Two florists have reported a possible scam involving a hearing-impaired phone service and an international order.

Nancy Witt-Dycus of Fantasy Flowers in Thiensville, Wis., called SAF and reported that in early October she received a call from a man claiming the name "Reverend Robert Oxmond," who was inquiring about sending roses to West Africa. The call was placed through a hearing-impaired phone service, IP-Relay, which allows the caller to type what he or she would like to say, and an operator reads what is typed to the recipient.

After an hour and a half of phone calls, the man asked for the shop's e-mail address. "The first e-mail was totally normal," Witt-Dycus says. The caller asked that one dozen roses be sent to a new company in Ghana.

After Witt-Dycus let the man know there was only one shop in his area that could fulfill the order, he responded via e-mail, saying he wanted 50 dozen roses, not a dozen, and needed to use his own shipping distribution company — which only accepted Western Union or cash. "At that point I called the police department," Witt-Dycus says. The police are investigating and told her that they believed it to be a scam.

The day after, Witt-Dycus received a call from a Tennessee florist, who got a call from the same man. The man had given the florist Witt-Dycus' number, saying that Fantasy Flowers had previously fulfilled an order for him. "Not only was he using our reputation and name — the scam was obviously bigger than just me," Witt-Dycus says.

Witt-Dycus says she received another call from the man, through IP-Relay. Instead of allowing the operator to continue the phone call, she asked to talk to a supervisor — who said he did not believe the call to be a scam and refused to give out any corporate information. The supervisor hung up when Witt-Dycus said his refusal of information implied the company was in on the scam.

Does this story sound familiar? Do you have a floral scam report? Let E-Brief editors know, so we can share it with readers. E-mail vmachir@safnow.org with your story.

Want to file an official complaint about a scam? Contact the Better Business Bureau.    

--Vanessa Machir
vmachir@safnow.org

 

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