Rotoboy661 - Bad Seller, Lawsuit Pending
01-14-2005, 11:15 AM
#1
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: PA
Posts: 5
Hello,
I am writing today to warn people not to do transactions with Mike Lara here on the forums. I am processing paperwork after work today with my lawyer to press criminal and USPS charges on Mike Lara who goes by rotoboy661 on this forum.
I paid Mike $515 total between November 2nd and November 5th of 2004 for several interior items and a few exterior items. As of today I have not received a single item or refund from him despite several communications between us. I have proof of payment via Paypal for the moderators if they wish to see this, and have several transaction records (an extensive AIM message as well) that have all been given to my lawyer. I cannot share the communications records, but here is a summary of them as of today:
Nov 2nd: Negotiated items for purchase and purchase amount via paypal. Items included several interior pieces, some exterior pieces and a set of four coilovers. Sent Mike $225 (partial payment) via Paypal.
Nov 5th: Talked with Mike again when I discovered that the coilovers which he stated were a new model turned out to be a model that is no longer sold. Asked him to drop them from the transaction, and added an additional $50 to the final price for his troubles. Also inquired about the condition of paint on a speedo cluster that I was buying from him. He offered to repaint it for free. Sent Mike $290 via Paypal to complete the payment.
Nov 13th: Received no response or tracking numbers from Mike so I emailed him. He replied back and said that he had the cluster "touched up" and that it would be ready Wednesday (11/17/04) and would ship on Thursday (11/18/04).
Nov 18th: Emailed Mike again asking for tracking numbers for the items that he would be shipping that day. He replied back saying no problem.
Nov 24th: Still did not receive any packages or tracking numbers or reply back from Mike. Emailed again asking for the status, or any tracking numbers. Also told him that if he had not shipped out the items yet, that I was moving out of my old apartment into my new home after the 30th, and that all packages from this point forward should be mailed to my new home address. Mike responded back saying that they were "just about done with the speedo" (the one he said would be done by the 17th and shipped on the 18th), that he was just looking for the right size boxes, and confirmed that he received my new address.
Nov 30th: Still did not receive any boxes, tracking numbers or reply from Mike. Emailed him again asking for some info. Also asked him that if the speedo was still not ready, to ship all of the other items and then ship the speedo seperately due to the very long delay (now 25 days since receipt of payment). He said no problem and that he'd ship the other items for sure tomorrow (12/01/04) and that he still wasn't sure if the speedo would be ready but would ship it seperately if needed.
Dec 7th: Still did not receive any boxes, tracking numbers or reply from Mike. Again politely asked for information via email. He responded back saying that he decided (without ever notifying me) to wait until the speedo was ready before shipping all of the items, that it looked "awesome" and that it "will ship later today but for sure tomoorrow for ya".
Dec 13th: Still did not receive any boxes, tracking numbers or a reply back from Mike. Sent him an email asking about the parts. Told him that he had received my payment over a month ago and that his multiple assurances of shipment were becoming untolerable. The 13th was on a Monday and he said he had all of my parts in hand, so I told him in the email that I needed ALL of my parts or a full refund by Friday (12/17/04) or that I would be contacting my laywer. He replied back saying that he swore on his life that everything would be delivered promptly and that he did not want to jeopardize our business relationship. He also said that all parts would be accounted for.
Dec 16th: Still did not receive tracking numbers for my shipment so I emailed him. He responded back apoligizing for the delay and included a tracking number for one box that he shipped. I traced the package and despite my request for my items to arrive by the 17th, he shipped his box via ground shipment so it had no chance to arrive on time. I traced the package nearly every day until it said the package was delivered on Tuesday, 12/21/04.
Dec 21st: I returned home from work and could not find the box anywhere. I asked my wife if she had seen it and she said no. I promptly called UPS to inquire about the box. Upon talking to them, I discovered that he shipped the box to my old apartment (over 20 minutes away) which I told him I would be moved out of by the month before. I quickly drove over to my old apartment and the box was not there. I asked one neighbor who was home and she said she never saw the box. I returned home that night and called Mike. He started saying that they should have had a signature for the box and that I should call UPS. I told him that I did and when I inquired about insurance on it, they stated that since they shipped the box to the address that Mike specified (the wrong one) that Mike would have difficulty making a claim. I told Mike that I would try calling the apt manager but that he should work with UPS to find the box. He then finished the conversation by telling me not to worry, because the box he shipped was only the exterior door handles, and driver's window switch and that the big box with my cluster and center console pieces had not been shipped yet. He said those items were "on there way". I was furious at this point but I kept my mouth shut and remained polite.
