Pomme Fritz
Blimey!
German police have cuffed a British conman for fleecing Germans with the classic "bag of spuds" electronic device scam. According to the Sun, the unnamed* man and an accomplice ingeniously posed as skint tourists in Dusseldorf, offering laptops, iPods and cameras in return for quick cash. When the "gullible" locals took …
Cheating someone who is clearly attempting to buy stolen goods. Aren't conmen like these actually performing a public service?
If you try to buy an ipod off a random man in the street, you know it's not exactly legit. If you are conned you deserve everything you get, for all you know someone could have been killed being mugged for that ipod!
@sooty
If you read the article, the 'ruse' in this case was that of the sellers being skint tourists, presumably selling their own goods to raise money rather than stolen ones. They're taxing the gullible, not necessarily the dishonest.
It's a neat combination of the old 'need bus fare/train fare to get home' scam with the laptop-bag-stuffed-with newspaper/potatoes' trick. Imaginative, these con artists.
"Police described the 20-year-old fugitive as possibly armed, and warned the public to give him a wide berth"
That was the only description? Possibly armed? Shirley that is general advice? Disappointed they didn't request that the public kept their eyes peeled.
At least the scam-ees will be able to cut their spuds up extra small, fry 'em and fashion their own ipod out of the fresh microchips..
I'm going, I'm going...
I had something similar happen to me in a Best Buy. I bought an external name-brand modem (yes, for dial-up. It was years ago.) I took home the (apparently) factory shrink-wrapped box and opened it. Inside was a short length of plastic-wrapped chain. Luckily, the store is very near, so I took it back and they gave me a new one, no questions asked, although I insisted on opening this box in the presence of the Returns clerk.
In the Las Vegas version, the scammer offers users a sealed box adorned with pretty printed sales literature glued on.
The mark is told she cannot open the box till he has the cash.
In the particular news story the guy is in the parking lot outside a BEST BUY electronics store with 5 or 6 identical boxes inside his trunk.
Upon opening, the victim finds laptop sized clay tiles hinged with duct tape.
In many European countries arrested people will not be named as they have are not yet guilty of anything, you sometimes might get the initials of the accused. Compare this with the UK and USA were peoples lives are destroyed merely by unfounded accusations.
Please tell me, what benefit would there be if they actually name someone who is facing criminal charges?