SCAM ALERT

Ok Ladies and Gentlemen,
I can wait no longer, the police are involved and events are developing as I write this. There have been a total of three people including myself that I know of that have sent money to a Mr. Austin Laesch of Peoria, IL. He runs by the name of HeavyHit on this board. His email address is [email protected]. I am sure that there are alias's both with insightbb.com addresses and aliases here on the board. He has recieved $750 from three individuals for a single 60gb empeg mk2a. Austin Laesch is possibly an alias as well. Do NOT I repeat DO NOT buy anything from anyone unless it is through Ebay. Do not deal with this individual, he is nice and cooperative until he gets your money. Until this person is caught I would be extremely wary about buying anything from anyone on this board. If anyone thinks they may have been scammed please call Detective Green, Peoria PD, 309-494-8385 as soon as possible.

If we act quickly we can keep other people from getting victimized and hopefully recoup some of our losses, but most of all put this guy behind bars. My number is 360-440-5647 if anyone would like to contact me directly.

Additionally, I am offering a $200 reward for anyone that helps me recover my money or an empeg. $200 is all I have to offer so if two of you provide the info that gets my shiznit back that is 100 bones each. If anyone lives near Peoria, this may be your lucky day. I can't speak for the others involved but they may wish to add to that reward.

StaHi
(Chris)

Spotted a HeavyHit empeg For Sale post over at SoundDomain...

/Michael

In that case we need to pass this info on to other BBS's

[email protected] is anhother of his email addresses.

http://www.pcabusers.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=1254

belozero also appears to be a possible alias.

Well, I guess a mix-up can be ruled out then ...

The only other info I can add to that which Stahi has already posted is this -

The bank account name that he used was under the name of Roger Laesch (possibly his real name, a relative's name or just another alias). It was the National City Bank, 301 SW Adams St. Peoria, IL 61652.

It would seem his efforts have been quite lucrative so far. Let's hope he is caught and receives his just deserts.

Andy.

Post deleted by jimhogan

THAT IS THE SON OF A BITCHES ADDRESS.

It's a damn shame this happened on the board. I have bought from two different members and I am getting ready to buy from another member. Most of the members I would say are very trust worthy but there has been a rash of new people coming here just to sell empegs and never being heard from again.

I hope you guys are able to recover your money. I looked back on this thread this morning and had figured out who it was. I hope he rots in hell.

Unfortunately he frequents this board and knows everything posted on here.

Send all the email to the detective--see if you can get the dumb bastard to pose with the thing so the cops have an EASIER trail to follow.

Unfortunately he frequents this board

And for that reason I deleted my previous post. Not like it's really critical or anything, but in a case like this in future I would PM anything I tripped across to the primary police contact (stahimooney in this case) until matters are resolved.

Tactics, essentially.

Jim

Deepest sympathy friend,

There is no excuse for dishonesty, if I could help in any way I surely would!

http://www.merlins.org/archives/empeg-forsale/2002-April/001616.html

Username HeavyHit as well as fixed IP address 12.221.51.53 have been banned from this BBS.

If it turns out that the user has been mistakenly accused of the crimes, these bans can be reversed.

Wow... I suddenly have communication. I have pictures. I have a tracking number.

You know what? I am not buying it. I am not stopping this, I am pressing charges.

If I get a working 60gb empeg mk2a--and I am posting the serial to make sure it is not stolen--I will be the first to admit I was wrong and I completely misjudged him. I will publicly kiss some ass. I will drop the charges that I have filed. Email and pictures doesn't change the fact that he has missed deadlines, with NO communication, it doesn't change that there is a HISTORY going back to 1999 of bad deals associated with the name Austin Laesch. Further Andy Stott will get his empeg or his money as well, same for the other gentleman, or the police will continue to pursue this.

If I get my empeg, so what... you don't take someone's money and not keep them informed. I made it VERY clear that I could wait as long as I knew what was going on. He's had the money 8 days and I paid extra for OVERNIGHT shipping, and I hear from him sporadically with missed shipping times; times that HE set?

At this point I feel justified.

Stahi

I haven't heard anything from him yet.

I think the combination of his recently revealed trading history and the fact that his for sale post implied that he only possessed 2 such Empegs (one of his own plus the one he was selling) yet had agreed deals with three separate people, still leaves me suspicious.

