Charles Lester -- Beware

Jensen81 said:
Im sorry that you didn't get your knife. That really sucks and it is an unfortunate incident. I know the seller personally. He is a great guy. He is a good friend, a family man, and an outstanding person. He fought for our country and still continues to serve. He would NEVER screw anyone. He is honest and a man of his word and is of the highest character. This happened at the post office or after it left the post office I have no doubt. I hope that the knife turns up. Good luck!
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If this were Whine & Cheese, you and the seller would get the emoticon that is deserved...

Jensen81 said:
I'm not getting involved in this situation. I saw a good friend getting bashed so i spoke up. Take my post for what it's worth. Good luck I really do hope that your knife turns up.
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That would be nothing...
 
Marinemp4 said:
Ok now that I have been bashed without any "evidence" present lets start with the facts:

Facts- The buyer was offered additional insurance at his cost
- the Seller does not have to include insurance
- There has been no proof that the knife was not included in the package, all there was, was a picture of an open package
- The USPS would have contacted me if there was an issue with the package prior to being sent ( which there wasn't)
- The empty package would not be delivered to an address, a letter from the mail carrier would be left in the (buyer's) mailbox stating such as issue had arisen.
- Everyone here is coming to their own conclusions to a one sided story thus far ( does not surprise me)
- Today, after I received an e-mail from Justin Watts, I called the post office where I mailed it from, provided all information and they stated that their system showed that the package had in fact been delivered. (opinion enclosed here- if the package was delivered at the SAME weight as shipped, that leads me to believe that either 1- someone at the USPS post office in CA took the knife or 2- the knife was received as it is should be and I am being lied to in an attempt to get a free knife)
- I did in fact ship the knife in the package as shown, that package was the exterior of another package in which the knife was wrapped in a small cloth, bubbled wrapped and sealed as to prevent anyone from "knowing" it was a knife to prevent theft.
- The sad thing is that theft does occur whether it be at the Post Office or by someone else. At this time I have been presented with nothing to affirm that the knife was in fact not delivered to the buyer.
- There were no sharp edges or blades poking through the envelope and it was sealed and secured (with the price of shipping placed over the seal, as to ensure the seal is secure)

Opinions- The package that was used to ship the knife was more than secure, whether it be a box, envelope or a gun safe it was still secure.
- I don't believe that without evidence present, I should just bow to the words of someone whom I do not even know. That being said, with the lack of proof that the knife never made it there, I will keep my original answer affirmed. I will not provide a refund. I am sorry if that bothers you but think of me as you will. I have shipped, sold, and bought knives and never once had a problem.
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You had a moral and legal obligation to deliver the goods you sold. You conned the buyer into a no-recourse method of payment. You didn't deliver the goods and cheated the buyer.

If you're upstanding, you'll refund his cash. If not...
 
JustinWatts said:
Well, I'm having a pretty bad day. Thursday morning, I bought my first high end knife -- a Strider SnG. I've never spent more than $200 on any knife in my collection, and I got an awesome deal on this particular knife for $325. Well, I knew the knife would be here today, and I woke up excited. Once I received a knock at the door I sprang up to be presented with an empty package. Just my luck.

I had purchased the knife on an alternate forum, but like myself; many people sell knives among different communities. This particular seller, marinemp4 (alternate forum account), poorly packaged my knife and as a result; I am now out $325 and a Strider. I made the mistake of paying for my knife using Gift/Family, and I will not be making that mistake in the future. The only thing I could do was ask kindly for a refund; which I did, and Charles refused. He is supposedly a police officer in Syracuse, however it makes me wonder considering his values. Please don't spam/guilt him constantly, but his email is: marinemp4@aol.com. I only want this information to be passed around so that if it comes up you guys may avoid the seller.

I pointed him out to proper USPS shipping, and he completely ignored my information. That angered me, so now I will make sure he does not screw anyone else. I assured him that should he keep shipping knives with this poor quality; this predicament will happen again. Learn from my negative experience to make sure you do not have one.

