AFA MEMBER ALERT!
PLEASE CROSS-POST AND ALERT
YOUR FRIENDS IN AVICULTURE.
We believe it our obligation
to offer you words of caution about something
(someone) that has arisen in the avicultural
community recently. There is an individual seeking
to acquire very exotic birds, and while we're not
quite sure where he comes from in a socioeconomic
sense or exactly what he is ultimately up to, we
will tell you that a friend of ours has already been
scammed, though for a much lesser amount than anyone
in the rarefied breeder air might be if he were
optimally successful in his deception. But, one scam
begets another, and few have the time to sort fact
from fiction. Without mentioning names--because
these days names can change in a heartbeat--just be
aware that this individual positions himself as a
person of extraordinary means, with photographs of
birds he may or may not own, and real estate that he
definitely does not own. And, then, there are the
cars and jets, but we don't know the story on those.
Suffice it to say that his purported wealth
is probably somewhat intoxicating to your average
individual. We certainly believed him at first,
although not for long!
His latest specific and
rather immature modus operandi is to worm his way
into your life through talk of abject extravagance
and promises of gifts for you and your birds that,
of course, never materialize. According to at least
one of our members, who describes this individual as
"a young man with big ideas and little cash," he has
also approached others on a flirting or sexual
basis. Even If he is not a thief of your money or
your privacy, you will likely find him an absolute
waste of your precious time.
Be aware that his interest is
primarily in the exotics of the exotics--palms, RTBs,
and other black 'toos, Pesquets, blue-headed macaws,
keas, kakas, unusual mutations and the like, mostly
above-average rare and high-ticket birds, some
restricted, and some available only in foreign
markets. He also has a near obsession with the
thick-billed parrot, and we have reason to believe
that he attempted to scam at least one member of our
rather close-knit group into buying one of those as
a "gift" for him, but most of us always have that
little voice inside our heads when something sounds
too good to be true. "You know you can trust me
for it" is not usually a phrase to which we
respond very well, and we should probably be
thankful for a fair amount of skepticism.
Since many in our ranks breed
the more exotic birds--not to say that other birds
might not also be targeted--let us just suggest that
were one to do business with such an individual, it
would be best not only to deposit the check or
accept the bank transfer and make sure it clears but
also to physically move the funds to another bank
BEFORE relinquishing any bird. We're not even
sure we'd trust cash. Nor would we bend any rules
for him, no matter what the ante. Let us also add
that we believe he has computer-hacking
capabilities.
Having gone out earlier to
only several breeders with this news, we now find
that this individual has tried to play a number of
people that we didn't think he would have the
gumption to approach. In some ways, he presents
himself as well-versed and experienced (nutrition,
free-flight, etc.). He has also claimed to be tight
with a number of avian vets and even regulatory
personnel, but we have reason to believe that it's
all part of the persona he tries to create in order
to soften his target. Personal questions present no
taboo to this individual, and he will also tell you
a fair amount about himself, most of it highly
exaggerated. By presenting himself as a person of
extraordinary wealth and privilege, he has even
exerted the confidence to ask people to leave their
premises to run errands for him within specific time
frames (for instance, to purchase on his behalf
expensive, limited-edition books and art, to conduct
walk-throughs of houses he contemplates purchasing,
etc.). This fact has led several people to believe
that he could well be part of an organized ring, as
bizarre as that may sound. The main thing seems to
be that he is willing and able to spend a
significant amount of time to gain one's trust,
so we have to assume he sometimes scores.