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SUGARHOUSE -- A prospective car buyer using KSL classifieds is warning people about one man who scammed him out of $500.
On Oct. 4, he went shopping for a car with his dad and a friend.
He checked online, and while searching KSL Classifieds, he found a deal he just couldn't pass up.
"It was a killer deal for $2600 for a 2005, red, Chevy Cavalier," Clinton said.
He immediately called the seller and arranged to meet at the seller's work place in Salt Lake City.
"And we met up with him, took it for a little drive and everything and it was good," Clinton said.
He offered to buy the car but didn't have the full amount. The seller said other buyers were offering cash, so Clinton gave him a $500 deposit and arranged to meet the seller at his home later that evening.
- Phone number listed is wrong.
- Buyer or seller explains that they are currently out of the county.
- Buyer offers to pay with a money order or cashiers check for significantly more than the asked for price. Seller asks to have money wired to them or paid via an online service.
- Buyer or seller explains that a third party or service will pick up or deliver the item.
- Email inquiry is poorly written, generic, or strange sounding.
- Offer is simply too good to be true.
- Seller or Buyer says that KSL will handle the transaction.
- Seller or Buyer says that KSL offers a purchase protection or warranty program.
The seller told Clint, his dad and his friend that he was "Joshua Campbell", and he rushed them into giving him $500 to hold the car until Tuesday evening.
He discovered the seller also didn't work at the place where they had met earlier.
"Honestly, I just thought, 'I just got scammed for $500,'" Clinton said.
Clinton's father was with him when he went to meet the seller.
David Burnell said Campbell seemed so friendly and sincere, that they overlooked the fact that he didn't have the car title with him.
They didn't verify the VIN number the seller wrote on the bill of sale either. That number was bogus.
"He was good. He really knew what he was doing. I'm pretty sure he got a couple more people too that night," Clinton said.
The Executive Director of the Utah Department of Commerce said it's likely the seller has scammed other people. Francine Giani said people need to do their homework when dealing with classified ads. In Clinton's case, it may be difficult to get his money back.
"I know he took it for a test drive. It would have been nice if we had a driver's license or VIN number or something like that that could have given us some additional information," Giani said.
Father and son say they learned that the hard way.
"I thought, my son (just) got back from a mission. I thought because he was a good kid, he was being blessed, but in reality, he was being taken by a very smooth, smooth smooth guy," David Burnell said.
"Just coming back in the real world, realizing that this is how it happens sometimes, but you have to move forward." Burnell just wants others to beware of this scam artist, especially if he victimized others.
I thought because he was a good kid, he was being blessed, but in reality, he was being taken by a very smooth, smooth smooth guy." -- David Burnell, father
Burnell's friend, Brandy Vega, calls Campbell a smooth operator.
"He made us feel like we were in a little bit of a rush because the other people had cash. I'm sure he scammed at least two or three more people this same day."
The General Manager of ksl.com, Brett Atkinson, says, fraud is not an issue exclusive to this site, but ksl.com proactively tries to combat fraud, investing in resources to take those types of ads down.
There are tips for buyers and sellers on avoiding fraud, on the site.
Vega describes the subject as a male between 30- and 35- years-old, about 6', 175 to 185 pounds with dark brown/black hair and a dark Brown/black goatee. At the time, he was wearing blue clothes.
She describes the car as a 2005 Red Chevrolet Cavalier coupe, with standard rims with scratches. The windows are not tinted, and a tear on the driver's seat was hand- stitched. The Chevy emblem on front of car is tarnished.
Written by Peter Samore and Sandra Yi.
