Detroit Lions ticket scams: Fan loses $400 to Facebook scammer
Tim Paletti was defrauded of $400 by a scammer on Facebook Marketplace, who never brought him the Lions tickets he had bought for his son as a gift.
FOX 2: NEW BALTIMORE, MIAfter falling for a Facebook hoax, a father who was only expecting to take his son to watch the movie is now out hundreds of dollars.
Tim Paletti was unable to purchase tickets through ticket resale websites since they were selling for hundreds of dollars. In an attempt to get his son to see the Lions play, the New Baltimore father messaged the ticket seller after finding a decent bargain on Facebook.
“It appeared to be a typical suburban mother with children. Regarding the seller’s profile, he stated, “I assumed everything was normal because the picture of her and her husband, I assume, were wearing Lions gear.”
Scammers are now utilizing something Michiganders love—their state—after years of using emotions to fool people into spreading garbage on Facebook. The modified entries in groups like “I grew up in Michigan” are rife with scams.
Paletti stated he paid a $400 Venmo payment to secure two tickets since the individual was offering them for $175 with a $50 parking pass. But there was a problem with the money. Paletti was still without his tickets even after the money was successfully processed and the issue was finally fixed.
Paletti began to suspect the seller after they failed to reply to messages for hours.
“This just doesn’t seem right,” I kept thinking. I am aware of this. He said, “It’s too good to be true.”
After noticing that the seller was still promoting the tickets for sale, Paletti eventually got in touch with them once more. The merchant obstructed him at that point.
“I know better than this, but I was blinded by wanting to get my son these tickets,” Paletti stated. “As frustrated and upset as I am, I’m just more mad at myself.”
Paletti contacted Venmo to request his money back and filed a police report.
Facebook Marketplace safety tips
Facebook offers advice on how to safely buy and sell on the platform:
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Double-check deals that seem too good to be true. Scammers may try to use underpriced items to lure buyers into a scam.
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Do not send deposits for high value items (apartments, cars, etc.) without confirming that they re real first. When possible, try to confirm the existence and ownership (example: a pink slip for a car) of the item(s) in person or over a video chat before sending payments.
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Always verify the tracking numbers that you see on Marketplace on the shipping company s website, and make sure that the delivery address and shipping information is correct.
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Review the seller s profile to learn more about the seller. On their profile, you can see ratings and reviews from other buyers, friends you may have in common, view their other listings, and review their Marketplace activity.Even if a sale is not from Marketplace, reviewing a person’s profile can provide details that reveal if the page is fake.Check the page’s location.Look at how new the person’s page is. Occasionally, the page will have posts with a clock symbol near the date a post was made. This means a post was backdated when it was posted, a tactic often used to make it look like a page is older than it really is.
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Even if a sale is not from Marketplace, reviewing a person’s profile can provide details that reveal if the page is fake.Check the page’s location.Look at how new the person’s page is. Occasionally, the page will have posts with a clock symbol near the date a post was made. This means a post was backdated when it was posted, a tactic often used to make it look like a page is older than it really is.
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Check the page’s location.
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Look at how new the person’s page is. Occasionally, the page will have posts with a clock symbol near the date a post was made. This means a post was backdated when it was posted, a tactic often used to make it look like a page is older than it really is.
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Eligible purchases made with checkout on Facebook are covered by Purchase Protection. Items exchanged in-person using cash or other person-to-person payment methods are not eligible.
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When buying in person, before completing the transaction, be sure to inspect the items closely to make sure that they are real and work.
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