prowla

C’mon folks - let’s not make it hard on the mods: No matter what you would personally like to do to the miscreant, let’s not voice it! There’s no need to give his address here. Think before venting, This thread is a really useful resource; let’s keep it going.

🙂 As you can see, I have them saved.

In case anybody is wondering about his bullying and manipulative tendencies, here's couple of excerpts from my messenger conversations with him where he said he was coming to my house "to refund me": Note it includes threats to have my FB profile removed, insults, told me to "give it up", and the assertion that I should "man up". I wasn't going to accept meeting at my house, because one of the members here suggested that he could then not turn up, but post a message along the lines of "Great to meet you earlier and glad we could sort it all out.", which would then turn into a case of his word against mine (even though he is a convicted fraudster, liar, and counterfeiter). I enjoyed suggesting we should meet at the local police station, but the funniest bit was where he said to me "Why lie" - that was a case of the pot calling the kettle black! This is the measure of the man. Then later, further attempts to manipulate events via his proxy "Jason Lear" account: The cover was slipping throughout that Jason Lear conversation, though I played it straight. The "I've a relative who's a lawyer" ruse was fairly transparent, but the telling bit was the "I've (over) £100 too", where he slipped to 1st person.

Good news and welcome here, Jamie; you can understand that many people's suspicion-o-meters are set to high sensitivity at the moment.

Is it possible that the person whose photo was used on that fake account may have found out about it?

We may even find non- bass players joining in - let's make them honourary bass players anyway! 🙂

He claimed he was an admin/friends with many on FB; one group removed my warning a week or so ago.

Keep digging?

The sticky has details of Action Fraud and other information. You can also report to your local police and, of course, your bank.

More people coming forward on FB.

I expect he may appear intimidating, but there is no value in a physical confrontation; that would serve no purpose and help nobody. The danger in physical confrontation is that you don’t know if the other person has skills, is carrying a weapon, or is just plain more of a nutter than you.

I think that there seem to be apparent stages in this: The scam/theft. Denial and subterfuge (for example lies and attempts to cover up). Escalation to bullying and intimidation directed at the victim (including insults, swearing and threats). Outright aggression and threats (for example fabricating smears against the victim or threatening to come to their house). The bullying & intimidation is where it crosses the line from being a simple scam, whereas the aggression and threats constitute a point of no-return; the idea that the scammer can take it that far and then expect their victim to just be happy and walk away when they return their money is somewhat fanciful.

I have one. I do need a replacement pickup surround, though.

Unfortunately those are just too big for me. The bridge would work on a Rickenbacker, though!

Now ain't that something! Precision pickup and a neck position humbucker, plus an (Allparts?) Ric bridge/tailpiece unit (not sure how much wood is left after the cutout for that). Pluggable built-in Fx, including phaser, octave, and filter follower modules.

Just refer to the above posts giving excerpts from the Defamation Act 2013 and advice from various sources and you can easily see that would not apply to this thread, not least because the veracity of people's personal statements (ie. The Truth) could easily be established and thus defeat any claim of defamation.

The Which page (https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/advice/how-to-report-a-scam) gives advice on support for the victims of scams: I would suggest that this thread (and ones on other sites) provide a valuable service to the victims of the particular scam in question; I have certainly found the support and corroborating information to be an immense help.

The Which page (https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/advice/how-to-report-a-scam) also gives advice relating to scam companies, ie. items being offered for sale under the guise of a company (eg. Guitar Garage).

That's a good point about intimidation there. Also, it should be noted that the cases raised with Action Fraud do not automatically terminate on repayment; the attempted fraud is still a criminal activity. Which (https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/advice/how-to-report-a-scam) gives this advice: The Which advice also includes these statements:

Regarding defamation cases, the Defamation Act 2013 (https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2013/26/section/2/enacted) states: There is further advice on a number of sites: https://www.channel4.com/producers-handbook/media-law/defamation/the-defences https://www.daslaw.co.uk/blog/defending-against-defamation-claims https://www.carruthers-law.co.uk/our-services/defamation/defamation-defences/ https://www.blakemorgan.co.uk/a-brief-guide-to-the-tort-of-defamation/ https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/privileges-defenses-defamation-cases.html The fact that there are multiple people who have come forward detailing how they have undergone the same experience, plus several more anecdotal/background stories, would suggest that all three points of Truth, Honest Opinion, and Public Interest can clearly be proven. (Note to self: you can't just precede anything by "IMHO" or "Some might say" as a get-out, though.)

Meanwhile, also on Christmas Day, two more people who haven’t received their items have come forward. After careful consideration, I tend to feel more sympathy for his victims.

That is quite bizarre! It is possible that the namesakes and proximity to Skeggie is a coincidence. Actually my parents had a caravan at Ingoldmells in the 80s (until my dad died there, just walking to the shops).

Also, welcome to BC and Merry Christmas. (I'm just about to put the turkey in...)

Merry Christmas to all the folks here who have been so helpful and supportive - people have got their money back as a result of this pressure. To the watching fraudster(s) - not you!

Read through the sticky post; follow the legal proceedings (Action Fraud, local Police), post (or add comments to existing posts) on FB. He will contact you and threaten you with legal action, try and bully you, etc. Don't rise to it and respond in kind; just stick to your guns.