Chopperguys...disappeared with our mods?

[mwa102464]

Lawsuit isn't the way to go, but for under 5k small claims court is the way to go. If you know the municipality he lives in everyone should file a claim for small claims court, they even have it where you can do it over video in many courts now. If he has a 100 expensive mods or more this would be one heck of a lot of claims filed against the guy and in the TWP he lives in. I'm sure one person has his address if not all and you could group together and simply find the municipal court in that TWP and all file a small claim against him, if there is this many filed the Judge may take a closer look at this too and handle it how he thinks best. Either way there would be a ton of judgement against him then and that would be payback enough, then again if he didn't want all these judgement's against himself, he very well may send back your gear or pay for it. If this happen to me and he had my Darwin or expensive mod I would file a small claim and win. Might even be possible for one person to show up and represent all, again depending on how the judge see this.

 

[jkmtwo]

Lawsuit isn't the way to go, but for under 5k small claims court is the way to go. If you know the municipality he lives in everyone should file a claim for small claims court, they even have it where you can do it over video in many courts now. If he has a 100 expensive Mods or more this would be one heck of a lot of claims filed against the guy and in the TWP he lives in. I'm sure one person has his address if not all and you could group together and simply find the municipal court
in that TWP and all file a small claim against him, if there is this many filed the Judge may take a closer look at this too and handle it how he thinks best. Either way there would be a ton of judgement against him then and that would be payback enough, then again if he didn't want all these judgement's against himself, he very well may send back your gear or pay for it. If this happen to me and he had my Darwin or expensive mod I would file a small claim and win. Might even be possible for one person to show up and represent all, again depending on how the judge see this.

This is theoretically what I was talking about, and if done right can be a painful process.

 

[mwa102464]

This is theoretically what I was talking about, and if done right can be a painful process.

Absolutely can be jkmtwo,a painful process for him not you, for you it is pain-less and could cause him a great deal of aggravation and money, as well as reflect on his record for a long time, which may make him think a bit about paying back what he took and you all very well may get some type of payment back, and at a minimum cause him some of the same pain he gave to all of you, which he deserves for robbing you all. Good luck I hope you all move forward and do the right thing, I would, just out of principle !! And believe me he is hoping and figuring you all will be able to do nothing and hopes you do nothing,,,,Do it, and make it a wake up call, all of you group together and file a multiple complaint in the local small claims court, be the one to lead it, do a post and gather everyone who was ripped off, make it like a CoOp and get everyone's name, address and any info you may need, call the Twp municipality and ask for the courts clerk, tell them you want to file a multiple complaint, and ask what forms you need to fill out, they will help you, no lawyer needed

 

[Jay99]

Going to a small claims court in the UK is a very complicated process compared to the US, you have the advantage here, go ahead with the legal proceedings, you have nothing to lose and a lot to gain.

 

[Iffy]

Small claims court is a futile exercise if the other party doesn't give a cow pattie! Only those that care about self-esteem and/or are in business with vulnerabilities respond to the 'suits'.

Don't get your hopes up too high... but good luck nonetheless!

 

[Racehorse]

Small claims court sounds like a good option.

That's part of the point, of course lawsuits cost money, money that he will be responsible for when a judgement is awarded. The ultimate point would not be to get the money back, the point is to keep him from doing this sort of thing to other people.

I have done this before, the way it works is once you get a judgement against him, you wait for a little while, when you don't get any money back, you can place a lien on any vehicles he owns, houses, boats, anything in his name. If he goes to get a credit card he will be denied, if he goes to sell his car he will not be able to, until he deals with the lien, and gets a release of lien. Now imagine this times 20. We haven't even discussed garnishment of wages yet

I gotta tell you, I think this guy is probably already in this situation.

So, I doubt very much that you're going to be able to "harm" him in any way as regards credit. LOL

Wage garnishment is usually reserved for taxes, child support, student loans, etc. If you believe there is enough money left over after this guy feeds his kids, pays his rent/mortgage, his car and insurance payments, etc. then good luck. Because no judge is going to garnish wages of somebody that puts them into a situation of being homeless......esp. not for a few private transactions. There are also enough situations where garnishments won't happen at all, due to the financial sitution of the person. As for attachments, I somehow doubt this guy has much to "get".

And, if you have been involved with lawsuits of ANY kind, as you say you have, then plan on this taking up a few years of your life. It all happens VERY slowly.

 

[Racehorse]

Who mentioned finding the guy and doing that? Seriously? Its nice to get sanctimonious,but seriously no one said one damn word about going and doing actual harm to him.

I worked in an ER. I am talking about *escalation*.

When somebody says I don't talk, I swing, my response is "then you don't know where that goes from there."

I've seen it all. Wasn't being sanctimonious, just realisitc.

 

[Apptiger]

I can't support this "get a posse together" type of thinking....Its' very gang-like, hoodie stuff and once you give up talking you have placed yourself in the position of relying on brute physical solutions. This never turns out well. At the very least, pushing and shouting, broken arm or something........at the very worst, something much worse. (work in an ER and you will see these things every day.)

