Craigslist: 2004 Ford F150 Lariat

Scammer email: [email protected]; Phone: 651-321-7100

Browsing craigslist I found a 2004 Ford F-150 Lariat. The description:

Selling my 2004 Ford F-150 Lariat 5.4 Lariat, 8 Cylinder. The truck is in great condition and fully up to date on all maintenance. 89000 Miles, Color: Beige, Leather Interior, Fog Lights, Tinted Windows, Short Ram Air Intake, Sliding Sunroof, 6 Speakers, CD player, Air Conditioning, Rear window defroster, Power steering, Power windows, Remote keyless entry, 4-Wheel Disc Brakes, ABS brakes, airbags, Low tire pressure warning, Automatic headlights, Plus much more.

Asking $3,000, If interested please give me a call or text me @ 651-321-7100.

I called the provided phone number three times before sending a text message. Finally I got a reply saying

Hi I posted this for my sister. Email her at [email protected] for more info

Before emailing I looked it up on KBB and found that even at "fair" condition the truck was priced around $9000. With my spidy senses now tingling, I sent this:

Hello,

I’ve got some questions about the truck you’re selling, if it’s still for sale. So, here I go:

1. Is there a reason you’re selling the truck for $6000 below the estimated value?
2. In what city is the truck?
3. When would be a good time to go take a look at the truck and hopefully make the transaction?

Thank you for your time.

The reply:

Hello,

My name is Jennifer, and I'm emailing you about 2004 Ford F-150 Lariat with an gasoline engine, automatic transmission and only 89,600 miles. Never had or need any paint/body work done, garaged keep always, without any mechanical problems, tires and wheels are in great shape as well, electric is working perfectly. The engine 5.4L V8 gas, runs very good and the automatic transmission shifts perfectly. Has a clean and clear US title in my name and there are no liens or loans on it. This truck has been used by my husband who died 4 months ago. The price was reduced at $3,000 because I'm in a hurry to find a buyer. I need to sell the truck before the end of the month, when I will be leaving on military duty with my medical team out of the country for a year and do not want to store it. Hate to sell it but its not worth keeping insurance and paying storage fees for a year. Also, the truck is too big for my daughter so there's no use on keeping it. If you are interested in buying it or if you have any questions, please reply to this email.

For more pictures here is a link to the truck gallery:
http://postimg.org/gallery/384i1gltc/

I look forward to hearing from you,
Jennifer Atkinson

In a rush to sell? And in the military?
Hitting two popular scam scenarios, oddly repeating the vehicle description, and dodging both questions 1 and 2... Something was definitely wrong. So I played along a bit hoping to get a definite vehicle location.

Hello (again),

Everything about the truck sounds great and you may as well consider the truck sold. When and where can I pick it up?

The reply:

Hi again,

Right now I'm in a military base. We are training, getting ready for leaving the country. The delivery process will be managed by me. I think I can have it there at your home address within 3 working days. It will come with a clear title and reg. I am a member of the eBay buyer protection program and using this service you will get a 7 days testing period after delivery. During that 7 days testing period I will not be getting any money. I need to know if you are interested so I can ask eBay to send you the details on this deal. If interested just email with your legal name (your right full name 'cause it will appear on the papers), full postal address where you want the vehicle delivered and your cell phone # where you can be reached so we can get the ball rolling.

I looked it up on eBay and of course the truck wasn't even listed. Scam, scam, scam! Finally I asked how the payment will be made, and am currently waiting on a response about how ebay will hold the money even though they don't.

Be cautious of anyone in a rush to sell because of some elaborate back story, or pretending to be in the military!

Scammer email: [email protected]; Phone: 651-321-7100

Browsing craigslist I found a 2004 Ford F-150 Lariat. The description:

Selling my 2004 Ford F-150 Lariat 5.4 Lariat, 8 Cylinder. The truck is in great condition and fully up to date on all maintenance. 89000 Miles, Color: Beige, Leather Interior, Fog Lights, Tinted Windows, Short Ram Air Intake, Sliding Sunroof, 6 Speakers, CD player, Air Conditioning, Rear window defroster, Power steering, Power windows, Remote keyless entry, 4-Wheel Disc Brakes, ABS brakes, airbags, Low tire pressure warning, Automatic headlights, Plus much more.

Asking $3,000, If interested please give me a call or text me @ 651-321-7100.

I called the provided phone number three times before sending a text message. Finally I got a reply saying

Hi I posted this for my sister. Email her at [email protected] for more info

Before emailing I looked it up on KBB and found that even at "fair" condition the truck was priced around $9000. With my spidy senses now tingling, I sent this:

Hello,

I’ve got some questions about the truck you’re selling, if it’s still for sale. So, here I go:

1. Is there a reason you’re selling the truck for $6000 below the estimated value?
2. In what city is the truck?
3. When would be a good time to go take a look at the truck and hopefully make the transaction?