Here is a picture of the packaging of the knife. It was placed in the envelope in a plastic bag, so no wonder it was not recovered at the post office.

nLde6Rr.jpg
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For the good of this community, I would urge you to post this in the feedback forum The Good, the Bad, the Ugly, if you haven't already, so that it gets the proper viewing audience.
 
Absent specific instructions from the buyer it is the seller who determines the method of transport and assumes the risk of a loss from the method of transport he selects.
 
Marinemp4 said:
Ok now that I have been bashed without any "evidence" present lets start with the facts:

Facts- The buyer was offered additional insurance at his cost
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Proof?

Marinemp4 said:
- the Seller does not have to include insurance
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True, but it's still the seller's responsibility if the knife is not delivered.

Marinemp4 said:
- There has been no proof that the knife was not included in the package, all there was, was a picture of an open package
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With a USPS "Received Unsealed" sticker on it, with a USPS employees initials on it.

Marinemp4 said:
- The USPS would have contacted me if there was an issue with the package prior to being sent ( which there wasn't)
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Yes, I'm sure they do exhaustive testing on the millions of packages they receive every day.

Marinemp4 said:
- The empty package would not be delivered to an address, a letter from the mail carrier would be left in the (buyer's) mailbox stating such as issue had arisen.
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Proof?

Marinemp4 said:
- Everyone here is coming to their own conclusions to a one sided story thus far ( does not surprise me)
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No one had heard from you until your post.

Marinemp4 said:
- Today, after I received an e-mail from Justin Watts, I called the post office where I mailed it from, provided all information and they stated that their system showed that the package had in fact been delivered. (opinion enclosed here- if the package was delivered at the SAME weight as shipped, that leads me to believe that either 1- someone at the USPS post office in CA took the knife or 2- the knife was received as it is should be and I am being lied to in an attempt to get a free knife)
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Yes, the package was delivered, empty. Do you really think any delivery service weighs packages at both pick-up and delivery? If someone in CA took the knife, it's still on you. If you're being lied to, where did the OP get the "Received Unsealed" sticker? Maybe he's a criminal mastermind, but that sounds a lot like grasping at straws.

Marinemp4 said:
- I did in fact ship the knife in the package as shown, that package was the exterior of another package in which the knife was wrapped in a small cloth, bubbled wrapped and sealed as to prevent anyone from "knowing" it was a knife to prevent theft.
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Was the inner package able to move around within the envelope, so that it could build up speed while being tossed around and break that weak and completely un-reinforced seal on the envelope?

Marinemp4 said:
- The sad thing is that theft does occur whether it be at the Post Office or by someone else. At this time I have been presented with nothing to affirm that the knife was in fact not delivered to the buyer.
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What about that picture in the first post?

Marinemp4 said:
- There were no sharp edges or blades poking through the envelope and it was sealed and secured (with the price of shipping placed over the seal, as to ensure the seal is secure)
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It was a sealed envelope, designed for mailing papers or maybe a catalog. You send a knife in a BOX. Common sense.

Marinemp4 said:
Opinions- The package that was used to ship the knife was more than secure, whether it be a box, envelope or a gun safe it was still secure.
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This just doesn't make any sense. If the package was secure it wouldn't have come open, so by definition it wasn't secure. If an inmate escapes from a holding cell were they secure?

Marinemp4 said:
- I don't believe that without evidence present, I should just bow to the words of someone whom I do not even know.
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The picture in the first post is pretty strong evidence, infinitely more that you have provided.

Marinemp4 said:
I have shipped, sold, and bought knives and never once had a problem.
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Not anymore.
8 posts, 3 months, not a great track record.
 
I don't think this guy cares what anybody says here. He has made up his mind that he's not going to make right; the only thing that is going to make any difference now is for someone that is respected in the forum where this takes place reaches out on behalf of the OP, or if the OP pursues legal action directly (although, he gave up most of his recourse when he sent the money as a PayPal gift, both parties admit that there was a contractual obligation, and PayPal's rules don't matter so much in a high court - every contract can be broken, and just as the perpetrator broke his contract, PayPal's contract regarding gift payment is just a roadblock - not the end of the road). It will be of special interest to his department if he's an LEO, one way or another. BladeForums has exerted about as much pressure as it can collectively, and the perp is no longer listening once he realized that everyone wouldn't support his excuses here like they did at the scene of the crime.
 
