Thinkpads Forum

So Bill, in general, if the receiving person has an account at the Bank of America, it's rather safe to conclude that it's all legit.

I just get the jeepers from this thread since I'm about to embark in a sub 1k transaction (it not beeing too sub.)

This doesn't mean I don't trust you Yak, I'm just getting a lil cold feet because of the recent news and I wish all to go wel, for Yak to have his $$$ and for me to have my tabby!

Oh and HarryC... that s*cks indeed.
If we can help you by donating - say 10€ - a head to help get you a T4x for your kid, just let us know. Cheating somebody out of money is one thing, cheating a kid out of getting the stuff he needs for his education is a whole other ballpark.
(Students look out for other students and since I am one myself I feel obliged to make you this offer.)

If only every man was integer and godfearing like the days of yore...

(I'm not terribly religious but I just adore this saying, since it holds truth.

Good luck man, and keep your head up, we'll get you trough this!

Yak has had my $$$ a few times and he always sent the goods but if you feel nervous about it have Bill escrow it for you. It will be money well spent for peace of mind.
I have used Bill's escrow before and while it cost me more money there were no worries and it was worth it. That was the next transaction after I almost got burned for a grand.

easily_rechargable wrote: If we can help you by donating - say 10€ - a head to help get you a T4x for your kid, just let us know. Cheating somebody out of money is one thing, cheating a kid out of getting the stuff he needs for his education is a whole other ballpark.

I am coming to realize that the quality folks on this forum is outstanding. I really can't accept charity, but I do have a thread going in Marketplace. If you see anything you need, please buy it. The money is going towards a replacement T41 for my son (or similar)
Thank-you

I have had a lot of transactions with Yak and he is genuninely nice person. He has been here for a long time (though you don't see many posts) and is a trusted member.

In 2004 I was scammed to the tune of $4000 by an ebay seller for 4 new Thinkpads. I had done business with him previously and thought him trustworthy. Two weeks later, and after it had become apparent that I was going to have to file charges against this guy, he declared bankruptcy. In the filings I received in the mail, the list of creditors totalled 180 different people & organizations, and the total dollars involved amounted to almost HALF A MILLION DOLLARS!

My lawyer's advice was to move on.. 1. He was in British Columbia, I am in Ontario. 2. The proceeds from the bankruptcy (if any) wouldn't even cover the lawyers' fees.

Fast forward two years. I get an email (and subsequent snail mail correspondance & phone calls) from a corporal in the R.C.M.P Fraud Squad, in B.C. They have decided to not only BLOCK his discharge from bankruptcy, but are proceeding on criminal fraud charges against him. They requested copies of my emails, etc with him, which I was only too happy to provide. The case is progressing, and should be brought to trial later this year. We can only wait. Whether we ever receive any renumeration is another story. They are still tracking down where this guy has hidden his assets.

As an interesting side note, Paypal was ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY NO HELP at all in any of this. In fact, they were one of the main creditors listed, with over $100,000 in claims.

Harryc, believe me, I know where you're coming from, and hope it turns out well for you. I know it took me awhile to get my faith in human nature restored after the incident.

Regards. Dave

I posted a comment in this thread, why was it deleted?

spotter wrote:I posted a comment in this thread, why was it deleted?

Are you sure that the comment actually posted? As Mods and Admin, we generally move comments out to a hidden section for review, if need be, but not delete them.... There were no comments from you pulled into that section...

pretty sure it was posted, since I'm subscribed to the thread. I posted a comment about a theater in chicago that was advertising something being put on by the name HarryC posted.

spotter wrote:pretty sure it was posted, since I'm subscribed to the thread. I posted a comment about a theater in chicago that was advertising something being put on by the name HarryC posted.

Spotter, thanks I have that information. No need to repost.

olex126 wrote: Harryc, believe me, I know where you're coming from, and hope it turns out well for you. I know it took me awhile to get my faith in human nature restored after the incident.

Regards. Dave

Dave, thanks. Sorry to hear about your financial loss and that it works out for you in the end.