Dec 22nd: I contacted the apt manager for the complex where I used to live. They had not heard or seen anything regarding the box. I asked them to keep a lookout for it. They said they'd call me if they found anything.
Dec 30th: I still had not received any other boxes or any replies back from Mike. I was heading for vacation and was returning on January 10th (2005) so I decided to wait it out and give Mike a chance to work everything out. While away on vacation, I had a couple that was checking in on our cats daily to watch for any boxes that arrived.
Jan 10th: When I returned I had not received a single box, or any replies back from Mike. I finally got upset and contacted my lawyer. Per her request I forwarded every record that I had of our communications and transactions and confirmed that he had committed criminal and USPS charges. I emailed him again. In the email I told him that the delay had finally been too long and that if he did not have possession of all of the parts that I asked for, that I was demanding a full refund of my $515 by Thursday (01/13/05) at midnight. Otherwise I was expecting full shipment of every item on the list by that same deadline. I told him that if he did not include an inventory of each box on the outside of it, that I would deny shipment (per my lawyers instructions). Mike responded back saying that it would not be necessary and that my parts were on the way today and apologized for not letting me know earlier. He also asked for my new address again. He said to give him until the end of that day and that he would provide a tracking number for the shipment.
Same day: I responded back asking if he had all of the items in his possession. I asked him about the box that he shipped and if it had been returned to him. I asked that if it did not, then why was he promising again to meet my deadline? He responded back stating that he did not have the box that he shipped and that he thought that I was going to look for it. I told him that I did and had not received a reply back. I told him regardless that it was his box and that he was responsible for using the correct address and ensuring that the box made it to me. I told him I'd call again and check with any other neighbors that I could. But I told him again that the deadline still stood and that since he did not have all of my parts in hand, that I was demanding a full refund by midnight Thursday or I would be telling my lawyer to press charges.
Same day: He again said no problem and again asked for my shipping address to ship the rest of the parts. I replied back and stated again that I was not accepting any partial shipments and that he needed to refund my money. He responded back and said no problem but could I at least help him out because he paid $175 to have the cluster and both of the center console peices painted.
Summary: After all this let me state that I do not hate Mike, but I am very unhappy with his repeated lies about shipments, his lack of meeting generous deadlines and then requesting that I help with $175 that he paid to get all of the pieces painted, when he stated several times that the only piece that was painted was the speedo cluster. Regardless of his intentions he is dishonest, he refuses to refund my money (even after I told him I'd still help look for the box and would even ship it back to him) and it is now past the 13th and I never received another reply back or my refund. I hate doing this but I am meeting with my lawyer tonight to press charges and will be channelling all future communications from him directly to my lawyer. Until I update this with any sort of positive input, I urge everyone to refrain from dealing with him. Again, regardless of his intentions he repeatedly lied, was deceptive and has held my money now for 10 weeks without receiving one single item from him.
Mike if you are reading this, I apologize that it has had to come to this but you need to understand that a commitment is a commitment. My lawyer will give you an opportunity to refund my money but I have left that deadline to her. If you respond back to this message, be aware that I will be forwarding any and all of your replies to my lawyer which she may attempt to use in your prosecution. I will be watching my Paypal account and if I receive a payment prior to her deadline I will ask her to drop the charges. My lawyer has notified me that you should be receiving a certified letter from her by the end of next week.
I am writing today to warn people not to do transactions with Mike Lara here on the forums. I am processing paperwork after work today with my lawyer to press criminal and USPS charges on Mike Lara who goes by rotoboy661 on this forum.
I paid Mike $515 total between November 2nd and November 5th of 2004 for several interior items and a few exterior items. As of today I have not received a single item or refund from him despite several communications between us. I have proof of payment via Paypal for the moderators if they wish to see this, and have several transaction records (an extensive AIM message as well) that have all been given to my lawyer. I cannot share the communications records, but here is a summary of them as of today:
Nov 2nd: Negotiated items for purchase and purchase amount via paypal. Items included several interior pieces, some exterior pieces and a set of four coilovers. Sent Mike $225 (partial payment) via Paypal.
