I'm pretty sure I got scammed and there's nothing I can do at this point but posting this anyway as a therapy and maybe it will help future sellers...
I sold a Samsung phone that I bought directly from Samsung which arrived in a sealed packaging.
- March 27 - Sold it for $685 to this person in MIAMI, FL, with an address that looked like it's a shipping or fulfillment center. The buyer had 7 feedback and the account was created in April 28, 2023. Fishy but I've shipped items to fulfillment centers before so...
- June 1 - Item delievered.
- June 6 - Received a message from the buyer saying, "I have a problem with the Phone and I want to ask you a question, if you can help me?". Immediately after this message was received, I received a return request. The return request had one photo taken of the screen in the DARK and very blurry. Because of the poor photo quality, I couldn't tell what was happening with the phone.
- June 6 (cont'd) - Minutes after I received the return request, I replied to the message asking to explain the problem. No replies from the buyer. I asked to send the IMEI of the phone to make sure it's the phone I sold. No replies.
- June 7 - Still no reply so I went ahead and accepted the return request since there's no use to hold out for replies. I chose the ebay issued return label.
- June 10 - USPS tracking showed that it received the shipment in BRONX, NY! Not a transit location, the package was admitted to the USPS system in BRONX, NY...
- June 12 - Arrived at my local USPS location and out for delivery. Package didn't show. Later that day, USPS tracking showed the address couldn't be verified so it's being return to the local USPS office (this was an ebay-issued return shipping label). At the same time, ebay sent me a messaging saying that the buyer asked them to step in and immediately issued a refund since the tracking showed the package has been delivered (WHAT? WHY??? It wasn't and the tracking showed it that it wasn't). I checked my address on file with ebay and everything was fine so not sure why USPS says the address couldn't be verified.
- June 13 - USPS tracking showed that the package has gone back to the local USPS and will be delivered if the address checks out.
- June 14 - Tracking showed that it's getting ready to deliver it again. In the afternoon, I checked the tracking and it showed as delivered. I went to my mail box but nothing. The tracking said, "Delivered, Left with Individual"... Was home all day and didn't receive anything. No one came to my door, nothings left on my porch.
By now, everything that could have gone wrong has gone wrong... I was planning to file a police report along with having the IMEI blacklisted but I can't even do that now without the return package.
One regret I have is not checking the buyer's address when I felt that spidey sense of something not quite right. I should've googled the buyer's address before shipping as there are numerous scam related message online regarding that address. If I'm allowed I can divulge that address. It's a commercial address.
I believe that I'm in a situation where I am $685 poorer, but if anyone has any ideas to recoop something back I'm all ears.
