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Red Phone, I was sent an e-mail from a guy who saw my motorcycle
for sale on consignment at a place on Monterey Road. He asked a few
questions about the condition and mileage, and after I told him it
was $3,800 and it had 89,000 miles, he sent back another
e-mail.
”
This is where it got interesting.
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“Red Phone, I was sent an e-mail from a guy who saw my motorcycle for sale on consignment at a place on Monterey Road. He asked a few questions about the condition and mileage, and after I told him it was $3,800 and it had 89,000 miles, he sent back another e-mail.
“This is where it got interesting. He wanted to send me a certified check for $7,550 and I was to deduct the cost of the bike, with the remaining $3,750 going to the shipper because he apparently had ‘some other items to be shipped along with (the bike) from another location.’ I stopped all e-mail communication with him immediately because I believe it’s a scam and wanted to get the word out. Thanks in advance, Red Phone.”
Red Phone: Dear On The Ball, you are correct. That is a scam. This paper published a story earlier this year when the editor of the paper received a check for $3,785 from Fairview Marketing out of Burlington, Ontario, Canada. According to the letter, his name was randomly selected by a computer database as one of 20 winners. He was supposed to deposit the check and then send them a check for $2,975 to pay fees so they could send the remainder of the $250,000 prize he had won.
This is just one of many scams run mostly by crooks from other countries, said Morgan Hill Detective Ken Howard at the time.
Howard said this type of scam is just one of many, most of which are aimed primarily at the elderly. Others include the ‘pigeon drop,’ the ‘double-play’ and the ‘Latin lotto,’ the key element of which is convincing the potential victim they can share in a large sum of money. But there are others as well, including the fake contractor who will ask for money up front then not finish the job or do substandard work, and a fortune-telling scam designed to financially exploit victims by convincing them that valuables such as jewelry or money is cursed and only the fortune teller can remove the curse.
Always remember, anytime someone needs you to send them money to get money, it’s probably a scam, and “if it looks too good to be true, it probably is.”
People, it is OK to turn on red light
“Red Phone, I’ve been wondering about his since I first saw it some time ago, but why is there a ‘No Turn On Red’ sign at the east intersection of Cochrane and U.S. 101? There is a solid white line on the outside of the turning lane, so it seems pointless to have to stop for the light, let alone wait for it to turn since there is no other direction to enter the on-ramp from. It’s annoying to have to wait for other motorists ahead of me that don’t run the light (as I typically do), so what gives?
Red Phone: Dear Frustrated, you are correct. There is no need to wait for a green light at that intersection.
Come to a complete stop at this sign, make sure it’s safe to proceed then continue when clear. Hope that helps, good caller.
