Database Users

so i may buy a G2 from Craigslist

and i am wondering a few things..
i have heard of some shady craigslist people selling IMEI banned phones. If i get one by chance..is it possible to change IMEI? or am i screwed with a paperweight. I have seen some RIFF-box tools claim to be able to do it, but this is a pretty new phone so I am not sure if its supported.
Will T-Mobile work with a customer that accidentally came up on a banned phone? Does t-mobile actually ENFORCE the ban on the IMEI? I know of some people that had a supposed banned IMEI and it worked just fine.
Any information will be greatly appreciated!

Rather than potentially go through all of that, try calling T-Mobile when you meet the seller and verify with them if the phone is able to used without issue and hasn't been banned.
Also, talk of hacking and changing ESN/IMEIs are not allowed in the forums.
ricky05 said:
and i am wondering a few things..
i have heard of some shady craigslist people selling IMEI banned phones. If i get one by chance..is it possible to change IMEI? or am i screwed with a paperweight. I have seen some RIFF-box tools claim to be able to do it, but this is a pretty new phone so I am not sure if its supported.
Will T-Mobile work with a customer that accidentally came up on a banned phone? Does t-mobile actually ENFORCE the ban on the IMEI? I know of some people that had a supposed banned IMEI and it worked just fine.
Any information will be greatly appreciated!
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Click to collapse

bring your sim card with you and slap it in before you hand over the cash. When I sold my Droid on Craigs List I actually met the guy at the verizon store to make sure he didn't have an issue getting it activated. Its not much to ask..

i completely understand about imei changing not allowed..
i was mostly asking if it was POSSIBLE..not how to do it really..but ok
and thanks for the reply about meeting the guy there..thats probably what I will do.

I've worked for tmobile for a long time, they do not block imei's.......that is sprint and verizon which block esn's. Your safe to buy the phone.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using Tapatalk

You'll be fine with any GSM Carrier... Imei doesn't mean anything.
Just be sure your getting a Legitimate phone.

SmartHat said:
You'll be fine with any GSM Carrier... Imei doesn't mean anything.
Just be sure your getting a Legitimate phone.
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Unless it is on their blacklist an a stolen phone.

I bought a Motorola Cliq from CraigsList about a year ago... Turns out the guy I bought it from was a T-Mobile employee who had stolen the phone. I got a phone call from someone at T-Mobile asking me about the phone. I gave them all the information I had on the guy and then asked what it all meant to me.
I was told that because I had purchased the phone legitimately and had done nothing wrong that I could keep the phone and that T-Mobile had no interest in punishing a customer for someone else being dishonest.
As someone else said, pop your SIM card in the phone when you meet and see if it works.

Make sure you check that speaker phone works. I bought mine from a guy on craigslist for 275 and the speaker didn't work. I could hear out of the phone speaker (the one in front) but not out of the one in the back (above and to the right if the HTC logo behind the phone). So just check that the phone rings, that you can hear speakerphone, and that you can hear music.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

ricky05 said:
i completely understand about imei changing not allowed..
i was mostly asking if it was POSSIBLE..not how to do it really..but ok
and thanks for the reply about meeting the guy there..thats probably what I will do.
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If u change the imei then u will have one of someone else phone.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Can't the guy just report it stolen after you put your sim in to see if it works? This is the main thing stopping me from getting a G2 or Nexus on Craigslist. Will everything be perfect if it works when you put in your sim?

I would ask the seller to email the IMEI to me, and verify it with TMo. If all is good, double check it when you meet with the dude and you should be OK.

djsinco said:
I would ask the seller to email the IMEI to me, and verify it with TMo. If all is good, double check it when you meet with the dude and you should be OK.
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Thanks for the response!
but even after checking the imei with tmobile, couldn't he just write down the imei number and report it stolen after I check it with the sim and buy it?

The concern to me is that the seller stole it. you could have TMo document the IMEI search in your notes, that and a printout of the CL post would cover you.

Youll be ok. I've never hear TMo blacklist any phones...even ones that were reported lost/stolen.
You bought it...just keep records of all your interactions with the seller.
Posted from my HTC Vision via XDA App

I have purchased and sold numerous phones over Craigslist.
I would recommend that you meet in an area that is well-lit and very PUBLIC. I typically try to meet at a coffee shop or something. I have heard of horror stories in my area about people setting up robberies through CL so be careful and aware of your surroundings.
Spend a few minutes using the phone... I.E. make a test phone call, send a text message, test sound output, etc. If the seller is not okay waiting a few minutes while you do these things, hand them the phone back and find a different seller. If there is nothing to hide, this process is reasonable.

