I hadn't considered. I'm Going to give that a try JETX. I will do whatever it takes to show up and testify against this person and I'm sure the other family from Alabama that he ripped off will do the same.

If I can't get my money back or get what I paid for from this dirt bag I want to see him do some time for what he has done and I want to make sure he can't do it to anyone else in the future.

 

[Happy Trails]

Maybe you need to be contacting the media outlets that print his stories and also the other people who give him "praise". A little public humiliation might do the trick

I agree, get the word out.

The two sites I found him on have contact information that you could report it to. (It might not get you anywhere, but you could make them aware of what is going on and maybe they will remove his advertisements.)

http://www.bobvila.com/Global/Contact.html

http://www.whois.net/whois_new.cgi?d=bestmufflers&tld=info

 

[fattttony]

Questions to the OP:

What county is he located in Ohio? If you dont know the county, what city? With a little know-how, you can file suit in common pleas court in his county and get a judgemant larger than the $3K limit on Ohio small claims.

Turn on your private message option, then post back that you have. Otherwise send me a PM with an e-mail address or phone number for yourself. I tried sending you one, but yours is off. I may be able to help you out.

 

[9erMan]

Questions to the OP:

What county is he located in Ohio? If you dont know the county, what city? With a little know-how, you can file suit in common pleas court in his county and get a judgemant larger than the $3K limit on Ohio small claims.

Turn on your private message option, then post back that you have. Otherwise send me a PM with an e-mail address or phone number for yourself. I tried sending you one, but yours is off. I may be able to help you out.

I didn't realize the PM feature was turned off but it is on now. I'll send you a PM with my contact info.