Please, please guys....... pursue this thru "proper" channels.

Leave the macho guy stuff to people who understand how to do this stuff, like "Dog, the Bounty Hunter."

Agree and think the fraud squad at the local police or the Postal inspector is the best bet. In this case I am thinking postal inspector. I'll spare you the long story but a Postal inspector can be a very good thing to have on your side.

 

[milo hobo]

None of those options (except violence) sound mutually exclusive. Contact the post office and a small claims court, and drop a pm to the FBI internet scam squad. If all of that doesn't work, then you at least have done your part to make sure this guy doesn't do it again and starts the process of returning/paying off his debt sooner. You have enough law enforcement people knocking on your door, you start to act differently. Simple behaviorism.

 

[cozzicon]

Boy I've been reading this thread since the beginning.

Considering how attached we become to our equipment, this is a significant loss for some.

So sorry this would happen to anyone. Epic-not-good

 

[martinc]

Think for a second;

If this guy is living in hell as we speak and has been for a couple months now,if his motives are NOT to steal from you all,if he is about to come out of it,the last thing to do is put that type of pressure on him...who knows,it can push him to do some unthinkable stuff (you get my drift here)...hypothetically.

The easy thing to do would indeed be to launch a phone call from your comfy homes and make things even worst for him but....how about choosing the other option,try to reach him once more,making him understand that you all wont wait anymore and lost faith in him and want your stuff back now?

I understand that it might be a difficult thing to achieve,but giving him one last chance to shake the coconut tree,get a grip and proceed with a solution could be the good thing to do

You have his name,should be fairly easy to find

 

[Iffy]

Think for a second;

If this guy is living in hell as we speak and has been for a couple months now,if his motives are NOT to steal from you all,if he is about to come out of it,the last thing to do is put that type of pressure on him...who knows,it can push him to do some unthinkable stuff (you get my drift here)...hypothetically.

Pleeease, I'm not attacking you, but have you read what you just wrote! Scam artist rely on the public's lack of action and/or risk of embarrassment (being 'taken'). As to the ex-ER worker, da same applies to *escalation*. Scum do not escalate, they evaporate!

If someone is truly mentally ill, regardless of cause, a misaligned stamp on an envelope might make 'em go over da edge. Let's get real here! A turd ripped off some ECF members and is still out dere with no repercussions for his actions. That's not justice!!!

 

[martinc]

I feel ya,no problem.

Just sayin really....

I`ve been scammed about 6 months ago,I felt my trust violated to no end,believe me.

 

[milo hobo]

I have one (it is lonely) mod, a puresmoker icon. I have some backup eGo batteries, but one (still lonely) mod. If I had trusted someone to make it pretty, and then he closes shop, moves, and wants no one to explain the situation, I'd be pretty livid. I'd want a personal explanation from the beginning. No, he wouldn't have to tell me his life story, but he would need to very upfront as to why he still has my mod and what he plans on doing about it. Can't give me that? I would want my day in court.

I read you saying that he needs another chance, and that if he doesn't get one, he will just become the thief that we worry that he is. I disagree. If he recives two or 5 such kinds of notifications (because most people won't attempt legal action at first) then he knows that 25 or more people might do it too if he doesn't budge. Again, simple behavior modification.

 

[Jixchel]

Think for a second;

If this guy is living in hell as we speak and has been for a couple months now,if his motives are NOT to steal from you all,if he is about to come out of it,the last thing to do is put that type of pressure on him...who knows,it can push him to do some unthinkable stuff (you get my drift here)...hypothetically.

The easy thing to do would indeed be to launch a phone call from your comfy homes and make things even worst for him but....how about choosing the other option,try to reach him once more,making him understand that you all wont wait anymore and lost faith in him and want your stuff back now?

I understand that it might be a difficult thing to achieve,but giving him one last chance to shake the coconut tree,get a grip and proceed with a solution could be the good thing to do

You have his name,should be fairly easy to find

I would think driving from one state to another to retrieve the missing mod as one person did was reaching out to him one last time with zeor effort on his part to make it right. I would say the loss of faith is justified and there is a need to apply legal pressure in order to achieve any kind of solution to the situation.

 

[jkmtwo]

Small claims court sounds like a good option.




I gotta tell you, I think this guy is probably already in this situation.

So, I doubt very much that you're going to be able to "harm" him in any way as regards credit. LOL

Wage garnishment is usually reserved for taxes, child support, student loans, etc. If you believe there is enough money left over after this guy feeds his kids, pays his rent/mortgage, his car and insurance payments, etc. then good luck. Because no judge is going to garnish wages of somebody that puts them into a situation of being homeless......esp. not for a few private transactions. There are also enough situations where garnishments won't happen at all, due to the financial sitution of the person. As for attachments, I somehow doubt this guy has much to "get".