Nov 5th: Talked with Mike again when I discovered that the coilovers which he stated were a new model turned out to be a model that is no longer sold. Asked him to drop them from the transaction, and added an additional $50 to the final price for his troubles. Also inquired about the condition of paint on a speedo cluster that I was buying from him. He offered to repaint it for free. Sent Mike $290 via Paypal to complete the payment.
Nov 13th: Received no response or tracking numbers from Mike so I emailed him. He replied back and said that he had the cluster "touched up" and that it would be ready Wednesday (11/17/04) and would ship on Thursday (11/18/04).
Nov 18th: Emailed Mike again asking for tracking numbers for the items that he would be shipping that day. He replied back saying no problem.
Nov 24th: Still did not receive any packages or tracking numbers or reply back from Mike. Emailed again asking for the status, or any tracking numbers. Also told him that if he had not shipped out the items yet, that I was moving out of my old apartment into my new home after the 30th, and that all packages from this point forward should be mailed to my new home address. Mike responded back saying that they were "just about done with the speedo" (the one he said would be done by the 17th and shipped on the 18th), that he was just looking for the right size boxes, and confirmed that he received my new address.
Nov 30th: Still did not receive any boxes, tracking numbers or reply from Mike. Emailed him again asking for some info. Also asked him that if the speedo was still not ready, to ship all of the other items and then ship the speedo seperately due to the very long delay (now 25 days since receipt of payment). He said no problem and that he'd ship the other items for sure tomorrow (12/01/04) and that he still wasn't sure if the speedo would be ready but would ship it seperately if needed.
Dec 7th: Still did not receive any boxes, tracking numbers or reply from Mike. Again politely asked for information via email. He responded back saying that he decided (without ever notifying me) to wait until the speedo was ready before shipping all of the items, that it looked "awesome" and that it "will ship later today but for sure tomoorrow for ya".
Dec 13th: Still did not receive any boxes, tracking numbers or a reply back from Mike. Sent him an email asking about the parts. Told him that he had received my payment over a month ago and that his multiple assurances of shipment were becoming untolerable. The 13th was on a Monday and he said he had all of my parts in hand, so I told him in the email that I needed ALL of my parts or a full refund by Friday (12/17/04) or that I would be contacting my laywer. He replied back saying that he swore on his life that everything would be delivered promptly and that he did not want to jeopardize our business relationship. He also said that all parts would be accounted for.
Dec 16th: Still did not receive tracking numbers for my shipment so I emailed him. He responded back apoligizing for the delay and included a tracking number for one box that he shipped. I traced the package and despite my request for my items to arrive by the 17th, he shipped his box via ground shipment so it had no chance to arrive on time. I traced the package nearly every day until it said the package was delivered on Tuesday, 12/21/04.
Dec 21st: I returned home from work and could not find the box anywhere. I asked my wife if she had seen it and she said no. I promptly called UPS to inquire about the box. Upon talking to them, I discovered that he shipped the box to my old apartment (over 20 minutes away) which I told him I would be moved out of by the month before. I quickly drove over to my old apartment and the box was not there. I asked one neighbor who was home and she said she never saw the box. I returned home that night and called Mike. He started saying that they should have had a signature for the box and that I should call UPS. I told him that I did and when I inquired about insurance on it, they stated that since they shipped the box to the address that Mike specified (the wrong one) that Mike would have difficulty making a claim. I told Mike that I would try calling the apt manager but that he should work with UPS to find the box. He then finished the conversation by telling me not to worry, because the box he shipped was only the exterior door handles, and driver's window switch and that the big box with my cluster and center console pieces had not been shipped yet. He said those items were "on there way". I was furious at this point but I kept my mouth shut and remained polite.
Dec 22nd: I contacted the apt manager for the complex where I used to live. They had not heard or seen anything regarding the box. I asked them to keep a lookout for it. They said they'd call me if they found anything.
Dec 30th: I still had not received any other boxes or any replies back from Mike. I was heading for vacation and was returning on January 10th (2005) so I decided to wait it out and give Mike a chance to work everything out. While away on vacation, I had a couple that was checking in on our cats daily to watch for any boxes that arrived.
