Australian scam?

[Griff]

From:MIL
Date: Fri Jun 4, 2010 6:29:23 PM US/Eastern
To: "Orson"
Subject: Re: Bear with me

OK.. walk me through this step by step so I'll know exactly what to do. Will I need to fill out a customs slip or will your guy be doing that? The package is ready to go so just let me know what to do to get your pickup guy here to get it. I'll put your credit card charges through and do the Western Union thing. What does a logistics agent do? What is the currency in Australia? Tell me more about who your shipper is (pick up person) so I'll know it's him and can get some kind of receipt. Where are the other things you've ordered coming from and how does he get it all coordinated? It sounds so complicated, any explanation to simplify it for me will help.
Thanks,
Jan

[Griff]

From: Orson
Date: Sat Jun 5, 2010 2:35:04 AM US/Eastern
To: MIL
Subject: More Clearer....

Jan,

Thanks for waiting to read from me and for your effort on my order.

There is no stress in what you want to do for me and that is why I want to compensate you.

Firsly, you don't need to fill out any customs slip/form, my shipper would take care of everything. All you need to do is to get the package ready at your address and I'll notify you when my shipper would be coming for the pick up and all the details you will need to identify him when he comes. Logistic Agent also means shipping agent, OK.

Secondly, you don't need to send the shipping fees my shipper in Australian $$$. You are going to send it to my shipper in USD, OK.

I'll make sure I emailed you all my shipper's details, so that you can identify them when they come for pick up and have ordered some order items around you like sculptures, engagement & wedding band which I want everything to be picked up at once plus the prints I ordered from you.

Please understand me and that is why I put my vote of confidence in you to help me charge the shipping fees to my shipper.

Let me know if I can email you my cc details to charge now so that we can proceed.

Regards

Orson.

[Griff]

Clearly a scam, now how do I convince someone who believes everyone is good to stop communicating with this guy?

[glatt]

I have to admit that I didn't read the whole thing, but is he asking her to pad the credit card bill by an extra couple hundred bucks, and then she pays her own cash to the shipper? If she's putting her own cash into the deal, and then he disputes the card charges, she's left holding the bag. Or if the credit card number is a freshly stolen one and the transaction cancelled later by the card company, she's again left holding the bag.

She should insist that he pay her, and he pay the shipper. She shouldn't pay anything. She's probably violating the terms of her deal with the credit card company if she gives him what is basically a cash advance.

[Griff]

I think you nailed it, paying extra to use a shipper who does not use credit cards seems to be the red flag to focus on... My MIL hates it when people tell her what to do, so now I must carefully get her to see the scam for what it is. Thanks Glatt, I think you've given me the angle I need. g

[glatt]

I don't know how credit card payments are processed, but my gut tells me that he doesn't want to buy anything, that the address is fake, that the "shipper" doesn't exist, and that once she sends him the money, she'll find out that the credit card payment somehow doesn't go through.

As a rule though, strangers on the internet asking you to send money someplace by Western Union are always a scam.