Stolen 960
 

I have just seen this on gumtree, I think it has been stolen but there seems to be a bit more to the story.

https://www.gumtree.com/p/community/...ery/1324958601

Seems odd he can't put the name of the bloke he suspects on there but CAN put the name of his suspected accomplice! :err:

More to this than meets the eye i think! Let's face it, you don't often know the name of the person who stole your car! :nah: Maybe it was up for sale and the guy came for a test drive and disappeared, who knows? :eek:

If only somebody could come up with some kind of Government body to deal with these kind of things ? A force of some kind that could help people recover stolen goods and the like..........:teeth_smile::teeth_smile::teeth_smi le:

I was thinking similar Mark - perhaps call them the "Stolen Vehicle Squad". :thumbs_up: ;) :D

Seems a bit rum...I contacted the guy via Gumtree to find out more and have shared the ad on a couple of FB groups. I think there is more than meets the eye here too.

Like Dave says, a bit strange that he knows the guys names that took it.

On Retro Rides forum the stolen section gets a new post nearly every day about another Ford being taken. Car crime isn't kept in check and isn't a priority for the police.

I spoke to him on Gumtree:

Me:

Hi Derek,
So sorry to hear about your 960 being stolen. If you can let me know the name and address that Gumtree wouldn't let you post in the advert (that of the scumbag that stole it) that would be great-your ad has already been shared to the Volvo Owners Club forum and we have rallied the troops to do some sleuthing...I'll also flag this up on all of the Facebook Volvo groups and get as many people as possible onto it.

Let's get this sorted!

Speak soon,
Phil

---------------

Derek:

Hi Phil.
Thanks for getting in touch it very much appreciated
I have an ad on facebook but I don't think i have all the settings correct.
it may be because its listed in a group. Bay & Sell London Southampton.
its my first time on facebook still trying to get to grips with it .

here is the add.

Help me Find MY Volvo 960 £250 reward for information that leads to the recovery
OR CAN ANY ONE FIND THE ADDRESS HE USED TO TAX THE CAR N807JWB
Stolen By A man calling himself MR L W REEVES
last seen in Southampton this man /( nut job) has a phone no 07365 278821 & 07979 893160 but will not answer my calls or texts

last known address 48 Biddelesgate court upper bugle street Southampton.
But not at that address now. I THINK!

Has a Known accomplice Mr David Miles, who may be in Weybridge

Car may be in a garage or parked off the road as now not taxed

Please contact me on 07818554671 Derek..
I will Pay £250 Cash or paypal for the recovery of MY car !

INFORMATION OR RECOVERY OF
ANY OTHER HELP OR INFORMATION GRATEFULLY APPRECIATED

Thanks again Phil.
Regards Derek.

-----------

Derek (again):

Hi Again Phil
my email address is
derek.wrt@gmail.com
derek.mcgowan


It seems odd that it's not reported as stolen, the first port of call for me would have been the police. I think perhaps he's trying to frame someone or it's a setup.

Hmmm, it has a lot of pointers to a scam, could be genuine though. Still no idea how the alleged thief got hold of the car though!

With the best will in the world, 960’s aren’t worth a lot of money at the moment so unless this was a concours car or held special family meaning £250 seems like a big reward to pay which sets my alarm bells ringing.
There is a scam gong at the moment which involves buying something but someone else uses their PayPal details, something to do with the way refunds are done. Can’t remenber the details but it’s happening with bikes.

If it doesn’t seem right then it probably isn’t, there are so many ways to scam people that are new it’s bonkers.

The car has a MOT (no advisories) until June.
However it’s not taxed or on SORN.

Very odd.

That's what i was thinking Rob - i'd heard of a similar scam, not sure exactly how it works but the person whose Paypal account is used says they never got the item so they get a refund. As they aren't connected to the actual sale in any way except their account was used to pay for it, they then become entitled to a refund. Not sure other than that.

I'd have a wild guess the £250 is the guys excess on the theft part of his policy and his insurers have said they won't pay out unless he recovers the car.

Thing is, 9xxs in general aren't worth a wild amount, pay with Paypal as above, get the documents and sell it on - they've already had a refund of the original purchase price and then sell it "cash only" so they make twice their money.

I also think this is a bit fishy! The advert has been posted before. I distinctly remember it from last year. Notice there's no mention of when the original "theft" took place......

More info...I asked him what the circumstances of the theft were and he said:

Hi Phil.
in short it was a bounced cheque!

I had it advertised on ebay bit i did not sell
next day he rang me and made an offer £1200 that i reluctantly accepted
told him to pay funds in to my bank which he did 10-08-2018
asked my kids (19 yr olds) to check the the bank account and funds had landed
I and my wife where on holiday in spain and as out of the country could not see
the full bank statement! he had paid in BUT it was a cheque that i could not see
on my limited account access! and they did not know the difference
He sent a car transport company to pick up the car on 14-08-2018.
AND OF COURSE THE CHEQUE BOUNCED ON THE 15-08-2018
I got back from holiday on 16-08-18 called him and to my surprise he answered my call,
then i got all the "O" I will This And I Will That , to pay for the car but to NO effect
he answered my calls and text for the first week but not after that!
I did report it to the Police and action fraud I have all the report Numbers
the car is on the stolen car register.
My ad has come up with others that have bean scammed by this man
I am in constant touch with one *************
Please contact him and ask about THE SAID MAN
he has been after him longer than ME !

The thot plickens! :err:

I know he should get his money but letting a car go before a cheque has cleared is pretty dumb.
To be honest accepting a cheque at all is pretty stupid, a few years ago I worked in retail and pretty much every cheque we took (wasn't many, was a big DIY store and even 10 years ago we were only taking 1 or 2 cheques a week at most) was checked via the bank to ensure the purchaser had the funds to back up the cheque.

Please beware. Many or most fraudsters are very plausible. They often have the knack of "reading" people and how people are most vulnerable to be conned. Like highly successful sales people often have the knack of reading potential customers.

IF there is any scam then it probably relies on the person offering the reward building up a relationship of trust with some of the people who respond sympathetically to the online request for information about the alleged thief.

Then the person offering the reward tells their new friend individually that .... how wonderful .... someone is offering definite information to find the car, but .... the person offering the reward needs to borrow the £250 .... please. And this must be kept quiet so as not to alert the alleged car thief, &c. &c. &c.

One such "loan" is a result. A number of such "loans" is a larger result.

Go do the arithmetic.



And/Or the alleged scammer might be trying to get the bank details of the sympathisers. &c. &c. &c.



P.S. I suspect that with the information provided most inquiry agents could find that alleged thief very quickly for a fee similar to the amount of reward being offered. If the alleged thief exists.

But be sure they do it legally otherwise the customer is liable for the agent's actions.

The guy who posted the reward ad appears to have been selling other cars on eBay last year and looks genuine enough. On eBay since 2006, 100% feedback.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NISSAN-MI...-/162952714052

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VOLVO-480...-/163113281560