Published: August 31, 2008 10:25 pm      

Local businessman catches on to scam before becoming victim

Upper Yoder businessman Tom Menna is working hard to market his new product, the Bull Digger.

The tool, which makes it easier to dig post holes for landscaping, has been featured on the PBS series “Ask This Old House” and on a Jay Leno segment “Inventors Across America.”

He has been selling his product on the Internet.

When Menna received inquiries from a man in Ghana, West Africa, and then an order for 10 units, he was hopeful his efforts were paying off.

“It was too good to be true,” he said. “That’s $10,000.”

But his joy turned to skepticism when it came time to pay.

“This time, they called and wanted to split the price on three credit cards,” he said. “They e-mailed me three credit cards with a billing address of Doylestown, Pa. It was a red flag.”

He contacted the St. Francis Centers for Global Competitiveness in Loretto, and the Southern Alleghenies Planning & Development Commission in Altoona for advice.

“They got the ball rolling,” Menna said.

He was put in contact with Erin McBride, international trade specialist for the U.S. Commercial Service in Pittsburgh. McBride inquired about S.O.S. Home in Ghana.

“We work through our embassies and consulates abroad,” McBride said.

“They got back to us in two hours and told us immediately this was a scam.”

The scam works like this:

A U.S. company will receive an overseas product order of $5,000 to $30,000 via telephone or e-mail. The buyer splits the total purchase price between several credit cards. The card numbers, however, have been stolen.

Once the transaction is made, the buyer requests immediate shipment.

The business ships the merchandise unaware it was defrauded.

“If I had gone ahead with the transaction, it would have been $10,000 out of my business and the credit card holders,” Menna said.

The investigation is continuing overseas and Visa has been notified of the stolen credit card numbers.

Meanwhile, commerce officials in this country are warning businesses of scams mainly originating in Singapore and Nigeria.

“I see this all the time,” McBride said. “The most important thing you can do is check up on the foreign buyers.”