Thanks for all the responses guys but my main concern is with the imei number. What is a sure way to know that it will not be blocked later on by a person?

Bbe1367 said:
I've worked for tmobile for a long time, they do not block imei's.......that is sprint and verizon which block esn's. Your safe to buy the phone.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using Tapatalk
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There is nothing you can do to prevent a seller from calling customer service and giving them the IMEI saying that its stolen, BUT that doesn't have any impact on you.
ESN's are used on CDMA phones and those can be blocked to prevent service reaching a device. IMEI's do not work the same way. Regardless of whether or not the phone is reported as stolen, it would continue to work.
Just keep a record of your communication with the seller in case he tries to scam you down the road saying you stole it from him, but that is highly unlikely. Just be sure to check the device and make sure everything is working.

I take a gun with me when I go pay/pick up my item.

johnnyham89 said:
Thanks for all the responses guys but my main concern is with the imei number. What is a sure way to know that it will not be blocked later on by a person?
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T-mobile DOES NOT block IMEI numbers AT ALL,
Sprint and Verizon use CDMA networks, hence you have to give them your ESN number.... which they CAN block.
Since you are with T-Mobile... this scenario DOES NOT, I repeat DOES NOT apply to you.
just be careful about the phone itself, Making sure EVERYTHING works fine, scratches, dings.
Like somenone said... if there is nothing to hide than he WILL wait for you to test out the phone until you are satisfied. Meeting in a coffee shop or a public spot will do you good!

Repair Shop that stole my phone

Hi everyone,
I'd like to share a word of caution so hopefully you don't have to go through what I have.
About a month and a half ago my phone was having touchscreen issues so I was looking around and happened upon repair shop in Orlando, FL that was selling screen repairs on ebay for $80. They had good positive feedback from other people who had sent their phone to them so I decided to do it.
Long story short, for an entire month they had my phone and kept making excuses on why my phone wasn't fixed yet and informed me that the digitizer was not the problem but a cable between the digitizer and the motherboard was, but they had already fixed it and needed $30 more bucks and were going to drop it in the mail as soon as they got the money for the extra part, they had got a shipping code and everything.
Given the choice, I would've told them to send it back without fixing it but they already had, and since I had been a month without my phone I just said fine and I paid them again. And that's when they ceased all communication with me. I opened a case with eBay and after a week they decided I deserved a refund of my $80, however there was nothing they could do but politely ask the ebayer to return my phone.
So, as a warning, do not deal with this ebayer
and if you're living in Orlando, don't take your phone here:
Orlando Cell Phone Repair
6521 E.Colonial Dr
Orlando Fl 32807
their email: [email protected]
phone number: 407-455-8133
Also if you want to sign any of the above addresses up for your favorite spam site, that would be fine with me

thewarhawk said:
Hi everyone,
I'd like to share a word of caution so hopefully you don't have to go through what I have.
About a month and a half ago my phone was having touchscreen issues so I was looking around and happened upon repair shop in Orlando, FL that was selling screen repairs on ebay for $80. They had good positive feedback from other people who had sent their phone to them so I decided to do it.
Long story short, for an entire month they had my phone and kept making excuses on why my phone wasn't fixed yet and informed me that the digitizer was not the problem but a cable between the digitizer and the motherboard was, but they had already fixed it and needed $30 more bucks and were going to drop it in the mail as soon as they got the money for the extra part, they had got a shipping code and everything.
Given the choice, I would've told them to send it back without fixing it but they already had, and since I had been a month without my phone I just said fine and I paid them again. And that's when they ceased all communication with me. I opened a case with eBay and after a week they decided I deserved a refund of my $80, however there was nothing they could do but politely ask the ebayer to return my phone.
So, as a warning, do not deal with this ebayer
and if you're living in Orlando, don't take your phone here:
Orlando Cell Phone Repair
6521 E.Colonial Dr
Orlando Fl 32807
their email: [email protected]
phone number: 407-455-8133
Also if you want to sign any of the above addresses up for your favorite spam site, that would be fine with me
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this may help a lot of people !!
i feel sorry for your loss !!

