Bad Chris Martin AKA Phantom Steelworks!

Well aside from all that, start a gofundme to raise funds for small claims. I feel for all of you and want you to get some relief.
 
slyraven said:
Well aside from all that, start a gofundme to raise funds for small claims. I feel for all of you and want you to get some relief.
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I'm not going to ask anyone to pay for my mistake. I've pretty much given up on getting my money back. I will not throw good money after bad with the small hope of winning a case against Chris. I doubt he could pay my back even if I did win the case.
 
slyraven said:
My take is that if you have a claim, do it the proper way. There are lots of channels you can take and not have to spend money. I don't like social media campaigns to harass people's family. I know you have been ripped off but come on, doing that doesn't really do anything.

You have clear evidence he owes you stuff because of his own admission, now take that to the proper channels and even with the post master general, because the mail was used to fraud you. ( You sent him a knife ) Using the post to steal is a FEDERAL crime.

You all who have been scammed act like you have zero recourse, but that's simply not true.
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Even if the USPS cares, the Postal Inspectors are a small service [I am near Cleveland. The nearest PIs are in Pittsburg.) focusing what time they have on the drug plague that is killing tens of thousands in the US (about 1/8 of the tobacco deaths and 1/4 of the alcohol deaths).

A failure to keep a promise - breach of contract - or failure to pay a debt is a civil matter ( sue in a court with jurisdiction over the person; win a judgment; locate assets (if any exist); transfer judgment to jurisdiction where those assets are located if different from that rendering judgment; execute on those assets; repeat as needed), not robbery or any other crime.

There is no imprisonment for debt in the U.S. except for failure to pay taxes or child support.

For criminal prosecution you need a prosecutor who gives a damn and evidence of original intent by the defendant not to keep the promise. A pattern or practice of welshing is such evidence. In each state, a given amount at stake determines if the alleged crime is a felony or a misdemeanor. Federal mail fraud (use of US mails as any part of scheme to defraud) or wire fraud (use of internet or telephones to defraud) is a felony with penalties of up to 30 years in prison per offense..
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mail_and_wire_fraud

Criminal prosecution rarely gets the victim a penny.
 
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Yeah I'm not in a financial position where I can pursue a legal solution to this shit show. I wish I was!
 
I have been following this since Chris ghosted me about a year and a half ago with a Delirium I paid $1,650 for... I would text him off and on for the last year and a half and he would reply but for the last year he hasn't... Until the other day... I hit him up and asked very nicely for the knife which only needed a pocket clip. He replied and said it would be done in a week. This was last month. Fast forward to yesterday where he sent me a picture of it completed and a tracking number. It should be here tomorrow. I truly believe he is trying to make it right. I will let you know when I get the knife but he is trying to fix all of this I am sure.
 
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C_Money said:
I have been following this since Chris ghosted me about a year and a half ago with a Delirium I paid $1,650 for... I would text him off and on for the last year and a half and he would reply but for the last year he hasn't... Until the other day... I hit him up and asked very nicely for the knife which only needed a pocket clip. He replied and said it would be done in a week. This was last month. Fast forward to yesterday where he sent me a picture of it completed and a tracking number. It should be here tomorrow. I truly believe he is trying to make it right. I will let you know when I get the knife but he is trying to fix all of this I am sure of it. Text or call me if you have any questions on my experience 541 619 0958
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You're very lucky. I've lost hope that he'll make it right for me. Good for you though!
 
C_Money said:
I have been following this since Chris ghosted me about a year and a half ago with a Delirium I paid $1,650 for... I would text him off and on for the last year and a half and he would reply but for the last year he hasn't... Until the other day... I hit him up and asked very nicely for the knife which only needed a pocket clip. He replied and said it would be done in a week. This was last month. Fast forward to yesterday where he sent me a picture of it completed and a tracking number. It should be here tomorrow. I truly believe he is trying to make it right. I will let you know when I get the knife but he is trying to fix all of this I am sure.
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I hope you are right and he does make things "right" with you. Just like Loops, I have zero expectations of anything coming, money or knife. He sent me a few videos and pictures of my "build" after a few months after my deposit. We can see where that ended up. The pictures, videos, his word, etc... are all BS unless there is something in my PayPal account or hands.
 
Loops said:
Congratulations!

Maybe I should email him...
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Yeah I’d try emailing. I did twice and got a response twice just a few days ago. He says ill be getting my knife soon.
Ive heard that before but this email seemed positive. All I can do is hope for the best outcome.
 
myemptymind said:
Yeah I’d try emailing. I did twice and got a response twice. He says ill be getting my knife soon.
Ive heard that before but this email seemed positive. All I can do is hope for the best outcome.
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I've given up. Nothing works. Chris is a thief and he's gotten away with it. I can't afford legal action. So he wins
 
myemptymind said:
Yeah I’d try emailing. I did twice and got a response twice just a few days ago. He says ill be getting my knife soon.
Ive heard that before but this email seemed positive. All I can do is hope for the best outcome.
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You'll get a rude awakening soon. I've been emailing him for 3 years. He doesn't care. You'll get the same treatment eventually.
 
Loops said:
You'll get a rude awakening soon. I've been emailing him for 3 years. He doesn't care. You'll get the same treatment eventually.
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Loops, one avenue you might try is to write to the Attorney General, Consumers Affairs. I had a breach of contract issue with a small business and called them. They sent the individual a letter of warning on AG letterhead of impending action. I got a call 8am the next morning wondering when would it be convenient for me for them to deliver my goods. Cost nothing and you have a State paid lawyer working for you.
 
NWPilgrim said:
Loops, one avenue you might try is to write to the Attorney General, Consumers Affairs. I had a breach of contract issue with a small business and called them. They sent the individual a letter of warning on AG letterhead of impending action. I got a call 8am the next morning wondering when would it be convenient for me for them to deliver my goods. Cost nothing and you have a State paid lawyer working for you.
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Hmmm, I'll give that a try. Thanks.

Problem is I have no idea where he is now.
 
So, I did contact my local consumer affairs office. They can't do much for an out of state transaction. However they gave me some options, 1. Contact the consumer affairs in his state (However he's moved recently) so I don't think AZ can help as he's moved to OK), 2. Contact local law enforcement (I tried that a year or so ago, they were happy to go see him BUT I had to be there in person, I couldn't), 3. Contact the FTC and file a complaint (This is what I ended up doing), 4. Contact the FBI through their Internet Crimes Complaint Center (IC3) (I would LOVE to do that but all the information they require I don't have).

Y'all are welcome to file too:
https://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx
https://www.ftc.gov/
 
The FTC has jurisdiction over consumer fraud but shows zero interest in "small" cases. They acknowledged my complaint and assigned it a case number - on 01/10/2018. Not a word since.
 
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