With so few NIB 60Gb units still available, I can't see that he is taking orders that he plans to fulfil by buying in the units from elsewhere as he makes deals either.

I hope I am proved wrong, but I won't be holding my breath ...

Austin / Roger, if you are out there, would you care to comment and to clear up this mess ...?

Andy.

If you decide to take empeg, ask for refund of at least on 15-20%. Make him pay.

If smbdy would do this for me, I will ask to compensate my time for $200-$300 in either way. This has to be punished, it is affecting anybody, who is honest by their intentions. And this sucks. Because of one ... you cannot trust people anymore? Make him pay on this.

If I get the product and it is in good working order, I am satisfied that I got what I paid for out of the deal. I am not out to demand compensation simply because I have the attention of the police. I wouldn't feel right about that. "when fighting monsters..." That would be personal gain. If I got $200 refunded that may be Andy's $200 or something like that. On the other hand this isn't over until all the people that claim to be wronged have been satisfied. I think Austin will have to sleep in the bed HE made. Things have a way of evening out. Karma or whatever you want to call it.

Either way we shall see sooner than later methinks.

Still a case for fraud? - selling Overnight mail service and not providing it. I think that he should refund the shipping charges, but at this point I'd be happy just to escape with what i'd paid for...

andys - I hope that your situation gets resolved too.

This has nothing to do with the buyer or sellers in this post, but I thought I would vent out on this post since I'm getting scammed too.

I sold an empeg on ebay for over $600, and the buyer sent me 4 equal paypal payments to equal $600. Then he made a chargeback on the credit card for 3 of the payments, saying that the other 3 were repeat computer errors. Since I accepted all of the seperate payments, and sent to an unconfirmed address, paypal doesn't give a f*ck! I even showed them the ebay auction and emails, and I even got charged $10 for each chargeback losing another $30 on top of the $450. I tried fighting this case for a few months and even contacted some other ebay sellers he did the same thing to. They all gave up, and told me to just take the loss and deduct it from my taxes.

I hate that bullsh!t.

I am the third victim of Mr. Laesch's scheme. I just wanted to post to publicly thank Chris (StaHi) for his diligence and communication early on in these developments as I would not have realized until several vital days later that I may have been scammed. Chris has also been very forthcoming with information that I am currently using to seek recourse and (hopefully) restitution.

In any event, although I don't post often, I have been a member of the empeg community for some time (Mk2: 080000085...full price ;-) ) and have never witnessed anything like this. Hopefully this isn't a sign of things to come w.r.t. the empeg community.

I'll keep everyone posted.

Keith

After reading this thread I checked all my deleted emails. About a month ago I posted a message requesting to purchase a Rio Car. I received an email from an Austin Laeten with email address [email protected]

The surname is slightly different to the other posts, but the email address is identical. He told me he would sell me a sealed 60GB Rio for $650, and to hurry, as he only had a few left.

I didn't purchase the item from him, as I was a bit wary. Just thought I would pass on the info - may be useful? I still have the email if it'll come in handy.

Phil

Again I urge everyone that has had contact with this person to email the detective that I posted earlier. Even if it was relatively harmless, it may provide a missing puzzle piece.

As you know I have been pursuing this both locally, and in Peoria. I have been CC'ing both law enforcement agencies everything I find out, and here is a little feedback from my local Law Enforcement Agency--Chris

My Sergeant has referred this to the FBI, please advise the other victims.
Good luck with your case.
Karen Swanson


From :
"John Sprague" <[email protected]>

To :
"Karen Swanson" <[email protected]>

Subject :
Referral of Internet Fraud Case K02-007985

Date :
Tue, 21 May 2002 00:53:33 -0700

MIME-Version: 1.0
I reviewed the report of the information you received from Christopher Bennet. It appears this was a interstate transaction
facilitated by the internet. I have marked it for forwarding to the FBI, as it appears to be their jurisdiction.

I noticed that Mr. Bennet sent you a "CC" of his E-mail. Could you please send this message to him to that he knows of our having
forwarded the case. Also, for future reference there is a web-site that may be of assistance to citizens in similar situations.
The site is at : http://www1.ifccfbi.gov/index.asp

It is an internet fraud reporting site from the FBI and the National White Collar Crime Center. They have a reporting mechanism
that relates to internet auctions and sales when the merchandise is not delivered.

