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Thursday, April 18, 2013

Scam Email: Ronald Walker

Kathleen,

This is the first part of a conversation from an art scam. I didn't want to forward the later email that says they will send more than the amount so I can pay their shipper because it includes my home address and phone number (I hope nothing bad comes from that information).
From: ronald walker [ronaldwalker.llc@gmail.com>]
Sent: Tuesday, April 16, 2013 6:42 AM
Subject: Arizona Pronghorn 2011 (18" x 36") latex paint and marker on canvas

Hi,

My name is Ron, I recently visited your website and found your Work of arts to be appealing. I am very impressed with it and would be interested in purchasing it for my new apartment I am moving into this month. Please do provide me with the price and details if it is available.

Ron.

----- Forwarded Message -----

From: ronald walker [ronaldwalker.llc@gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, April 16, 2013 6:43 PM
Subject: Re: Arizona Pronghorn 2011 (18" x 36") latex paint and marker on canvas

Thanks for your response and details,As it is am on my way to Indonesia now for a conference and might not be back till after 2 weeks, Would have come to inspect and purchase the piece personally as am relocating to Johannesburg and am trying to gather some good arts for my new home. am buying yours quickly! before someone else grabs it, I'll arrange to send you payment ASAP.

However, I will have to notify my shipper who is shipping my belongings from the States to get set for the pickup of the piece at your place as I might be delayed in Indonesia, you don't need to worry about shipping though.
Thanks,

PS: Kindly get back to me with your contact details so I can get a certified check prepared and sent out to you ASAP.

Ron.

25 comments:

  1. I was also recently contacted by Ronald Walker LLC he is a scammer. DO NOT TRUST.

    ReplyDelete
  2. ANOTHER VERSION OF THE SAME STORY:
    I just got an almost identical email except the name was different. Bill Stenberg

    Hi,
    My name is Bill, I recently visited your website and found your Work of arts to be appealing. I am very impressed with it and would be interested in purchasing it for my new apartment I am moving into this month. Please do provide me with the price and details if it is available.
    Bill

    ReplyDelete
  3. I got the same e-mail from Bill Stenberg.

    I am glad this site exists to help stop these thieves. Thanks to those who produce the blog.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi, this is the last in a series of emails I started receiving from Bill Stenberg this morning...creepy. Anyone know how to "block" a contact in Outlook?
    Thanks, M
    "Thanks for the details which ave noted and passed to my shipper, she is due in the States sometime next week and will definitely be meeting with you for the inspection and pickup, Truth is, I would have handle this differently if I am in the States but time is against me, am moving to Johannesburg this month as am been transferred and Promoted.

    As it is,I am sending you an overdraft which includes my shippers fees,she has asked for an upfront before proceeding and since I have no access to lots of cash, I'm trying to kill two birds with a stone. Once you've received the check and it has cleared into your account, please deduct your funds and help me send the balance of the funds to my shipper,I'll forward her contact details to you once you've received the payment.

    Now am concluding you are a responsible person and I can trust you on this arrangement, kindly provide me with your contact # so I can let you know Immediately the check is sent. I will surely give you a call later when am free.
    Regards,"

    ReplyDelete
  5. I have just received e-mails from the same "Bill Stengerg" with the identical content as mentioned above.

    This is an art fraud, so do not trust it! It is a shame that people like this exist and continue to approach artists in their attempts to steal money. Several years ago I got similar e-mails but they were much more suspicious (whoever wrote them had really poor grammar and was very angry when I started asking questions) - they made me think of Nigeria and the fraud industry there. This time the content of the initial e-mail with which they "bate" the artist is much more believable and they also started using European names instead of more unusual and exotic ones.

    I wish there was a way to find and punish these people for what they do!

    Thank you for having this blog and warning artists about the scams that are going on on the internet!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Here's another one:

    Gregory Butler (gregbutlergroups.llc@gmail.com)

    Hi,
    My name is Greg, I recently visited your website and found your Work of arts to be appealing. I am very impressed with it and would be interested in purchasing it for my new apartment I am moving into this month. Please do provide me with the price and details if it is available.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I got one today, too.