BillMorrow wrote:using google maps:

7253 S Christiana Ave.
Chicago, IL 60629

I bought something from Orevin though the forum a while back, amnd since we're both in Chicago I swung by and picked up the item in person. I don't recall the exact address, but it sure wasn't on the south side, nor a house; it was a small, rear-facing apartment on the north side. He could have moved since then, I guess.

You might want to try chicago.craigslist.org - I've seen him sell stuff there as well. Like other posters, I'm surprised at the problem.

I, too, am very sorry to hear about this situation and loss.

It does seem that there may be some extenuating circumstances.

Participating on this board and completing other sales/purchases over a long period of time all for the payoff of an old laptop (no disrespect meant) and $350 doesn't make much sense.

Like previsously posted, either some situation arose (and will hopefully be cleared up and made up for) or Orevin is a very bad thief.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I personnaly like the idea of Bill offering (not requiring) escrow for $25.00. $50.00 is a little steep (although potentially worth it) and perhaps Bill can make it up or more in volume.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

In general, great board and great, helpful community.

easily_rechargable wrote:* * *

This doesn't mean I don't trust you Yak, I'm just getting a lil cold feet because of the recent news and I wish all to go wel, for Yak to have his $$$ and for me to have my tabby!

* * *

I have had several transactions with John, and I, like many others here, am very comfortable dealing with him. I personally would have no concerns. However, if I were in a situation where I just could not get past the notion of dealing with someone I did not personally know, but I wanted to proceed with the transaction anyway, Bill's escrow service be a great option.

The odds of you getting scammed by both John and Bill have to be worse than me winning the lottery (and I never even buy a ticket).

Rex

Faith has helped me passed my feeling, the money is already well on it's way to Yak and soon I'll have my new TP baby!

Yay!

Any progress, HarryC? How is your work with the Chicago PD?

bigtiger wrote:Any progress, HarryC? How is your work with the Chicago PD?

Thanks for asking. I am not working with the Police on this. It is mail fraud, so I am working with the postal inspector.

Harry, I just stumbled across a piece of information that might be relevant here. You may already know this, but who knows?

In the NBA thrad (off-topic forum) Orevin says he supports the Mavs because he is German:

Being german, I'm kind of a fan of the Mavs. However, my sympathy is shifting dramatically towards the Warriors. I never saw them playing during the regular season, my loss! They are so much fun to watch, just like the Suns! Well, then there are the Bulls. Impressive how the beat the Heat... I will definitely go to at least on game when they host the Pistons. Will be my first NBA basketball game I watch live in an Arena!

Now, from my experience, many Americans claim to be German, Italian, Irish, Chinese etc., referring to their heritage rather than their country of citizenship.

However, there is one interesting feature in Orevin's posting: he talks about his sympathy. It went unnoticed, but there is something strange about the sentence: if you root for a team there is usually no sympathy that can shift (except you are from Portland and a Blazers fan ).

Now, here it gets interesting: There is a German word "Sympathie" which DOES NOT translate to English "sympathy" but rather to something like "favor, love, affection" etc. Although these are also possible meaning of "sympathy," Americans rarely use the word in that sense (they usually mean "pity" etc.).

Many, many Germans speaking English use sympathy the way Orevin does, which leads me to the assumption that Orevin is indeed a German citizen. While I feel ashamed that a fellow German behaves so dishonestly, this might be a good thing. Chances are that Orevin was an international student or even an exchange student who thought he might make some easy money before leaving the U.S.

This is pure speculation, of course. But if you have Orevin's real name, you might want to check German Google and databases. It is almost impossible being German and not having some information about you on the net.
You might even want to talk to the Chicago authorities and point them to the major Chicago universities to see if they have the name in their registers.

Thanks for the insight. I kind of figured he/she was German. It came through is the emails/PM's to me and in the threads here. Most Germans (or any non-english native speakers/writers for that matter) write like they speak.

