Wayne Toyota
Hockey Pick 'Em
North Country Cycle
Twice As Nice Thrift Store
Sunset Memorial Gardens
Gore Motors
News
Click here to see more
Subscribe
Community Calendar
Click here for full listings.
Poll
A major conference on Bio-energy has wrapped up in the city. Do you think this is a viable option for jump starting the forest economy?



Total Votes: 8
View Results Past Polls
Survey
Surveys are not available.
Email
2012-02-06 at 15:33

Man arrested, charged with Kijiji fraud

By Leith Dunick, tbnewswatch.com
Thunder Bay Military Family Resource CentreThank you Thunder Bay for making the Spring Craft and Yard Sale a success! Drop by the MFRC to purchase your yellow ribbon pins. Call 345-5116Click Here for Details

An alleged case of failure to deliver goods sold on Kijiji has led Thunder Bay Police to charge a 35-year-old city resident with fraud. 

Police received a pair of complaints from consumers regarding goods bought online through the free classified service. In the first case it’s alleged a southern Ontario complainant entered into an agreement to buy a backhoe and steer skidder posted on the popular website, but after payment was made the machinery was allegedly never delivered.

In the second case the items being sold were a number of televisions, which again were paid for but allegedly never delivered.

Richard Belbas has been charged with fraud over $5,000, fraud under $5,000, breach of undertaking and is expected to appear in court on Monday.

Police caution the public that entering into online transactions on websites like Kijiji, where customers often buy and pay for items without seeing them firsthand, can lead to fraudsters.

“You should always confirm what you are buying and who you’re dealing with,” Const. Julie Tilbury said in a release. “A wise consumer should always be careful when making transactions with online parties.
 

Click here to submit a letter to the editor.

Click here to report a typo or error

Tbnewswatch.com(22)

Comments

We've improved our comment system.
jimmyboy says:
Nice to see that TBNewswatch is naming the individual...I would hope in the future you will do more of this type of disclosure.!
2/6/2012 3:36:00 PM
Blondie74 says:
does not surprise me at all!! Lots of ppl just waiting to sucker you in.
2/6/2012 5:41:57 PM
TBDR says:
I think that generally as long as they have the okay from the police/courts, the do disclose the information.
2/6/2012 4:43:43 PM
spooner19 says:
It's about time police start taking internet fraud more serious considering such a large percentage of goods are bought on line these days.
2/6/2012 5:07:00 PM
pagirl says:
You have to remember that most online transactions only fall under a civil matter, not a criminal matter....unless it is out and out fraud that can be proven.
2/7/2012 10:52:37 AM
albert.a.bound says:
Who in their right mind would ever pay for anything and expect it to be delivered just because some stranger says they will? If you are that naive I have a bridge in Brooklyn going REAL CHEAP, but you'll have to go and pick it up. I have to be honest, I will NOT be delivering it..
2/6/2012 8:00:20 PM
panzerIV says:
Lots of people purchase online. It's becoming a huge place to do business. I personally purchased all of my Christmas gifts from ebay. Some from businesses but I bought some models off a guy from wiscosin and he was delightful, easy to work with and I will buy more from him.

Like every rule there is the exception, I'm sure there is more good people out there then not its just we only hear about the bad people.
2/7/2012 12:24:34 AM
TBDR says:
True but ebay is a lot safer... people have satisfaction ratings to show they are legitimate, you have the security of paypal, and ebay's refund policy. Kijiji is a total crapshoot when sending payment before product.
2/7/2012 2:17:15 AM
Dontlistentome says:
I too purchase 80% of everything I buy online. For the most part, it is a pretty safe, well-secured method - except when it isn't! If you're buying at eBay, futureshop, sears, jcpenney, etc,etc, you're extremely safe in my opinion. The real mistake made here is trusting a system that is intended for a locally-based, mutual exchange of cash for goods.

Kijiji has no safety in purchasing this way, nor does it claim to. I have bought and sold quite a lot of stuff on kijiji, and so far it's always been a good experience. I will say though, I only transact at a face to face meeting with the seller or buyer.

This particular story is in fact less about the perils of online buying, and more about educating yourself before you use an online system of buying like kijiji and then don't even follow the well documented best practice for use. I think it's too bad on one hand that someone was taken like this - but on the other hand - REALLY!? Sending payment with NO means of guarantee!
2/7/2012 8:29:16 AM
Dan Fiorito says:
Actually if one does their homework and takes the proper precautions its very safe. Utilizing Paypal for payment also provides you with additional protection against any questionable sellers as well. Ebay also offers the same protection (which also owns PayPal).