Sergeant J. Sprague
Kitsap County Sheriff's Office
Port Orchard, WA 98366

mail and wire fraud are serious offenses and are very difficult to extract oneself from without great expense once charged.

I don't have any sympathy at this point he has had EVERY opportunity to avoid this.

I followed the link in the above post and it is very useful for report this type of crime. Hopefully effective also.

Austin,
What about the other two people that you sold a 60gb empeg to and
you recieved $750 each from? People are popping up all over the place
saying that someone in IL ripped them off, and it all sounds very
familiar.

(Austin's Reply)
They will get the empegs too! I shipped it today.. Tracking # is in my car
and it might not be valid yet... (no bullshit) Sometimes it takes awhile
for it to register.. Ask USPS why that is but I don't know.. It will be
there in 2-3 days.

-Austin

It seems like the only way to avoid this in the future is to use a trusted third party to hold everything in escrow and make sure everything is as represented.

Didn't there used to be .com's that would do this for you? Though the one I actualy heard of just required you had proof that you'd shipped anything to the address the money came from... The other option is a trusted member of this board, but that's a lot to ask of someone.

Matthew

I got this Tuesday afternoon approx 3pm Pacific time on 5.21.02

Interesting reading to say the least. 2-3 days for a package to arrive, maybe 2-3 days to haul a$$ out of town... A federal warrant knows no state boundaries if that is the case. On the other hand, I absolutely attest that I will apologize if he follows through. I hope that Andy and Keith get what they want out of the deal too. If I am wrong I don't think a single person here would have done anything different. Ok the possibility exists that he isn't a crook, and I will apologize for that accusation, but he is a horrible businessman.

I am not getting my hopes up and I am still pushing the charges until the package arrives. If...

I absolutely attest that I will apologize if he follows through

I wouldn't. He's had your money for what, 10 days? Whether simply disorganized, somewhat shifty or totally larcenous, this guy brought it on himself. I'd pursue the legal aspects until there is nothing left to pursue -- until everybody's satisfied. But I wouldn't apologize. If you actually get the unit, consider that you might never had received it unless you involved John Law.

(I see they deleted the 2 HeavyHit For-Sale threads on the soundomain BBS)

Jim

We ship a ton of stuff UPS from my office and the Tracking number is generated when the item is tagged for shipment (either a sticker from a book or generated by the UPS software). They are valid from the moment UPS picks up the package. FWIW.

-Zeke

If I had been you I would have reported my player stolen (to customer support), which could have inconvenienced the new owner somewhat in future.

I'm not sure of the legalities there.

Rob

USPS is actually very slow in updating tracking numbers. That's the post office, not UPS. Still, though.. whatever the case may be, as much as you have been jerked around, nail the guy to the wall.

Oops! My bad. I read too quickly. I've never used USPS' tracking system.

-Zeke

Contact that guys credit card company. They *might* do something about it.

No, the moderators at sounddomain didn't delete anything. He deleted them himself after I posted pointers to these threads. First I only posted on the empeg thread, but when that one "disappeared" I looked for more of his posts, and once I posted on the other thread, it disappeared too.

Sure looks like he wasn't to comfortable with having that information around...

/Michael

I chose severe beating.

He can delete all the posts he wants I cut and pasted them.

Airline tickets from Seattle to Chicago $239.00 per person
Rental car for four days $180.00

The look on his face when he opens the door and I am there with a few of my friends... Priceless.

Actually I suspect the knock on his door is gonna be someone a badge and a warrant.

There needs to be one more option:

All of the above

I vote for all of the above too ...

oh, and perhaps decapitation to dissuade him from doing it again ...

Andy.

I agree, Chris has been a complete star over this whole affair and deserves great credit for his efforts.

Andy.

Immersing hand in deep fat fryer seems popular with UK TV crime programme producers. Best when switched on.

Immersing hand in deep fat fryer

... followed by having your head dunked in the hot oil too.

I had hoped Lisa Faulkner would appear in more Spooks episodes, pity they killed her off

You're right, but I wanted to keep it for family consumption, but I can't place where the same dramatic device occurred before: I think it was a fish and chip shop and a protection racket.

And you're right again: A tasty piece, to use a non PC expression.

