What should I do? I think I am a victim of fraud (Texas)?

[anglesey34]

I am in desperate need...mostly because I'm an IDIOT.

A guy approached me at the mall selling magazines. He was a super cool guy and just started telling me about a competition that he was in with his radio broadcasting school and if she reached so many points, he would win so much amount of money...blah blah blah. Well, being the sap that I am, I bought a couple...giving him enough points to win this competition. He explained to me all of the laws about cancelling and laws on Consumer Rights so I thought that it was fine. Soon after, I gave him a call because I wanted to cancel my order...I went to meet him to sign the papers and which I did. I originally paid in cash and check...he said that the school's office would refund the money to me in check form or they can direct deposit it into my account. He said they would not cash the checks since I had already filled out the cancellation agreement. Well, today I looked at my bank account and the check was cashed. Not only that...bc I didn't think that the check would be cashed I was short and now they charged me an overdraft fee! I have tried calling him, texting him, leaving him messages...NOTHING in response. AND to top it all off, I can't find my f'n receipt. I know he is ignoring me bc he clicks the reject button when I call.

I am sooooo upset bc the longer I keep my account negative, the more money I get charged...plus tuition is due on Friday. I have NO information on the school, except the name, and I have his phone number. Thats it.

does anyone have any suggestions???

[osbourne]

You made an unwise choice in purchase, and without the receipt or a copy of the cancellation agreement you have basically no leg to stand on. If the magazines arrive as promised and you can't prove you canceled, they held up their end of the deal. If the magazine never arrive and the money is not refunded you can file a police report for fraud but the odds of a successful prosecution are slim.

Look up the school, call them, see if the contest or whatever is legitimate, that should give you an idea how this will end up.

[golding]

Well, Not really , I would probably just chalk that up as a loss cause there is nothing you could do about it now. That is terrible but that is the way shysters are, sorry but you will take the loss on that, remember that as learned lesson learned in your path of life. sorry , but like i said you did learn from it. right?

[akule76]

You should have canceled the checks before he cashed them.

You are not a victim of fraud unless you do not receive the item that you ordered, but this person would be guilty of several other crimes such as larceny and unfair business practices. Essentially the situation is this: you purchased a service and agreed to pay. Then you made a request to cancel the order, to which the merchant *agreed.* At the moment he agreed to cancel your order, your contract was dissolved and he had no right to hold your money or cash your check (unless there was a cancellation fee of some kind).

It really would be helpful if you can prove that you canceled the sale. This is the kind of evidence that a court would like to see.

How much money are we talking about?

Depending on how large your local police department is, they may or may not be interested in helping you investigate. Go to the website for the Texas attorney general's office, and look for consumer protection division. Or Texas might have a separate office of consumer protection. Report the incident to them.

While the police and/or the Texas Att'y General investigates the case from a criminal angle and possibly press criminal charges, this by itself will not get you your money back.

To collect your money you might need to take this guy to small claims court if he won't give it back to you voluntarily. That is where receipts and documentation to prove that he had no right to cash your check will be needed. There is a legal presumption that if you write another person a check that you are thereby giving them permission to keep the money. You need to introduce evidence to the contrary to overcome this presumption and show that you are entitled to your money back.

One thing is certain: even if you are able to track this guy down, you won't see your money again for a while. Several months at least, and probably more. There is no quick fix, unfortunately.