Luckily, the only thing hurt was Ralph McMillan’s pride.
McMillan tells me his Texas company, RAMCO Laundry Machinery, was nearly victimized in a scam perpetrated by someone claiming to be from the United Arab Emirates.
While no money or equipment was lost, he asked if I would alert the industry to the possibility of similar scam attempts.
An individual from “Orion General Trading” contacted RAMCO by e-mail in November, claiming to represent a client who was interested in buying two flatwork ironers.
McMillan and the “consultant” negotiated a deal through a series of e-mails and finally arrived at a price for one ironer. The consultant asked to be paid a 25% commission immediately once RAMCO received his check.
McMillan explained that the ironer would ship and he would be paid only after a check drawn on a U.S. bank had cleared. Soon, McMillan received a bogus cashier’s check.
The spelling of “Romco” was just the first red flag. McMillan called the North Carolina bank (whose name was also spelled incorrectly) and quickly discovered the fraud.
There’s your cautionary tale about the importance of performing due diligence.
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