I was born and raised in Orlando and live in Tampa now. I'm not back often, but next time I'm in town I'll try to stop by and raise hell with them.

Any news on getting your phone back?
Sent from my MB860 using xda premium

borgib said:
I was born and raised in Orlando and live in Tampa now. I'm not back often, but next time I'm in town I'll try to stop by and raise hell with them.
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Thanks alot, I appreciate that
msd24200 said:
Any news on getting your phone back?
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Nope, as always they're not replying to any emails and not answering my calls

Don't suppose you know your IMEI number, or S/N of the phone? I wouldn't be surprised if it wound up on EBAY for sale again.

Frrrrrrunkis said:
Don't suppose you know your IMEI number, or S/N of the phone? I wouldn't be surprised if it wound up on EBAY for sale again.
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Click to collapse
unfortunately not I forgot to write them down before I sent it off..and yeah I've been keeping an eye out for it, but I'm sure they would be smart enough to do it through a different account..

have you tried notifying the carrier you use? sometimes they save the imei of the device you use when you make a purchase or even just trading sim card, although few do it that way.

el_venga said:
have you tried notifying the carrier you use? sometimes they save the imei of the device you use when you make a purchase or even just trading sim card, although few do it that way.
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Thanks, I'll try contacting them to see if they have it on record, I did buy it from them

thewarhawk said:
Thanks, I'll try contacting them to see if they have it on record, I did buy it from them
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Treat the situation as a stolen phone. Contact your carrier and tell them it was stolen.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA

ar31791 said:
Treat the situation as a stolen phone. Contact your carrier and tell them it was stolen.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA
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I would definitely do the same thing as well. Theft has all forms so if you are prepared to do some work then you should even call the police on them.
Have you read their Terms and Conditions? Is there anything that you can go to the police with? Do you have a record of your shipment to them?
I was very sorry to hear about you experience.

It's difficult when this 'shop' had good reviews on Ebay. That typically says it's okay to send something to them as you're going to get it returned, but what I read is ridiculous. Since I haven't seen anyone else recommend it, why not A) report the phone as stolen and B) report your stolen phone to the police.
Granted it's just a phone, but even then it's property and it sounds like this repair place is in the same area you're in, though I could be wrong.
I hope you get your phone back. Sorry to hear it even happened. :-(
-Dave

Well now that we have the phone number we should all call and tell them to return this guys phone.

dratsablive said:
Well now that we have the phone number we should all call and tell them to return this guys phone.
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Don't know the shop and don't know the guy posting this problem. We should trust what the OP says because? Just saying! Nobody should go calling anyone. If what the OP says is in fact true, then there is legal recourse if he has proof someone has his phone.
Sent from my MB860 using xda premium

ar31791 said:
Treat the situation as a stolen phone. Contact your carrier and tell them it was stolen.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just called my carrier and they said they can't really do anything except suspend my service, but since I took my sim out before I sent the phone, I don't need that. They didn't have record of my atrix's IMEI number, so no luck there.
Anyways, I'm saving up money to get another atrix(because I just love this phone) so I'll be getting another one soon..
Thanks everyone for your support, I just started this thread to warn anyone else against dealing with these people, so don't worry too much about calling them up, like Caelan says, you don't really know me, and it probably won't help too much either way.
Thanks again

I don't suppose you have the box of the phone saved somewhere do you?
both IMEI and SN numbers are on there.

Tratious said:
I don't suppose you have the box of the phone saved somewhere do you?
both IMEI and SN numbers are on there.
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Click to collapse
Thanks for the suggestion, but those are long gone

Should have installed avast and enabled the anti theft option.
at this point you could have totally locked the phone down and even if he factory reset somehow it wouldnt matter

Just always remember karma is a really you know what and what goes around comes around

Gumtree Scam..