    Subject: Shimmering 20" by 30"
    From: Roy McMahon [roymcmahon.llc@gmail.com]
    Date: Wed, June 26, 2013 10:01 am

    Hi,My name is Greg, I recently visited your website and found your Work of arts to be appealing. I am very impressed with it and would be interested in purchasing it for my new apartment I am moving into this month. Please do provide me with the price and details if it is available.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I'm not bothered at all that this scammer use a fake name that is my real last name. I'm sure it is all random! (smile)

    ReplyDelete
  9. I work for an online art gallery and we received the same email from: gregbutlergroups.llc@gmail.com on 6/25/13.

    Thanks for creating this blog!

    ReplyDelete
  10. We just recieve the Greg Butler emails to... the exact words/request.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Nice article!!! I have gone through your post which is nicely written on selected topic. Its great to have this type of quality content. Thanks for sharing this post with us.

    ReplyDelete
  12. just got the same from Greg Butler. thanks for posting this. Nice that I could google and find this. Wish I got a legit offer and not these scams every time!!!

    ReplyDelete
  13. We just received the very same email. I thought that it was fishy, but responded cautiously nonetheless.

    Date: July 25, 2013 7:46:54 PM CDT
    Gregory Butler

    Hi,
    My name is Greg, I recently visited your website and found your Work of arts to be appealing. I am very impressed with it and would be interested in purchasing it for my new apartment I am moving into this month. Please do provide me with the price and details if it is available.

    --
    Greg

    ReplyDelete
  14. this thief should be burn with fire

    ReplyDelete
  15. I received the same email from gregbutlergroups.llc@gmail.com.thank goodness for this site, because I was going back and forth with correspondence with this dude and now I will not waste any more time.

    ReplyDelete
  16. There are a few others I ran into one going by lindascottforever@yahoo.com and another one who may or may nor have stolen someone else's e-mail address caroline stoneridge. I forgot the exact e-mail addresses they used, but there were a few different ones.

    ReplyDelete
  17. hi kathleen,
    i've been strung along by e-mail by one of the people on your list you posted pf scammers, anita walker. i'm so glad you posted it. i just received a check from her, for way over what i quoted. i am not sure how
    to reply to her. or just not at all. def. not cashing it. i don't want her to start harassing me. if she stands out in your mind as being especially awful or anything i should def. should or shouldn't do let me know.

    really pretty stuff you create, btw.

    best,

    meghan

    ReplyDelete
  18. Dear Kathleen,

    Thank you SO much for your website. I have wasted so much time
    corresponding with this scammer, so I was happy to find the scammer on your list to understand who I was really dealing with.

    Some other tipoffs:

    They sent me a fraudulent check from a real company (ACCELERIZE NEW MEDIA, INC.) in an incorrect (and much higher) amount. When I called that
    company, they said it was the 5th such call of the day and that the check
    was counterfeit.

    The return address of the Priority Mail was the California Institute of the
    Arts!

    When I mentioned that some of the works were not on archival paper, it
    didn't even raise a question! I could go on ...

    Anyway, thx for your site. It is a great service and I just donated $10 to
    YOU for your trouble in maintaining it.

    Rhonda


    ---------- Forwarded message ----------
    From: Anita Walker [comeoba@gmail.com]
    Date: Sun, Jun 22, 2014 at 5:33 PM
    Subject: Re: Artworks Inquiry...

    It is nice to hear back from you. I will like to proceed with the
    purchase of the two pieces. I think they are lovely works and I hope
    to give them a good home.

    I am presently traveling for my Sister's wedding in Cancun even though
    it comes at a time when I am preparing for a big move to NY but it
    means so much to her and I should be back in few days.
    1200 Broadway - : 8-9ab,
    New York NY, 10001


    Meanwhile, can you pls get back with your mailing address and phone
    number so I can inform my husband on where to forward the payment. He
    can have one of his PA handle the payment asap. About shipping , you
    can handle it from your side to my new address above or I can forward
    your contact info to the Shipping company handling the shipment of all
    our house decors. They can arrange FedEx or UPS pick up of the
    artworks from your studio.

    I will look forward to hearing from you so i can know how best to
    proceed. Cheers.

    >
    >
    > On Sat, Jun 7, 2014 at 8:42 PM, Anita Walker [comeoba@gmail.com] wrote:
    >
    >> Hope this message finds you well. I saw these creative works on your
    >> website and i will like you to get back with more details if they are
    >> still available for purchase.
    >>
    >>
    >> [Name of piece]
    >>
    >> I will appreciate an urgent reply.
    >>
    >> Best Regards,
    >>
    >> Anita Walker
    >>
    >

    ReplyDelete
  19. Thank you so much for posting your art scammers list. It saved my dad a lot of time and heart ache. He had a feeling the emails he was receiving was a scam, but was still hopeful. When I entered the name he gave me from the email he received, your site popped up! I read the whole thing to him and we looked over your list and, of course, this "women's" name was there (Anita Walker).