A Justice said:
BladeForums has exerted about as much pressure as it can collectively, and the perp is no longer listening once he realized that everyone wouldn't support his excuses here like they did at the scene of the crime.
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Curious...

Just where is the "scene of the crime" and who's supported his excuses there...?
 
A Justice said:
I don't think this guy cares what anybody says here. He has made up his mind that he's not going to make right; the only thing that is going to make any difference now is for someone that is respected in the forum where this takes place reaches out on behalf of the OP, or if the OP pursues legal action directly (although, he gave up most of his recourse when he sent the money as a PayPal gift, both parties admit that there was a contractual obligation, and PayPal's rules don't matter so much in a high court - every contract can be broken, and just as the perpetrator broke his contract, PayPal's contract regarding gift payment is just a roadblock - not the end of the road). It will be of special interest to his department if he's an LEO, one way or another. BladeForums has exerted about as much pressure as it can collectively, and the perp is no longer listening once he realized that everyone wouldn't support his excuses here like they did at the scene of the crime.
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"Mope" would be more fitting.

In what department is he supposedly a LEO?
 
Hey Charles Lester , Bight the Bullet and do the right thing. Stop making yourself into even a partial victim. Learn from it and grow , for the benefit of this community , and the ones outside of it.. Be who you say you are . Learn what integrity is and then try and at least lean towards it. We all should all the time. Its what got us here. Charles are you just serving for a paycheck? I'm sure you'd like to think not. But your actions hurt the integrity of the communities. Its sometimes hard for people to be empathetic to someone's mistakes if they won't even accept them. I'm saying as far as I'm concerned. You fix this its water under the bridge, your a good man and you deserve my respect and appreciation.


James
 
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Just curious since the mail was used in this case how close does it come to mail fraud? I am sure if he is a LEO his depart would love to find out he is being investigated. Might even contact his department to see if it qualifies as theft or just cival action.
 
I think mail fraud requires a scheme of some sort, not just lack of common sense.
 
InTheSticks said:
Just curious since the mail was used in this case how close does it come to mail fraud? I am sure if he is a LEO his depart would love to find out he is being investigated. Might even contact his department to see if it qualifies as theft or just cival action.
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.... you would never establish intent for either, it is a moral/personality/common sense issue.
 
Looking at the pic it looks like the envelope was not sealed at all, the flap is on the inside.

I lost my afck because of the way I sent it to BM.
 
Very simple, refund the man his money. Who cares if he "Gifted" and he learned a damn lesson, that is besides the point. PayPal has nothing at all to do with this event. The Op did not get what he paid for and the seller did not properly package the item sold. The seller did not use a box and did not buy insurance it is all his fault. The Op did his part HE PAID!!!

Be a man and pony up! The buyer did his part by PAYING and the seller failed to deliver what was promised.
 
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Thanks I was wondering just so you don't think I am complete idiot I will note that I realize that the way it was shipped is not fraud but the refusal to honor the term of the agreement and make it right comes close in my mind.
 
Charles has agreed to work with me, and I submitted a retrieval form. I doubt it will turn up, but if not they can provide proof that the package was received open. I can't blame the guy for being careful in the world we live in today.

Hopefully we can get this solved and end on good terms. At this point in time, please hold off until USPS updates me with the details of the shipment. Thanks.
 
Nice to see the effort happening by the seller. Here's hoping all works out for y'all.
 
the sad truth is, unless he 'mans up' and refunds u the money, u have no way of getting a refund. the usps isn't going to pay for it, no insurance was purchased. Besides as far as them or paypal are concerned u were sent a gift of no value. this will be a good learning lesson...anyone who asks you to pay buy gift on paypal is probably looking to cover their ass if something goes wrong. good luck
 
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