Hi Guys Need you advice.
I bought new samsung galaxy s3 from Gumtree guy sold it for £350. It was advertised that its unlocked on all networks. When I bought it of him it was working on Vodaphone. I rang orange to get microsim which arrived 3 days ago. I waited for text message for new sim but no message arrived after 24 hours so i rang orange asked why sim isnt active. Orange asked me for phone IMEI number which i provided found out that phone is blacklisted.
when i bought the phone guy said that he has reciept upon receiving the phone he said its at home but will give it tomorrow. So i took his pictures on Galaxy S2, made him sign the agreement and recorded him. I also took picture of gumtree ad and have his IMEI number. I rang the guy yesterday after orange telling me its blacklisted to say why did you sell me lost/stolen phone he said he will speak to vodaphone and see they can unblock it (strange). He rang after couple of minutes later said phone wont work on orange network only on vodaphone and offered me refund straightaway. At this point all i wanted was money back and then report him.
I got the refund now but asked him why he tried selling contract lost phone to me. He said he had previous phone stolen so they sent him new phone which he sold to me at point of sale he did not say he has on contract. I think he tried to scam me but i had all the proof to proof he sold me lost phone which he tried to do insurance scam.
I rang Vodafone to tell them what happened girl said all they can do is blacklist the phone (call center i rang was in Egypt) noting she can do. So i rang sales team who put me through to Customer services in uk i told them the same story but he said call in the morning system is playing up.
I have now bought sim free from carphonewarehouse today for £495
What do u guys suggest about this should i report him again and leave him to scam others (which i do not want) i dont want to go through hassell if its too much.
What would you guys do in this situation,.
Sorry about grammar and English

First of all I would report him to Gumtree to stop him from scamming anyone else on there.
Sent from my SGS3 on Omega v9.0 using XDA Premium

Secondly if you can find the network that blocked the phone it might be worth asking them your options if any to remove block.
Seller has commited fraud unless you where informed phone was blocked.
jje
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium

He said he had previous phone stolen so they sent him new phone which he sold to me at point of sale he did not say he has on contract.
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Thats bollocks.
The device IMEI is unique across all devices, including replacements for stolen devices. So if it is blacklisted, that (usually) means it got stolen and has been blocked due to a police-report by the victim.

Punch line: avoid gumtree. I had a similar situation in the past.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium

fbloise said:
Punch line: avoid gumtree. I had a similar situation in the past.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium
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Could you post details of where you met up or what he looks like? I just had my S3 stolen yesterday and I think I may have a rough idea of several people it could have been who pick pocketed me. It's gutting, but I just want to get to the bottom of it now.
I'm going to have the IMEI blacklisted tomorrow, but ideally I wish I could just get the phone back. I'd even have been happy to buy it back off him but whoever took it has turned it off and I'm stuffed.
Any help would be much appreciated.

The guy offered you a refund and apologies to you. Then he gave you the money and sort the problem! I think its an honest mistake which could happen to anyone (but the phone working on Vodafone does not seems to be blacklisted, otherwise it would not work on vodafone as well.) Just avoid buying these kind of things of gumtree in the future, or ask for a prof of purchase

cyrexking said:
The guy offered you a refund and apologies to you. Then he gave you the money and sort the problem! I think its an honest mistake which could happen to anyone (but the phone working on Vodafone does not seems to be blacklisted, otherwise it would not work on vodafone as well.) Just avoid buying these kind of things of gumtree in the future, or ask for a prof of purchase
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Totally agree, guy would not refund money if it was stolen..
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium

Totally agree, guy would not refund money if it was stolen.
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Click to collapse
Let's theorize that it was stolen. Two scenarios are possible:
a) he didn't know it was stolen and bought it from someone else too
b) he knew it was stolen but didn't want OP to go to the police so he just refunded the money. OP stated he had his voice and picture on record, so he might have panicked when he was confronted with the fact that the buyer knew it was stolen.

Yeah I have my doubts too of Gumtree... However I did buy this new One X there for a little cheaper than the shops, but it was a sealed one... I don't buy opened phones...
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium

Even if it was a scam, the intended victim wasn't you, or he wouldn't have refunded the money.
The victim in the this case is probably Vodafone or a third-party insurance company, and if they don't care enough to do anything about it... well then they have no one to blame but themselves.
He wouldn't have let you see his face if he was going to scam you: even someone who doesn't understand what blacklisting is, would just assume the phone was defective and attempt to get a refund anyway.

When I buy a phone off Gumtree, I test everything before I hand over any money. I always do a IMEI check as well to make sure it is not blacklisted and I find out who's name the phone is registered in. These are the steps everyone should make when buying a pre owned phone.
Sent from my SGS3 on Omega v9.0 using XDA Premium

I agree with others, if he wasintending to scam you, you would never got a refund that's how scammers work. I believe it was either an honest mistake or an insurance scam, not an intention to scam you.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium

He clearly tried to scam me but I took his picture, got him recorded, voice recording of him talking to me about the phone. He only refunded me because I had evidence that he sold me the phone.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium

I'm surprised by how many S3's are for sale on Gumtree, many state that they are sealed in the box ?
is there another scam or something that they maybe selling stolen from shops warehouses etc that would allow this ?
ie they may work for a while but then are blacklisted and become useless ?