Thank you for your time.

The reply:

Hello,

My name is Jennifer, and I'm emailing you about 2004 Ford F-150 Lariat with an gasoline engine, automatic transmission and only 89,600 miles. Never had or need any paint/body work done, garaged keep always, without any mechanical problems, tires and wheels are in great shape as well, electric is working perfectly. The engine 5.4L V8 gas, runs very good and the automatic transmission shifts perfectly. Has a clean and clear US title in my name and there are no liens or loans on it. This truck has been used by my husband who died 4 months ago. The price was reduced at $3,000 because I'm in a hurry to find a buyer. I need to sell the truck before the end of the month, when I will be leaving on military duty with my medical team out of the country for a year and do not want to store it. Hate to sell it but its not worth keeping insurance and paying storage fees for a year. Also, the truck is too big for my daughter so there's no use on keeping it. If you are interested in buying it or if you have any questions, please reply to this email.

For more pictures here is a link to the truck gallery:
http://postimg.org/gallery/384i1gltc/

I look forward to hearing from you,
Jennifer Atkinson

In a rush to sell? And in the military?
Hitting two popular scam scenarios, oddly repeating the vehicle description, and dodging both questions 1 and 2... Something was definitely wrong. So I played along a bit hoping to get a definite vehicle location.

Hello (again),

Everything about the truck sounds great and you may as well consider the truck sold. When and where can I pick it up?

The reply:

Hi again,

Right now I'm in a military base. We are training, getting ready for leaving the country. The delivery process will be managed by me. I think I can have it there at your home address within 3 working days. It will come with a clear title and reg. I am a member of the eBay buyer protection program and using this service you will get a 7 days testing period after delivery. During that 7 days testing period I will not be getting any money. I need to know if you are interested so I can ask eBay to send you the details on this deal. If interested just email with your legal name (your right full name 'cause it will appear on the papers), full postal address where you want the vehicle delivered and your cell phone # where you can be reached so we can get the ball rolling.

I looked it up on eBay and of course the truck wasn't even listed. Scam, scam, scam! Finally I asked how the payment will be made, and am currently waiting on a response about how ebay will hold the money even though they don't.

Be cautious of anyone in a rush to sell because of some elaborate back story, or pretending to be in the military!

So I was in the market for buying another used truck for my business and went to Craigslist. I responded to a few different ads and one of them responded with a text message asking for my email address for more pictures and details. So I did. Then I got an email a couple days later that said as follows:

Hello my name is Tracy Spillman, and I'm emailing you about my 1998 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Z71 4x4 with an gasoline engine, automatic transmission and only 110 K miles. Never had or needed any paint / body work done, garage keep always, without any mechanical problems, tires & wheels are in great shape as well, Electric is working perfectly. The engine is a v8 5,3L, runs very good and the automatic transmission shifts perfectly. has a clean and clear title in my name and there are no liens or loans on it. This truck was used by my husband who died 3 months ago. The price was reduced at $1,500 because I must sell it in maximum 10 days, because I will be leaving the country on military duty with my medical team for 18 months and do not want to store it. Hate to sell it but its not worth keeping insurance and paying storage fees for a year. Also, the truck is not what my son wants so there's no use on keeping it. I can send more photos if interested.

Regards"

Well, since there was never such a thing as a 5.3 liter engine in any of Chevy's trucks, I became a little suspicious. Also no one in their right mind would sell this truck for that low of a price when it could easily be sold for three times the amount in the same amount of time based on the value the poster claimed. So I researched and not only found that they used a Google number, but discovered your post here as well. Armed with the info you provided, I emailed back with a preemptive response saying:

"I'm sorry to hear about the passing of your husband. It must be so hard since you've lost so many husbands in the last couple years. In fact, due to your service to our country, and your many losses, I'm offering you double your asking price.

The truck sounds great. I can't wait to buy it. Since you are at a military base and getting ready for leaving the country, I'll assume that you will be managing the delivery process yourself? If it's not too much trouble, I would prefer if you can have it delivered to my home address within 3 working days.

Are you a member of the eBay buyer protection program? That would be great if you are, that way you could let eBay know to send me the details on this deal and I could test the truck for 7 days. I would really like to get the ball rolling, so let me know if you want my full legal name, address and my cell phone number. I love giving widowed veterans all my private info.

Regards"

So far, after 3 days, no response....

The same number (651-321-7100) is now being used in fake craigslist ads for sports/concert tickets.