Jan 10th: When I returned I had not received a single box, or any replies back from Mike. I finally got upset and contacted my lawyer. Per her request I forwarded every record that I had of our communications and transactions and confirmed that he had committed criminal and USPS charges. I emailed him again. In the email I told him that the delay had finally been too long and that if he did not have possession of all of the parts that I asked for, that I was demanding a full refund of my $515 by Thursday (01/13/05) at midnight. Otherwise I was expecting full shipment of every item on the list by that same deadline. I told him that if he did not include an inventory of each box on the outside of it, that I would deny shipment (per my lawyers instructions). Mike responded back saying that it would not be necessary and that my parts were on the way today and apologized for not letting me know earlier. He also asked for my new address again. He said to give him until the end of that day and that he would provide a tracking number for the shipment.
Same day: I responded back asking if he had all of the items in his possession. I asked him about the box that he shipped and if it had been returned to him. I asked that if it did not, then why was he promising again to meet my deadline? He responded back stating that he did not have the box that he shipped and that he thought that I was going to look for it. I told him that I did and had not received a reply back. I told him regardless that it was his box and that he was responsible for using the correct address and ensuring that the box made it to me. I told him I'd call again and check with any other neighbors that I could. But I told him again that the deadline still stood and that since he did not have all of my parts in hand, that I was demanding a full refund by midnight Thursday or I would be telling my lawyer to press charges.
Same day: He again said no problem and again asked for my shipping address to ship the rest of the parts. I replied back and stated again that I was not accepting any partial shipments and that he needed to refund my money. He responded back and said no problem but could I at least help him out because he paid $175 to have the cluster and both of the center console peices painted.
Summary: After all this let me state that I do not hate Mike, but I am very unhappy with his repeated lies about shipments, his lack of meeting generous deadlines and then requesting that I help with $175 that he paid to get all of the pieces painted, when he stated several times that the only piece that was painted was the speedo cluster. Regardless of his intentions he is dishonest, he refuses to refund my money (even after I told him I'd still help look for the box and would even ship it back to him) and it is now past the 13th and I never received another reply back or my refund. I hate doing this but I am meeting with my lawyer tonight to press charges and will be channelling all future communications from him directly to my lawyer. Until I update this with any sort of positive input, I urge everyone to refrain from dealing with him. Again, regardless of his intentions he repeatedly lied, was deceptive and has held my money now for 10 weeks without receiving one single item from him.
Mike if you are reading this, I apologize that it has had to come to this but you need to understand that a commitment is a commitment. My lawyer will give you an opportunity to refund my money but I have left that deadline to her. If you respond back to this message, be aware that I will be forwarding any and all of your replies to my lawyer which she may attempt to use in your prosecution. I will be watching my Paypal account and if I receive a payment prior to her deadline I will ask her to drop the charges. My lawyer has notified me that you should be receiving a certified letter from her by the end of next week.
01-14-2005, 03:03 PM
#2
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 4,985
Wow, that's a crappy deal. best of luck with this.
01-14-2005, 09:36 PM
#3
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2002
Posts: 5,547
I have proof of payment via Paypal for the moderators if they wish to see this
That won't be neccesary. Good luck in getting this resolved, and I hope you get your money back.
01-17-2005, 07:30 AM
#4
Super Moderator
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: My BIG ol TURBO-DIESEL
Posts: 5,181
TOO SLOW, NOw that have have your $$$$ back, within one day of posting this same thing on RX-7Club, why dont you post it here?
01-18-2005, 08:00 PM
#5
Member
Join Date: Aug 2004
Posts: 53
how is this mail fraud? nothing was sent through the US mail service. money was sent via paypal and package was through ups.
Tim
Tim
01-19-2005, 09:41 PM
#6
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: palmdale,ca
Posts: 124
damn here too
***
its all good
this guy man i swear
its all cleared up
thanx
mike
***
its all good
this guy man i swear
its all cleared up
thanx
mike
01-19-2005, 09:41 PM
#7
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: palmdale,ca
Posts: 124
done deal
01-21-2005, 01:10 PM
#8
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 4,985
My ***** hurt.
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