Peeely said:
I'm surprised by how many S3's are for sale on Gumtree, many state that they are sealed in the box ?
is there another scam or something that they maybe selling stolen from shops warehouses etc that would allow this ?
ie they may work for a while but then are blacklisted and become useless ?
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First post in a dead thread ?????WHY ???
jje

Gumtree is fine but you need to do the deal "in prerson" so you can test devices out first etc.

JJEgan said:
First post in a dead thread ?????WHY ???
jje
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Sorry ...........................is there a law against that ? :crying:
I just found the topic when doing a search on Galaxy S3 ads on Gumtree as I am in the process of trying to purchase one and they seem to be a lot cheaper on there than say Ebay, and thought that you guys might have the answers to why ?

JJEgan said:
First post in a dead thread ?????WHY ???
jje
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There's nothing wrong with that.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium

Peeely said:
Sorry ...........................is there a law against that ? :crying:
I just found the topic when doing a search on Galaxy S3 ads on Gumtree as I am in the process of trying to purchase one and they seem to be a lot cheaper on there than say Ebay, and thought that you guys might have the answers to why ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would agree with the other person, do the deal in person Then you can test the phone before you buy it.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium

Blocked IMEI

Some douche sold me a phone then reported it stolen the next day... idiots....
I called AT&T and begged them to unblock it but to no success.. so now im contacting the idiot who did it.
But anyways, does anyone know if its possible to do anything as far as this?
Or immitate or switch IMEI numbers?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app

Is that's the phone with the broken bezel you got for $300? Dude that really sucks. Not sure what can be done but good luck.

Lol man thats funny...reason I DO NOT deal with CL
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda premium

there are ways of "faking" an IMEI but they are all illegal, and i doubt forum admins would allow posts about this here

sounds like you are screwed dude; you have no proof you paid him, and probably no way of getting the $$$ back. try to sell it for parts

kurdish11 said:
Yeah I know ive heard forum admins wont let cause its "illegal" but maybe you could point me in the right direction? I know its possible on iphones...
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Click to collapse
Google search : change imei samsung
thats the best i can offer to follow XDA rules
good luck. I would call the police and report this, this is FRAUD. Also make sure you have some proof, a listing or other proof that he was selling this. The police wont do much, but i would call him while recording the call and make sure at the end of the call when he admits to everything, he knows hes recorded and use that as leverage to get him to call ATT and have the phone unblocked

He probably sold you a stolen phone. Did he show you a receipt from when he bought it originally? Or maybe someone else reported it stolen to piss him off and now it is your problem.

He told me he would call AT&T and get it unblocked. I have all the text messages, I have the original listing saved.. and now he disconnected his phone. . It was definetly his phone, he had the original packaging and all so I know for sure it wasnt stolen...... what a bummer, I dont like getting involved with the police.. itd be a waste of time.. im considering finding him and beating the heck out of him........
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app

kurdish11 said:
He told me he would call AT&T and get it unblocked. I have all the text messages, I have the original listing saved.. and now he disconnected his phone. . It was definetly his phone, he had the original packaging and all so I know for sure it wasnt stolen...... what a bummer, I dont like getting involved with the police.. itd be a waste of time.. im considering finding him and beating the heck out of him........
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app
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if you know where he lives, i would consider a "friendly" visit with big boned friends to get things straightened out on the spot

kurdish11 said:
He told me he would call AT&T and get it unblocked. I have all the text messages, I have the original listing saved.. and now he disconnected his phone. . It was definetly his phone, he had the original packaging and all so I know for sure it wasnt stolen...... what a bummer, I dont like getting involved with the police.. itd be a waste of time.. im considering finding him and beating the heck out of him........
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app
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He probably reported it stolen so he could get a new phone from at&t by doing an insurance claim. Likely he has a police report too (it's required for a stolen insurance claim last I checked.)
If that's the case you need be very careful dealing with him and document everything. If he already lied to the police that's a very serious crime and hes going to be trying to cover his ass. I use to have a supervisor that is now facing 25 years in prison for lying to the police.