Got an email from Austin... He swears it is in the mail. He gave me a tracking number (same one in the picture), but either USPS hasn't updated or it is bogus.

My big question is what about Andy and Keith? Assuming he is on the up and up WHO has FOUR 6Ogb Empegs and is willing to part with three of them. It is highly unlikely that this is the case.

My big question is what about Andy and Keith?

Why don't you ask -HIM- that question?

He said in the For Sale post that he only had two Empegs and only one of them was for sale.

I hope you do get the Empeg, but I fear that this may just be more bull to keep you quiet. He may try and claim later that it was 'lost in the post' and that you have 'proof' he posted it because of the tracking number.

I have sent him a couple more emails asking for info on what is happening. I somehow managed to be polite and didn't mention scam or fraud. Unsurprisingly he hasn't replied.

I started off wanting to think the best of him and giving him the benefit of the doubt that it may all just be a mix-up. After all that has happened since and all the new bits of information that have been emerging of late, I find it almost impossible to draw any other conclusion than FRAUD.

Keith, have you had any joy ?

Andy.

I have asked him, read back in the post in this thread or the other.

The last time I received anything from USPS it was a couple of days before it showed up on the tracking page and came before I expected it since the page was never updated to show what day it was being delievered. They aren't very good about it.

Hmmm... makes me wonder... even if he does get the package... what's actually going to be inside the package when he gets it.

I'd say open it with a long pole if yuhknowwhatahmean.

In addition to that you might want to video the actual openning for evidence if case he sent you a package full of coal

I've received zero contact from Austin / HeavyHit since my post. No tracking numbers, pictures, email, etc. In the interim I've contacted Peoria authorities, filed an IFCC complaint, contacted his bank and contacted his ISP.

Chris, I see you're in WA as well. Let me know if you do decide to make a trip to Peoria. I have many friends and family in Chicago as well ;-)

Keith

Delivery Status


You entered 0301 0120 0008 2824 7525


Your item was accepted at 12:56 pm on May 22, 2002 in PEORIA, IL 61601. Status is updated every evening. Please check again later.

Christopher -

Yes actually they have heard from me. I asked Andy for his bank account info to wire back the money. Haven't received that info yet so I cannot do anything on his $750 BONES. I already told you and keith that they would get their money back or the empeg.


09:20 PM 5/23/2002 -0700, you wrote:

Austin,
And what about a tracking number or a refund for Andy Stott? He is the gentleman in the UK. This continues until then. And Keith? Don't forget Keith. Two more tracking numbers for working empegs or 1500 bones brudda (paid to them.) I talked to both of them yesterday and they haven't heard anything from you. And I am DEFINATELY not letting up until I test whatever is in this package out. If it isn't what you advertised I am not dropping charges.

Christopher Bennett


--Andy; DO NOT GIVE THIS PERSON YOUR BANK ACCOUNT INFO. DON'T FALL INTO THIS TRAP (again-we did once already) Demand a US Postal money order or a Cashiers Check. Maybe I am being paranoid at this point but look at the track record. I know you want your money, but don't put blinders on.

Another good way to get payment is to force him to use BidPay. It will generate a money order from their credit card or bank. You get the money order, along with quick confirmation. As soon as his credit card clears, BidPay would send you email confirming the payment was made, they bill him and they send you the money order. If there is any fraud attempted with a stolen card number, BidPay (a division of Western Union) gets after him too...

Whoa, wait a minute... he mailed the package to himself just so he could keep you off his back for another couple days?

I'm just flabbergasted.

Unless 'accepted' means by the postal service from the sender ?

Andy.

I wanna know what takes the police so long. You know the guy's address don't you?

I don't have the details available at the moment (I'm at a client's site at the moment), but he did indeed email me this morning. I had previously asked him various polite questions about what was happening, had there been a mix-up, could he not supply the Empeg, etc.

His reply was short and completely ignored everything that was asked. He just said ' Send me your bank account details, Thanks.' No explanation or apologies for the lack of communication and apparent lack of an actual Empeg to sell.

Somehow, given this guy's track record, I think I'll be asking for an International Banker's Draft or Money Order rather than giving him my account details ...

I suspect he only replied at all because of Chris's persistence and the imminent threat from the FBI, etc. You don't think perhaps that he realises that he might not get away with this one and is desperately trying to buy his way out ?