    Thanks for posting this info!

    Michelle

    ReplyDelete
  20. I was just Private Messaged by a DR. FRED TONY. He states he is a Dr. at St. Josephs Hospital and they are in need of 100 paintings at $145 ea. He wants to send me a check for $14,500.00 US dollars. At this time he asks me to start painting. He said to frame them and then they will pay to have them picked-up for cargo shipping. If I do a good job for them, they want me to paint another 150 for a colleague in Ireland and 150 in LA! I am sure he is a scammer and blocked him. Sure wish it was true but sure its not. His e-mail is adamsalbert101@gmail.com. What do you think? Also, he is not employed at St. Josephs Hospital.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Wow, that scammer just got too greedy too fast. They don't usually go for an amount like that because that will get them on the radar of the authorities.

    Yeah, do not communicate with this person. He is seeking a victim.

    It has always bothered me when scammers make up names and pick two first names. And his email bears no relationship to the faked name. Sloppy scamming.

    ReplyDelete
  22. There seems to be little doubt that this is a scam too. It makes me think that all emails should be suspect and that there is no safe way to transfer money to prospective buyers.

    Louise Herman
    Jun 21 (6 days ago)

    to me
    Greetings from Georgetown,

    I hope this message finds you in peace and good health. I was only surfing through Google when I came across your profile.

    My name is Louise Herman. I am a medical doctor who is moving my practice to Rotterdam, Netherlands. I am someone who appreciates creativity a lot. As a result of this, I am interested in purchasing some nice pieces from you for my use in Rotterdam. Could you direct me to your website where I can find varieties so that I can request for a quote?

    Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

    Thank you,
    Louise Herman.

    After giving her my website address, she wrote back with this:


    Louise Herman
    Jun 26 (1 day ago)

    to me
    Hi Danny,

    Apologies for my delayed response.
    I'm glad to go for The Belle AND The Beau as a set. Is there pricing fixed for $900?
    Kindly provide me with your full name, physical address and cell phone number so that I can make an arrangement for a check to you. I believe they would be made ready for pick up by my shipper as soon as you receive my funds.

    Thank you,
    Louise.


    How can anyone ever process a transaction safely?

    ReplyDelete
  23. This concerns me as I am an artist named Ronald Walker. I am on the internet at several sites. I can't help but wonder if the scammer is going out of the way to chose artist names off the net to try to give a sense of legitimacy to their scam.

    ReplyDelete
  24. ARTIST BEWARE! ART SCAM
    This is an art scam. (I get them all the time) Be aware of the way the email is written and the poor spelling and grammer. Very typical.

    Walker Dora
    2:44 PM (19 hours ago)

    to me
    Greetings,
    My name is Walker Dora from Oregon.. I actually observed my wife has been viewing your website on my laptop and i guess she likes your piece of work, I'm also impressed and amazed to have seen your various works too,You are doing a great job. I would like to receive further information about your piece of work and what inspires you.. Kindly confirm the availability for immediate sales..
    Thanks and best regards..

    ReplyDelete
  25. Hi Kathleen,

    I came across your blog after receiving this email exchange, which I am forwarding to you. I put them in order for you. I have not responded because it looks like a scam for sure! Thank you for your blog; it was very helpful.

    You might want to add this name to your list.

    Best,
    Karen

    On Apr 23, 2018, at 11:56 PM, Ronald Ovredo [ronaldovredo78@gmail.com]
    wrote:

    Good day to you, I am Ronald Ovredo from El Paso, Texas. I have been on a
    search for some artworks lately for my wife's birthday before I stormed on
    some of your works which I found impressive, looking at each piece of work
    I can easily see that you added so much dedication in making each work come
    out to life.

    I would like to purchase some of your works as a surprise gift to my wife
    on her birthday. I will appreciate it if you could possibly recommend and
    send some pictures of your chosen piece of works, prices and sizes which
    are ready for sales to me.

    I would also like to know if you accept check as a means of payment because
    my wife handles the family bank cards and pay pal transactions...

    Regards,
    Ronald.

    ReplyDelete