And, if you have been involved with lawsuits of ANY kind, as you say you have, then plan on this taking up a few years of your life. It all happens VERY slowly.

Not with a small claims suit, its as simple as getting a date on the docket, which depending on the city/county can be had with in 15 days but can take up to 3 months. All you have to do is find out his current address, and either have the locals serve him, or you can have someone else do it. Once he has been served, if he does not show up, its a default judgement for the plaintiff. Then the process for anything else depends on the state, some states are easier than others.

As for garnishments, it really depends on the state, here in Tennessee, its as simple as going before a judge and getting the go ahead, and then presenting the persons workplace with the appropriate paperwork.

But in Kentucky, there has to be a whole other hearing to establish the defendants financial state. There are some states where once you have a judgement, I believe Mississippi is this way, as long as the judgement was obtained in an in state court, you only have to contact the employer and give them the appropriate paperwork.

And of course, right about the time you get your first garnishment payment, they usually move on from that job, lol.

But Small claims is not nearly as involved as one might think, there usually aren't attornies involved, so the process is much quicker.

 

[okcodemonkey]

I feel bad for everyone that got ripped off. I know I am thankful I backed out (something just felt off) I was so close to send 2 mods and 2 DCA sets to get coated in Texans colors. Not only are you out the money on your mods, the sentiment some of those mods may have had, money for his service, and cost of the powder coating supplies, but you have also had the frustration, anger, sadness, etc... To deal with. I would not have handled it well. I have followed both threads as

I have honestly assumed he went to jail. To me it would be the only excusable answer, even then I would direct someone in my family to make it right. If the mods were lost via natural disaster, face the music! Sickness, death, financial struggle... Let people know, there are genuinely good people on this forum that would band together to fund the return shipping costs (of course at this point we would want someone else to be involved). The lack of communication has me dumbfounded. No internet humbug. Give your friends permission to post an official statement with a timeline. If timeline expires give them another statement. I'm sure he has a cell phone, which nowadays how often do cell phones not have internet.

If anyone can ever get a verifiable response to get everyone there APVs back I would love to donate to the cause. If the moderators had a way to verify who lost mods, I would love to donate to help people get some of their funds back.

I would love to see action taken (legally) to right this wrong, but if nothing else maybe as a community we could help heal some of the wounds.

 

[Iffy]

... I would love to donate to the cause.

Ditto....!

 

[jkmtwo]

Think for a second;

If this guy is living in hell as we speak and has been for a couple months now,if his motives are NOT to steal from you all,if he is about to come out of it,the last thing to do is put that type of pressure on him...who knows,it can push him to do some unthinkable stuff (you get my drift here)...hypothetically.

The easy thing to do would indeed be to launch a phone call from your comfy homes and make things even worst for him but....how about choosing the other option,try to reach him once more,making him understand that you all wont wait anymore and lost faith in him and want your stuff back now?

I understand that it might be a difficult thing to achieve,but giving him one last chance to shake the coconut tree,get a grip and proceed with a solution could be the good thing to do

You have his name,should be fairly easy to find

Call me crazy, but say you were going to have your roof repaired, and you paid up front, and bought the materials, the guy showed up did a couple of hours work and then left for 6 months, no call, no communication, he's got your money, he's got all the materials you bought, and the only word you have received is through a guy you barely know who says he talked to the guy, and he had a family tragedy a couple of months ago, but he knows he needs to get your roof fixed......the explanation doesn't explain 4 months of inactivity prior to the supposed tragedy, and no word as to when you can expect either your money and stuff back, or a finished roof.....what would be the average persons response?

 

[jkmtwo]

I was real close to sending him a Provari, Darwin and a Reo back in May....phew, dodged the bullet.

I feel bad for everyone that got ripped off. I know I am thankful I backed out (something just felt off) I was so close to send 2 mods and 2 DCA sets to get coated in Texans colors. Not only are you out the money on your mods, the sentiment some of those mods may have had, money for his service, and cost of the powder coating supplies, but you have also had the frustration, anger, sadness, etc... To deal with. I would not have handled it well. I have followed both threads as

I have honestly assumed he went to jail. To me it would be the only excusable answer, even then I would direct someone in my family to make it right. If the mods were lost via natural disaster, face the music! Sickness, death, financial struggle... Let people know, there are genuinely good people on this forum that would band together to fund the return shipping costs (of course at this point we would want someone else to be involved). The lack of communication has me dumbfounded. No internet humbug. Give your friends permission to post an official statement with a timeline. If timeline expires give them another statement. I'm sure he has a cell phone, which nowadays how often do cell phones not have internet.

If anyone can ever get a verifiable response to get everyone there APVs back I would love to donate to the cause. If the moderators had a way to verify who lost mods, I would love to donate to help people get some of their funds back.

I would love to see action taken (legally) to right this wrong, but if nothing else maybe as a community we could help heal some of the wounds.