Who knows ?

Will Keith, Chris and I receive our money back / the promised Empeg ?

We'll have to wait and see.

Andy.

There are a few things that take a little time. He isn't going anywhere. He can leave the state but it is already at the Federal level now. It's multistate fraud so therefore falls under Federal Law Enforcement jurisdiction--specifically the FBI. He can run all he wants but a federal warrant will follow him for life. Other than the worried community here and the people that are the immediate victims, there isn't an urgency in this matter. Actually the longer they take to investigate this the more likely it is they are gonna catch him in the act and have more charges to file. There is a multitude of angles they can approach this from. I would rather they take longer and get the conviction than this guy get off on a technicality. Unfortunately once the arrest is made it DOES NOT necessarily mean everyone gets their money or empegs right away. It may become evidence and if that is the case it won't be released until after a trial and God knows how long that could take.

So as much as I hate to admit it is really in our best interests on the short term if he pays everyone off and the charges are dropped. (If the feds will drop the charges...it may be too late for that.) He would get off the hook for what he has done but we would have our money/empegs alot quicker.

You could file a lawsuit if he doesn't pay/deliver. And if he is convicted, I'm sure that'll be more than enough evidence to win the lawsuit. Also, the judge may include restitution in the sentence, which is probably what would happen. You need to explain to this idiot that it is in his best interest to pay you guys back. He could either pay you back and be a free man, or he could be forced by the court to pay you back and then go to jail. It's his choice.

Well, I must say, this is the most unsettling thread I have ever read in this forum.

I'm sorry to hear this has happend, and I hope you guys get either your money or your empegs. Good luck!

As far as our mystery guest goes, he will get what's comming to him, It's just a matter of time.

It's called karma.

Or Instant Karma, the kind that a plane ticket to Peoria would bring.

As much as I would like to, that isn't the answer. I have a career in the military to worry about and we need to let law enforcement do their job. If they can't or won't bring this guy to justice, then there are other options--most of which don't involve breaking the law.

Personally, I prefer slow, methodical karma, instead of instant. The kind that several trips to Peoria over the course of several months would bring. But I digress...

StaHi is right. We need not be in a hurry, and should at least give the po po a chance.

Well, I've emailed him to tell him that I would like an International Banker's Draft or International Money Order made out to myself in Sterling for the full amount that it originally cost me to send the money to him (£529.00, no more, no less)

I have asked him to send it to me via air mail and have told him that once I have paid it into my account and the funds have cleared, I will inform the authorities that he has returned the money in full. (Obviously I will make it clear that this is only in my case and that others are still awaiting either the Empeg or their money as the case may be).

I am awaiting his response ...

Keith - have you had any progress ?


Andy.
(almost 60Gb Mk2a Blue ...)

Why not an Empeg meet in Peoria? Think of the fun!

> Why not an Empeg meet in Peoria? Think of the fun!

Bring your car, your Empeg, and your shotgun.

Bring your car, your Empeg, and your shotgun.

In his shoes, I would personally get more satisfaction out of punching the [censored] out of the guy with my bare hands.

Our friend isn't Nigerian is he? I am kidding but I don't think much will surprise me after this.--Chris

Six arrested over 'Nigerian e-mail' fraud

Six people were arrested in South Africa over the weekend on suspicion of being involved in the infamous "Nigerian" e-mail and letter fraud.
Four of those detained were Nigerian, one was Cameroonian and the sixth was South African. Police in South Africa believe that the six are part of an international fraud and drug-dealing cartel, sending out thousands of e-mail and letters in an attempt to defraud.

Delivery Status


You entered 0301 0120 0008 2824 7525


Your item arrived at 5:11 am on May 24, 2002 in SILVERDALE, WA 98383. Status is updated every evening. Please check again later

We shall see this afternoon by the looks of it. Oh yea, by the way what the heck is a Cameroonian? That is a new one to me.

http://www.sas.upenn.edu/African_Studies/Country_Specific/Cameroon.html

In his shoes, I would personally get more satisfaction out of punching the [censored] out of the guy with my bare hands.

you can have both, my uncle used to keep a sawed off and a set of brass knuckles behind the counter of his pawnshop. when I asked him what he needed both for he made a good point." any son of a bitch that robs me, is goin to get his knees shot off, then Im goin to beat the [censored] out of him before he dies"

Heh, don't you just love America.

