[meteorite-list] New eBay fraudster

From: Gary Fujihara <fujmon_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Sun, 24 Nov 2013 13:59:32 -1000
Message-ID: <625BB1CC-3D7C-4CC3-B33A-CD07F7E90EDB_at_mac.com>

Aloha Mendy,

Thank you for your diligence in finding and reporting suspect meteorite sales. The meteorite shown in the ebay auction is one that I sold to a well respected scientist in Europe (who also happens to be one of the subjects in a recently published book on the history and science of meteorites) on Thursday, November 21. BTW, the meteorite is NWA 7940 L3.15 and my original listing can be seen here:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=231095724642&ssPageName=ADME:L:EOISSA:US:1123

The seller of the same item, musicbusiness23 has a feedback of 2 and lives in Norman, Oklahoma.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/A-Piece-of-the-Moon-/151170570887

I doubt the true owner of the meteorite has it in his hands yet - its still in transit. But what musicbusiness23 is selling is clearly NWA 7940, and specifically the 2.69g full slice. Not lunar. This is clearly a fraudulent listing.

Ebay has been notified and a report made, but ebay?s system does not provide a means of submitting text. You can only click very general options. So, I contacted the seller and let him know that I am onto his scam and he should cease and desist. We?ll see if he takes my advice.

gary



On Nov 24, 2013, at 7:58 AM, Mendy Ouzillou <ouzillou at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Someone selling an OC as a lunar.
>
> I've sent them a message informing them, but they have not responded. More disturbing, they are using Gary Fujihara's scale cube to add an air of authenticity.
>
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/A-Piece-of-the-Moon-/151170570887
>
> Please file a complaint as people have already bid on this. Not big bucks, but still ...
>
> Mendy Ouzillou
>
>
>
>> ________________________________
>> From: Mendy Ouzillou <ouzillou at yahoo.com>
>> To: Met-List <meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com>
>> Sent: Tuesday, November 5, 2013 11:17 AM
>> Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Need help w/ an eBay fraudster:starchild909greg
>>
>>
>> To everyone that responded and filed a complaint or sent the seller an email - Thank you.
>>
>> We often refer to ourselves as being a "meteorite community" and it is really nice to see us act like one when needed. I will be sending these types of requests more often. I am not turning into the meteorite police (I do not have the time or patience for that) as there are far to many cases of fraud for me to report or to expect you to follow suit. I and anyone else who would like to join, will only be picking on the worst offenders or in cases where a bid has been made and a fraudulent sale is imminent.
>>
>> The idea is not to specifically protect members of this community, but to keep the fraudulent listings or sellers from tainting our communal reputation and the (a)vocation we all enjoy. The advice to "buy only from trusted sellers" is good, but does not help the new collectors who do not know better. Quixotic pursuit? Maybe, but I want to try to protect new collectors who may eventually join the ranks of my fellow "met-heads".
>>
>> There is safety in numbers, so I hope that eventually, more people will participate in protecting our mutual interests.
>>
>> Best,
>>
>>
>> Mendy (Don Quixote) Ouzillou
>> IMCA 8395
>>
>>
>>
>>> ________________________________
>>>>
>>>>> On Nov 4, 2013, at 4:46 PM, Mendy Ouzillou <ouzillou at yahoo.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> I have reached out to the seller (nicely), starchild909greg, telling them
>>>>> that the rock they have posted is not a meteorite.
>>>>>
>>>>> The response was laughable: "ebay has warned me to stay away from you
>>>>> sorry... they see no problem ebay is aware of this situation"
>>>>>
>>>>> There are 3 listings that are fraudulent. I have contacted eBay reporting
>>>>> these as fraudulent, but would appreciate some help as some of these
>>>>> listings actually have bids and someone is about to get defrauded.
>>>>>
>>>>> Please use the link below and for each of the 3 meteorite listings,
>>>>> report them as fraudulent. Look for the tabs "Description and Shipping &
>>>>> payments" on the left. Now go all the way to the right and you will see a
>>>>> link to "Report an Item". Select "Listing practices", "fraudulent listing
>>>>> practices" and "You suspect a listing is fraudulent".
>>>>>
>>>>> http://bit.ly/17IFbOK
>>>>>
>>>>> Thank you!
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Mendy Ouzillou
>>>>> ______________________________________________
>>>>>
>>>>> Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com
>>>>> Meteorite-list mailing list
>>>>> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
>>>>> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
>>>> ______________________________________________
>>>>
>>>> Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com
>>>> Meteorite-list mailing list
>>>> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
>>>> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>> ______________________________________________
>>
>> Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com
>> Meteorite-list mailing list
>> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
>> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
>>
>>
> ______________________________________________
>
> Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com
> Meteorite-list mailing list
> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list


Gary Fujihara
Big Kahuna Meteorites Inc.
PO Box 4175, Hilo, HI 96720
(808) 640-9161
http://bigkahuna-meteorites.com/
http://www.ebay.com/sch/fujmon/m.html
Received on Sun 24 Nov 2013 06:59:32 PM PST