Description

I was looking for an excavator trackhoe. I found a John Deere online at Gears Garage. My husband called, but couldn't understand him, so he asked me to talk to him. I'm Hispanic. He said his name was Brad Hernandez. I thought I had never met a "Brad" who is Hispanic. I asked for the serial number, and he gave me one. I reviewed the customer reviews. One of the names used was Hernandez. My grandparents taught me to speak Spanish. I began speaking to him in Spanish. He said he didn't speak Spanish. I told him his grandparents must be mad at him. He replied, "Oh so sorry grandma", that's when I heard an Iranian accent. He told me to wire transfer the money to Bank of America in Columbus, OH. He gave me the routing number, and bank number. I told him I was uncomfortable paying for something I haven't seen. He told me not to worry that it was a totally secure website. He called back a half hour later and asked if I had gone to the bank. I told Brad I was interrupted but hadn't gotten a chance. He told me not to forget the receipt. I asked why he needed the number. He said because he has a lot of sales, and wanted to put me on early delivery. He said it was .80 cents a mile, which is cheaper than the typical $1 a mile. I told my husband I was calling the Better Business Bureau and looking up the address. Then I called the Columbus Chamber of Commerce, and I was told to call the Secretary of State. The OH SOS asked for the company name and Business owner name. He told me the business was not registered. He told me to ask for their EIN number, and they will stop calling. I called Brad and asked for his EIN number. He said he would check with his boss and put me on hold. I called back multiple times and it just rings. So, I called Bank of America and asked them to verify whether they have an account. The teller told me not to wire any money. I called the Columbus Police Department and they said there is nothing they could do about it.