Apologies for the delay...I've been traveling. I received the following e-mail from "Austin" yesterday:

"I got word from Chris that you needed to hear from me. I thought I sent you an email yesterday along with Andys but maybe it didn't go through. I'll be sending your empeg out shortly (within 2-3days) and I will send it USPS priority as I did with Chris. Email you the tracking number and serial off the empeg then."

I am completely amazed. There's no excuse for waiting an add'l 2-3 days given it's been 10 days since he cashed my check or, more importantly, waiting to send me the serial number of the unit.

I kindly reminded him that, in my last message to him (on 5/20) I clearly stated I was no longer interested in completing the transaction and wanted him to return my money via wire transfer. I provided the wire transfer details in my reply today and told him I expect the money to appear in my account by 5PM tomorrow (Saturday).

Chris, did you get an empeg or a box of coal?

Keith

I love it, its great, but I dont blame him after he had two 13 year olds, steal a cadillac drive it through his front door, and steal all the jewelry he had, then just left with the cadillac wrecked half way inside his store. What did the police tell him," man, that sucks" I dont beleive they ever cought those kids.

You entered 0301 0120 0008 2824 7525

I wonder if any "alarm bells" are ringing at the post office because hundreds of people all over the world are checking on that particular shipping number to see if you have gotten your player yet?

tanstaafl.

Knee capping and beating to death is definitely the way to get 13 yr old children back on the straight and narrow.

On a more topical note - any sign of that player yet?

Rob

I think what we have here is a failure to communicate.

Chris -
I still have the 60 gig empeg. IF your interested shoot me an email back.
-Austin

That message was on May 3rd. I paid $750 for a 60gb empeg shipped overnight. I got something today very late but it sure as hell wasn't a 60gb empeg.

What I recieved was a RD100-20, ser#010101499. The twenty in the model number stands for 20gb. This is absolutely unacceptable. It was NOT the one in the picture he sent me a few days ago. This is like "I am booking a flight to Peoria" unacceptable. The box he sent me a picture of had my name written on it with a black marker. The exterior of the box in the picture was brown this one is white. I am not even gonna test the damned thing out, I am giving it to the police as evidence. I am sure his fingerprints are somewhere on the box, or the unit. He owes me $750 or a 60gb empeg. There will be no dropping of charges, no apologies, no nothing. I will NOT send this back to him till I am paid or given a @#$%ing 60gb empeg.

Austion, or should I say Roger... I know you are sneaking in here and reading this under a different IP--you gave yourself away in your email. THIS ISN'T OVER. Not by a long shot. I hope you sleep well while you can.

Austin or Roger or whatever your name is.
You offered me a 60gb empeg for $725, $750 overnight. You sent me a 20gb model. It is different than the one you sent me pictures of. The That is yet again FRAUD. I am turning this one over to the police as I am sure you touched it so they can get the fingerprints and well... it's evidence. The box in the picture was brown, the one you sent was white. I am not unpacking or testing this. I find this unacceptable and I demand that you either send me $750 or a working 60gb empeg. Once I get it and verify that the money order is good and/or verify the 60gb empeg works, I will send whatever this one is you sent me. (20gb by the model number.)

You better start tap dancing cause I am not dropping the charges. Don't [censored] me again. I know who you are. I know where you live. I know you are a criminal and I know the FBI is making an airtight case against you for interstate wire fraud. That is a felony. You can run if you want but a federal warrant will follow you everywhere. I don't think there is anything that you can do right now to set this straight. I don't know if you smoke crack or what but you are screwed up. No more 2-3 day [censored]. I want a money order (USPS) or a 60gb empeg that works OVERNIGHTED. I don't care if you have to charter a private plane to get it here.

You will be hearing alot more about this.

THIS ISN'T OVER. Not by a long shot. I hope you sleep well while you can.

Hmmmm. Military..... Kitsap County.....

Chris, you understand that retargeting of Trident test shots is considered *hugely* uncool, right?

What's a Trident?

Greetings!