If you need any help, and if the cops can't help you further, PM me Orevin's real name anytime, and I'll try my luck checking some German online directories, white pages etc. for you.
Good luck!

The name he provided is posted on the second page of this thread. However, it doesn't strike me as particularly German, and a similar meaning of Sympathie can be found in other languages as well. (Then again, nothing's to say he isn't German through his mother, or used a real name for that matter...)

True, but he said he's from Germany which seems consistent with some features in his language use. The good thing is I'm a trained linguist (woah! I can actually use something learned in college! ). I'll look up a couple of postings to see if there are more distinct patterns indicating German as Orevin's native language. All I can say at present is that his English is very good - too good probably for a mere exchange student.

The name Harry provided me with is a German name. A very uncommon name, but German.

Ironically, Harry, translated to English the last name is 'handle of a pan' or 'panhandle'. I'm tempted to see a meaning here, but I'm probably getting carried away playing detective.

First of all, you can't do a thing about a Postal Money Order for around 90 days. But if you make a claim, they will indeed look it up, and issue a refund if the MO was not cashed.

The timing on this is very interesting. This happened right at the end of the school year. He may very well have gone back to someplace.

I do a lot of online buying and selling. The golden rule is:
ALWAYS USE PAYPAL WITH A CREDIT CARD
As someone else said, if the seller won't accept that, buy someplace else. PayPal has gotten better, after several lawsuits informed them that they DO have to obey Federal Law. Plus, you will always win a chargeback with your credit card if you did not receive the item. It is double protection.

Which brings me to the final thought...

HarryC, please don't be insulted but you seem to have caused some of this problem yourself. Reading the mails you posted, you were very pushy about doing this deal, and in fact it appears that you offered to send a money order and your unit upfront. This is one reason I never do trades. But if you must, secure the trade with PayPal funds. That is, agree on the value of your laptop, he sends you PayPal, you send the unit, you issue a refund on receipt. Or you can file a dispute if he fails to comply. Always have some kind of a hook to protect your interests.

It seems too long at this point to expect anything in the mail. As I stated, I suspect he went back to wherever he came from. A search of local Universities might well turn up some info.

If I were you, I would REALLY try to find out who resides at the address you shipped to. Someone there received the package, and if you used any insurance, they SIGNED for the package. You do need to contact the local Police. If this was a fraud, you are not the only victim. You need to have that address flagged. BTW, make a Post Office insurance claim. They will ultimately send you a copy of the signature, along with the printed name of the person who signed!

And as previously noted, the Post Office requires positive ID to cash a MO (unless they know you). SO, do contact the Post Office most local to that address and see if anyone happens to know that individual. My Post Office is in the biggest Village in New York State, and the box clerk and most all the counter clerks know ME!

Deleted

was interesting

Hmmm...

This Orevin was dealing with a number of forum members previously.
Did nobody ever get Orevin's name and/or address, or did they receive any shipments from Orevin and maybe kept the sender's name and address?
Did everybody deal with this 'Edward J Kiszenia' or were other names used?
Where did everybody send their stuff to if Orevin was buying, or where did everybody send their money to (and how)?

If any different from this:
Edward J Kiszenia
7253 S Christiana Ave.
Chicago, IL 60629
post 'your' data here.

Does 'The Voice Over Marketplace' ring a bell for anyone?
http://voice123.com/edwardkiszenia
There's a 'contact him', offer him a bogus job and see who shows up?

This is a shot in the dark, found in the Chicago Sun-Times:
Namesake? His father/uncle?
http://www.suntimes.com/entertainment/c ... s/theater/
PICASSO AT THE LAPIN AGILE. Kiszenia Productions presents Steve Martin's absurdist comedy about a fictional meeting between a young Pable Picasso and a young Albert Einstein. Directed by Edward Kiszenia. Sat, 6 pm; Sun, 3 pm. $15. To July 1. Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee. (773) 598-4549.

You may have already tried this- but if you do a search on zabasearch you will find 2 addresses under his name in the s. chicago area w/ ph#'s...hope it gets ironed out