Scams that Owners have Experienced at the Inn.
June 8, 2021
Notice from Maria Estada, Guest Services at the Inn
March 6, 2020
I don't want to tell you of these three Scams that Owners at The Inn have confided to me; you know!
'The Headline' should be BEWARE!
Tthere are Crooks out there, and they want some of OUR MONEY. They'll promise, lie to you and nothing is off limit to them getting into your Pocket Book. In College we used the expression, "I'll marry you Saturday for a Honeymoon Tonight," but at least our objective was honest. The Scam-mer’s agenda is completely hidden, in fact it is so sugar coated you don't know you are being scammed!
The latest and we'll call the Case Numbero Uno!
I placed an alert on our Facebook page on March 1st, as in this very successful scam of a perpetrator using my name and photograph in working the victim, an Owner at the Inn. She assumed the scam-mer to be Norman Ribble whom she trusted. This has and still is bothering me, so let me share the complete story with you.
May I urge too read this in its entirety, it is published for your protection.
In December of 2018 two sisters at the Inn asked me, as the webmaster, to look at a recently purchased Point Contract. One of the sisters, Ann, had the year previously purchase a 100,000 Point Silver VIP Contract, and then decided she should not have bought and wanted to list it for sale on the Owners website. I met with both sisters, and Ann's contract was a very standard Silver VIP. She had given the Inn a floating 1BR Luxury Suite and approximately $10,000 to go to the Point System Silver level. She anticipated that she could resell it in the $15,000 ~ $17,500 range. When I showed her on the website where she could get her same floating week from another owner for $1.00 and gave her my opinion on what she might expect for her Silver contract to bring, she was aghast. In fact, she was shocked and concluded that for that amount of money she would just keep the contract. Both sisters did warmly thank me for my time and considerations, but I doubted they really believed my appraisal value.
This was the only personal contact that Ann and I ever had other than general comments in the Owners Facebook group over this last couple of years.
Last Week on the Owners Face-book page, under some discussion, Ann posted and asked me to please give her a phone call. The next morning Dottie and I had just finished breakfast, and I called Ann and had her on the speaker phone. She began the conversation "Norman I haven't any more money, in fact I've had to borrow some;" and then she rattled on for quite some time on financial issues. Dottie and I looked at each other wondering what this was about, and where it was going.
Assuming that Ann now wanted to list her Silver VIP, I again gave her an idea on how we might word the listing on the Owners website. This line of discussion sort of set her back, and there was a pause in the conversation. She then asked me if I had won $100,000.00 gift? I laughed and smarted off, that I couldn't even win a $2.00 bet at the track. Ann then began to sob and crying said, “I knew this was too good to be true, but I couldn't stop because you kept reassuring me”. Again, Dottie and I looked at each other wondering what this was all about and where this was going. Cutting the drama here is the rest of the story.
In January, of 2020 Ann received a text message from the scam-mer using my name and my photo saying he (I) had seen her name on a list published by Global Green Grants Funds, and she was the recipient of a $100,000.00 gift. He relating to her as being me, that 'I' too had received funding from the same gift and to the same amount. And that I had received my money in cash. He (me) offered to help Ann in pursuit of receiving her grant/gift. The phone number he used for his text is/was (313) 307 6374 adn all communication was by text.
1. The first request for money from Ann was for $2,500.00 to have the Grant filed. She sent this money to them Fed Express with him (me) assuring her that he 'I' too had to pay this fee and it was reaonable and fair.
2. A few days later Goal Green needed another $5,200.00 for Associate Dues, she again Fed Express this amount on his (my) reassurance that I too had paid these upfront expenses but the $100,000 I received more that covered this out of pocket outlay.
3. A few more days passed and Ann receives another text from him (me) and this time they needed $4,500.00; but again he (I) reassured her that the $100,000 would cover these expenses.
4. More of the same requests continued throughout the month of January and into February. Ann was repeatably questioning him (me) and the slick bastard was such a smoothie she continued to Fed Express them money. Her bank account was soon depleted, now she borrows to keep the payments going as she was pressured with so much money invested that she could not afford to lose her position with the $100,000 gift. Again he (I) was constantly reassuring her that this was the normal procedure with Federal Grants.
5. Finally when she cannot fund the quest for the gift any longer she asked me to call her, and I related that phone conversation of Saturday morning, February 29th. Now the conversation makes sense why she started the conversation "She hadn’t any more money," and the reasoning for asking if I had received a grant/gift of $100,000. Poor Ann realized that she had been fraudulently scammed out of some very significant money.
She and her sister have filed this scam with the FBI, and this delayed my reporting on this scam to you until today. The FBI Agent told Ann that they are getting some 50 of these scam cases a day. They were also honest with Ann, and told her she had little or no chance of recovery of her money.
Owners this Scamming is big business, and all they want is our money.
I've had a week to think this through, and these are my present thoughts.
- I believe the lead information tying Ann as a confident to Norman probably came off our Facebook Private Group.
- I have to wonder where the scam-mer gained access to her cell phone number, as all communication are by text. I asked Ann if she had ever listed her phone number on that group. She said no, but I had to reminder her she did, when she asked me to call; and this makes me wonder if perhaps she has done this previously.
- I'm depressed over the use of my name, but more so that it gave Ann confidence to proceed into this trap. I do appreciate the many thank you comments you Owners passed my way for the website, and the service it provides; but guys I'm just an Owner like you who has the time to enjoy working the site. It is my mind challenger; but I'm not your confidant, nor am I qualified to be one.
My Cautions For All:
- Be Alert.
- If it is too good to be true, then it probably is.
- Ask questions, research AND do due diligence.
- My phone number, mailing address and our photos are on the website as public information.
- This does not suggest that yours should be given.
- The only donations that I have ever asked for your considerations are to the Samaritan Projects and the financial support of the website, and full financial disclosures of both are published on the website.
- The Owners Facebook Group is a Private group; but we are approaching 900 members, and you know it is impossible to keep a group this large private, so use you best judgment in what and how you post.
- On Facebook use caution as you can never be sure to whom you are addressing, even in our Private Group.
- There is the sound reasoning for registering on the website, and I do ask each of you to register as then your personal information is on record. Registration is reasonable evidence that you are an Owner whom you say you are. You cannot not have this comfort level within our Facebook Group.
- Your personald registartion information is on my computer and has never been shared with any other person.
Ask Questions and do your own research!
Out of curiosity I Goggled “Global Green Grants Fund” and please note this Scam warning posted on September 6th 2019. This warning was on the Internet four months prior to Ann first being contacted in January.
Global Greengrants Fund. WARNING: There has been a scam going around on Facebook where accounts have been approaching individuals as “agents” of GlobalGreengrants Fund saying they can provide funding. These accounts are NOT in any way affiliated with Global Greengrants Fund, and they should be ignored and reported.
Respectively,
Norm Ribbe
webmaster