Interesting. That serial number seems pre-fire sale. It is low. Perhaps it is registered with empeg. It is not on the registry on the developer BBS. I know you don't want to loose the fingerprints, but it would be worthwhile to see if it is a 60GB unit. In any case:

a) 20GB, he is screwed, sending the wrong product
b) 60GB original, wrong box maybe or just dumb
c) 60GB upgraded with seals broken, he is screwed if he misrepresented it as "under warranty"

Check with your law enforcement contacts for advice. It might be more evidence, especially after they lift any identifying fingerprints, etc. Also, is it in the stolen list?

If I remember correctly, a type of submarine with rather nasty missile armaments. Nuclear?

Correct.

Yeah if I were you I'd at least open the box to see what's in it. It's possible the 60gig box was damaged so he used another one.

It is a 20 gig.

Off with his head!

Btw I know what a trident is but I am not at liberty to discuss anything about them.

Chris, that is a real bummer. I had hoped that "Austin" might have realised the error of his ways and was actually trying to make good. It seems not.

Myself, I haven't heard anything from him for three days. I can only assume he doesn't wish to take this one opportunity to save his skin by fully reimbursing all three of us.

His lack of explanation, apology, or even in my case any communication at all is downright offensive to say the least.

"Austin", if you are out there, this is your last chance to make amends. Get in touch and send proof that the International Banker's Draft for £529 Sterling is on it's way to me, or this goes 'all the way' - irrespective of whether you repay all three of us or not.

The choice (your last) is yours.

Andy.

On a happier note, I am now the proud owner of a new 60Gb Mk2a.

My thanks to Gareth who advertised the unit on this BBS. It was a pleasure dealing with him - plenty of communication, fast delivery, a fair price and an item exactly as described. (A far cry from a certain other individual we all know and love ...)

I hope this note offers some reassurance to those still looking to buy an Empeg via this BBS. There are still many honest and trustworthy people out there. Just watch out for the others ...

Andy
60Gb Mk2a Blue (Woohoo !!!)

There are honest people on here! I bought my Rio via the BBS just a couple of weeks ago. I was even offered a 60GB by Austin! Lucky escape for me there I think!

My thanks to Cyberco for a great sale.

Didnt mean to say that I was suggesting to do that to a couple of 13 year old kids, I simply meant with that kind of stuff going on, I can't blame him for getting ideas like that.

Have there been any more developments on this matter?

I can't speak for the others, but so far "Austin" is refusing to even reply to my emails. I can only assume that he has no intention of making good and wishes us to proceed with prosecution to the full extent of the law.

Andy.

Same here.

The police are pursuing the matter. I have faith that Mr Laesch will be caught soon as he has left a trail that a blind man could follow.

Sorry to dig this up, but I've had an email from an Austin of CLM-Mods with the email address [email protected] which I noted was the same domain as the one your Austin used.

He has offered me new 20gb Mk2a for $600 - I have MAJOR doubts so will not be buying. What was the final outcome though? I heard he came back on the bbs?

This is the first that I've read of the scam (new to the forum), but I have noticed that Ebay user clm-mods has been sniping auction after auction of Empegs, so they at least have a supply. You can usually find the sold units relisted on Ebay a couple of weeks later. The last post caught my eye, because I had been watching nearly every Empeg on Ebay and had seen clm-mods pop up countless times with last second bids. Perhaps it is the same Austin, offering Empegs before they're actually in his possession (hence the delays in shipping)?

Can I get a lock on this thread or better yet have it deleted all together? I have fullfilled my promises to everyone.

clm-mods is clearly the same Austin: The auction he refers to
here
was sold by clm-mods.

Of course, there's no indication he has poor business practices or that anyone has a bone to pick with him, either. Sniping is hardly a unique thing; There are several proxy bid agents that do it. Until people start actually bidding the maximum they're willing to pay when they bid the first time, there's no reason to stop sniping, either. Once everyone starts sniping, it effectively becomes a sealed bid auction, and truthfully I think that would be fine.

Can I get a lock on this thread or better yet have it deleted all together? I have fullfilled my promises to everyone.

Err, no in fact, I very much hope that will not happen.

This is the kind of information I for one would want to see if I were in the market for a used empeg. I think you have clearly stated that you fulfilled your obligations to everyone so your side of the story is represented. I think it is important that the extreme inconvenience and worry you caused some of your customers also remains visible, so people can make an informed decision about their purchase.

I'll keep my opinions about people who profiteer from our small community to myself, however.