I agree with the others in this post:
Deal with him one-on-one to try to get money back (document/record everything)
Police
If for some reason the above two items failed, then start googling the IMEI stuff. But yeah - it's illegal itself, so you'd be better-off trying to resolve this properly.
You might look up the laws in your state regarding recording. In good ol' Arizona, the law states that any conversation can be recorded, so long as one person in the conversation is aware of it ... that person can be the one doing the recording.

Blacklisted S4

Okay so I bought an S4 off craigslist and the next day he reports it stolen and blacklists it, I contact his friend trying to work it out (note: everything we said to each other was over texts, so I have them still as proof - and I got his friends number the day I met him.. he deactivated his service).. he said he doesn't know why his friend blacklisted it but he would call AT&T to unblock it, shortly after he said he did it.. I waited patiently but to realize that it was still blocked so I text him again, he doesnt respond for a full day so I told him I will call the Police. He must have gotten scared because he finally responds and unblocks it.... I used it for a couple hours, then my service cuts off and he sends me this long message telling me that he blocked it again and is calling the cops because I threatened him?. I never said anything threatening to him but whatever....
So I call the police, report everything and tell them the story. A couple hours later a detective calls me and asks if I would like to prosecute, I agreed... so now Im waiting to see what happened...
What do you guys think? I should easily win right, I have all the proof. All the texts.. from before I purchased and from after.. and I have his original craigslist post....
I told this guy 100 times to either unblock it or just give my money back and id cancel the prosecution but he didnt respond, so whatever. ..
Anybody been through something similiar?. Think I should win? He clearly commited insurance fraud... and must have created a police report to report his "stolen" phone..
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app

Yeah definetly, I flip phones every now and then on craigslist but only meet in public areas infront of cameras, and I make sure its a real number. Which in this case it was, he must have thought I was bluffing when I said I would call the police.. I just turned 20, I really don't have time for this mess with school and work.. I gave the detective his information and he said he located him and spoke with him, and will me a line up after the weekend.. I mean seriously? Just give me back my money dude, why even risk jail time when I told him id drop charges...... people these days are ridiculous...
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app

That's... really messed up. You should definitely win. So long as you have all that information condemning him, I don't see any reason why you should lose. Obviously this guy is retarded because he doesn't realize that he will be convicted of fraud (against you), insurance fraud, lying to the police, and possibly other things. Over a phone? How much could this guy possibly make from a scam like that? A few hundred bucks maybe, and obviously can't keep doing this because AT&T would catch on to the fact that he keeps buying phones from them with insurance and losing them.
This dude is so pathetic I kind of feel bad for him...

dont drop the charges. he wasted your time, time and stress youll never get back. No matter what, dont drop anything, people like that should be taught a lesson to make sure they think twice before attempting fraud

polish_pat said:
dont drop the charges. he wasted your time, time and stress youll never get back. No matter what, dont drop anything, people like that should be taught a lesson to make sure they think twice before attempting fraud
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I agree, if you drop the charges if will try this with someone else.
Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk 4 Beta

I sell phones on Craigslist all the time and this is why it is no longer a good practice. Can no longer trust anyone and that causes more low ball offers.
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Craigslist nuff said.

I just got my s4 this past Thursday through craigslist, I told the guy that for us to make a deal we would have to meet at a corporate AT&T store to have the phone verified and documented that I purchased his phone . to make sure there was no back lash on me.
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REDFOCZ said:
I just got my s4 this past Thursday through craigslist, I told the guy that for us to make a deal we would have to meet at a corporate AT&T store to have the phone verified and documented that I purchased his phone . to make sure there was no back lash on me.
Sent from my AOKP Galaxy S4
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Way too much work. I'd rather pay full price for a phone. don't have time to deal with CL idiots anymore.

I stopped using cl a long time ago, can't trust anybody these days.
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You sure the detective wasn't one of friends?

Agree... I'll do it in the store next time. Thx for the story. Good luck.
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legal ways around this...
ask for purchase reciept with signature name and id
ask for his/her id
go to local att/tmob/verizon whatever store and and confirm IMIE/serial belongs to seller
ask for manager and tell them phone is being sold not stolen (or call)
friend sells/buys phones off CL all the time, unless they agree to all the above he wont deal with them. only way to be safe. also, i would report the guy who did it; thats insurance fraud, falsifying a police report, and some minor infractions. you have his number? call him leave message and tell him you will report insurance fraud; they will pursue it.

