Description

I had been searching online for Great Dane puppies and came across a website called “Milky Sky Great Dane Pups.” At first glance, the site appeared to be legitimate. However, in hindsight, I now recognize several red flags. I reached out via email to inquire about a puppy listed as “Walter” to see if he was still available. The breeder responded quickly, stating that Walter was available and ready for his forever home. They included additional pictures and even a short video of the puppy, which initially made me feel more confident in the legitimacy of the site. From there, the conversation moved quickly. They emphasized the need to know our location, as they supposedly had a shipping company they regularly used to deliver their puppies. They claimed to be running a coupon special that included free shipping and mentioned they were trying to place the current litter before a new one arrived the following month. They asked for our names, location, some background about ourselves, and which airport we would prefer the puppy to be shipped to. We answered all of their questions. When it came time to discuss payment, they pushed us to use the Chime app, stating that Zelle and Apple Pay were being unreliable. Since I have Zelle through my bank, I used that service to send payment. I was also asked to provide a screenshot of the transaction so they could confirm it was received without issues on their end. Once payment was sent, I began to ask more detailed questions about the shipping process, as I was unfamiliar with how it typically works. I requested a phone call to discuss further. A man with broken English called me and identified himself as Tyrell Locket. He assured me that the shipping company would be in touch the following day with all the necessary details. However, as things started to feel off, my husband decided to text the number on their website using my work phone, which has an out-of-state number. When he got through, the man answered but gave a different name—Michael Scott. At that point, we knew we had been scammed. Further investigation led us to another website—bsgreatdanepuppies.com—which uses the same physical address: 128 Forrest St., Manassas Park, MD. Clearly, this is a recurring scam being run under multiple names, targeting unsuspecting individuals looking for puppies.