Is it a 100% safe? No, but if enough precautions are taken it is.

Simple things to keep in mind:

When in doubt, pass on it. If it's too good of a deal, then it probably is. Kijiji is nice because 99% of the sellers are local and you have the opportunity to see the product prior to purchasing.

By the way, you can't get me with that bridge, a buddy of mine already owns it 8-)
2/7/2012 6:51:57 AM
albert.a.bound says:
Yes PanzerIV, I do buy from businesses online and Ebay also, but sending someone money for something off of Kijiji is pretty well the same thing as buying something from the newspaper classifieds. There is a huge difference.
2/7/2012 1:57:49 AM
itshell says:
Well this old saying stands the test of time, "Buyer Beware"
2/7/2012 7:44:03 AM
eddylives says:
Everyone knows if it's too good to be true it usually is.....common sence should be used for any online purchases.
The shady characters count on the old saying
"there is a sucker born every minute" lol
2/7/2012 8:08:31 AM
jubjub says:
The fraudsters are getting better on Kijiji. Just recently, I got a call from somebody in Toronto. He was buying Leaf's tickets from Kijiji and wanted to doublecheck the identity of the person he was buying the tickets from. He looked at the address they had in their email signature and googled it to see who was nearby. My name came up and he called. Turns out this person was using my exact business address and a similar company name. Looked really legitimate and if he didn't investigate he would have been taken. Doing a bit more investigation we found that this person was using an Internet cafe in Toronto to perpetrate his frauds. The key rule to keep yourself safe with Kijiji is cash in hand only, don't send money orders, money through paypal or any other electronic means (Kijiji even recommends this on their site). And in 90%+ of these cases police are useless at getting anything done. nevermind getting your money back, good to hear they got this guy.
2/7/2012 10:56:07 AM
Nitesky says:
The new way to defraud. You pay with Paypal. A package is sent and you get a tracking number. All is well and when your EMPTY package arrives. You don't have a leg to stand on
2/7/2012 11:01:51 AM
TBDR says:
tracking numbers are assigned with postal delivery companies, not by paypal... sorry but thats just false. If you pay with paypal and don't get your purchased item, you DO have recourse. That's why Paypal is so popular worldwide.
2/7/2012 6:09:41 PM
nopatience4stupidity says:
Something else to watch as a seller on Kijiji - a relative of mine was contacted by someone who wanted to purchase their items. The buyer mailed a "bankdraft" for too much money and then asked him to ship the parts and extra money back to them. Clearly the draft would have bounced, my relative would've been out the cash and merchandise, extra bank fees and possible fraud charges from police. Kijiji works best for face to face transactions.
2/7/2012 12:09:45 PM
spooner19 says:
Nitesky says:
The new way to defraud. You pay with Paypal. A package is sent and you get a tracking number. All is well and when your EMPTY package arrives. You don't have a leg to stand on

Honestly i have bought most my stuff on line for about 10 years now. I use paypal for almost all my transactions and i have never had a package show up empty. I think you people are getting a little to dramatic and paranoid. I think over the years i have actually had worse buying experiences with some of the local businesses in town than on line. When you use ebay you can see all the persons feedback and how satisfied they are with the seller. Now can you imagine what kind of feedback some of the local stores would have with that system? How about CTC?
2/7/2012 8:59:46 PM
Dan Dan says:
Buying online is extremely dangerous and foolish.
2/8/2012 9:53:13 AM
SG says:
Not true. Why do you have this opinion? I've had very good experiences for many years. Only one negative and paypal fixed that one for me right quick.
2/9/2012 9:31:39 AM
spooner19 says:
Dan Dan says:
Buying online is extremely dangerous and foolish.

So are you Dan.
2/9/2012 2:15:16 AM
rancher says:
just a short comment..we bought a westie on kijiji..the ownwer gave her phone # where to contact...after we viewed the dogs WE made our deal....not sight inseen,in person....and the dog is just what we wanted.....like anything else its BUYER beware
2/11/2012 2:32:24 PM
Comments for this story are semi-moderated. Read our comment guideline.

Add a new comment.
You must log in to add comments.
Create a new account
Forgot password?
Log In
 
 
© 2012 Dougall Media.