I have a detective on the case already, he deactivated his number but he was stupid enough to tell me where he lives and gave me.his friends number the day I purchased it.
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I sell my old phones on CL and have noticed people are being extra paranoid these days.
When I sold my iphone 5 the buyer asked for the imei # I refused to give it over the text. how do I know what this person plans to do with it?
of course they asked if it was stolen, I obviously said no. I showed them the original box, even the shipping box it came it, I of course removed my address. Let them pop in their sim card and they were satisfied.
I'm curious to know how much you bought your 2nd hand S4 for? I would think someone looking to scam someone would try to make a quick buck with people that aren't gonna think twice to buy it if it's too cheap.
Let's say like 300? no one in their right mind would sell you an S4 for half of what it costs new, of course unless if they were going to scam you... I would be suspicious of it before I agree to buy something that seems too cheap...

AutoUnion said:
........ I bet that asshole tried to claim insurance on the phone.
........
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That about sums it up.

I
kurdish11 said:
Okay so I bought an S4 off craigslist and the next day he reports it stolen and blacklists it, I contact his friend trying to work it out (note: everything we said to each other was over texts, so I have them still as proof - and I got his friends number the day I met him.. he deactivated his service).. he said he doesn't know why his friend blacklisted it but he would call AT&T to unblock it, shortly after he said he did it.. I waited patiently but to realize that it was still blocked so I text him again, he doesnt respond for a full day so I told him I will call the Police. He must have gotten scared because he finally responds and unblocks it.... I used it for a couple hours, then my service cuts off and he sends me this long message telling me that he blocked it again and is calling the cops because I threatened him?. I never said anything threatening to him but whatever....
So I call the police, report everything and tell them the story. A couple hours later a detective calls me and asks if I would like to prosecute, I agreed... so now Im waiting to see what happened...
What do you guys think? I should easily win right, I have all the proof. All the texts.. from before I purchased and from after.. and I have his original craigslist post....
I told this guy 100 times to either unblock it or just give my money back and id cancel the prosecution but he didnt respond, so whatever. ..
Anybody been through something similiar?. Think I should win? He clearly commited insurance fraud... and must have created a police report to report his "stolen" phone..
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You will win. You can take him to small claims court and have him pay the fees too.
See if you can get a cache of his ad just in case for evidence. Most likely he'll cave in and refund you.
Show him all of your evidence and say "we can take this to court and I'm sure I will win."
On a side note, what an awesome detective working your case. I'm sure he's very busy too. These guys have back logs of cases not resolved and have to work tons of overtime.
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TheAxman said:
You sure the detective wasn't one of friends?
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You're kidding right........?..... yeah im sure I connected coincidentally to his friend when I called 911 and they provided me with that detective.
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galaxy808 said:
I sell my old phones on CL and have noticed people are being extra paranoid these days.
When I sold my iphone 5 the buyer asked for the imei # I refused to give it over the text. how do I know what this person plans to do with it?
of course they asked if it was stolen, I obviously said no. I showed them the original box, even the shipping box it came it, I of course removed my address. Let them pop in their sim card and they were satisfied.
I'm curious to know how much you bought your 2nd hand S4 for? I would think someone looking to scam someone would try to make a quick buck with people that aren't gonna think twice to buy it if it's too cheap.
Let's say like 300? no one in their right mind would sell you an S4 for half of what it costs new, of course unless if they were going to scam you... I would be suspicious of it before I agree to buy something that seems too cheap...
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300 is right. But it was in bad condition, the frame was jacked up. Other than that nope. I thought I just ran into some idiot.. turns out I was right, an idiot he was.
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SlimJ87D said:
I
You will win. You can take him to small claims court and have him pay the fees too.
See if you can get a cache of his ad just in case for evidence. Most likely he'll cave in and refund you.
Show him all of your evidence and say "we can take this to court and I'm sure I will win."
On a side note, what an awesome detective working your case. I'm sure he's very busy too. These guys have back logs of cases not resolved and have to work tons of overtime.
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
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It's not small claims though, the detective asked if I would like to prosecute him in court and I said yes. Later asked if it would be small claims and he said no, so im guessing its the real deal... anybody know if any fees will have to be paid out of my pocket for court?
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