Rob

Of course, there's no indication he has poor business practices

..so the fact that people didn't get their empegs (or refunds) until the FBI were involved is a good business practice? I don't think we ever saw an in depth explaination of the whole episode, but while it may not have been malicious neither does it instill me with confidence about the vendor.

Rob,

For one I've saw it take others much longer to ship empegs that it did for me. TTony? If I recall right it took him almost 2 months or better to get a few of his shipped. Also
I have explained this situation to the people directly involved but since you also need to know.. I was going through a bad time in my life and my dad was in very bad health condition and in the hospital. I really do not feel the need to go into every little detail. However if this was ever a scam (which it wasn't) 1) people would never have got empegs 2) I would've never used my REAL name, REAL address, REAL ph. number, REAL email, etc.

Thanks.

I purchased an Empeg from clm-mods on ebay in the middle of January. I had no problem other than leaving feed back.. He is not a registered user??? and I had to recontact him to get him to sign back up. I have bought several empegs on ebay 4 or 5 using different names, my reason is I don't use ebay often and am old, can't remember passwords.. Hope all goes well in getting your empegs or money back. This post is at his request.

I never said that his bidding practices were illegal or unethical, it's just that I remembered the username clm-mods based solely on that observation (of sniping). I was just saying that he was bidding and winning several auctions of Empegs so he obviously had at least a small supply. Now whether or not he was selling Empegs that he didn't actually have in his possession at the time is another story, and the only person who knows that, or can prove it, is Austin.

On a side note, I did happen to look up clm-mods on eBay to see if he was indeed the seller from Peoria, but the username was recently suspended, and the user's location was changed from Peoria, Il to Fast Shipping...

Yes I have parted with ebay pretty much. They got nasty about me putting in "Will accept paypal but buyer must cover fees" type of line in my auctions. I would only do this on high dollar stuff because after paying ebay fees then getting hit again with paypal fees then still have to ship it all adds up quick. As you can see my feedback on ebay is all good.

I changed my location from Peoria, IL to Fast Shipping because I seen other ebay people do the same thing. Usually I do ship fast too except back in May 2002 when I had some problems.

Also this is just a hobby. I like to keep several around. While it appears I have bought a lot off ebay most have actually came through private deals.

They got nasty about me putting in "Will accept paypal but buyer must cover fees" type of line in my auctions.

The new Paypal terms say you can't do that. I bet the old ones did too.

Can I get a lock on this thread or better yet have it deleted all together? I have fullfilled my promises to everyone.

My official admin stance on this. No. I have however bumped the other thread that covers the resolution to this issue, and advise everyone interested in dealing with you to read it. For archive purposes, the link is here. I will not censor this board with issues like this, as potential buyers have the right to see what has happened in the past.

I think you still owe me $30 .. ?

Nope. $810 paid in full. $30 was sitting unclaimed in paypal. Should be fine now.

Can I get a lock on this thread or better yet have it deleted all together?

I think you are thinking wishfully on the wrong BBS.

Rob, Tom, I appreciate your clear-headed stance on this.

"For one I've saw it take others much longer to ship empegs that it did for me. TTony? If I recall right it took him almost 2 months or better to get a few of his shipped."

Those involved in the group purchases knew it would take some time. In order to get the low gp prices, I had to collect everyone's payment up front and then go to the distributor. The units then shipped to me and were shipped out within 2 days of arrival to me. I do not know of anyone with whom it took 2+ months. Please do not associate me with any dishonest business practices, I did not make promises of overnight shipment.
Thank you,
-TTony

All sorted out now, thanks!

If looks like stahimooney was made reasonably happy here: http://empeg.comms.net/php/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=sale&Number=106535&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=0&fpart= .

I personally love the pictures of one box (with the name written on it) and shipping of a totally different box.

I just read the thread and it reminded me of another similar incident posted here. The guy in this thread got stiffed for over $3k, and with all of the help from the other posters in the thread he was able to catch the crook!!! It's really a fascinating story if you read the thread in order. The story of how the capture went down is on the last page of the thread because the link to the story he posted on the 3rd page no longer works.

It just goes to show - when you involve enough intelligent people - you're bound to come out ok in the end. And I'm glad "Austin" made "good" on his promises.

- trs

looks like it works to me.

Ah - great.