Apple scammers find easy targets in South Carolina town (Digital Trends)
Earlier this week, 22-year-old Angela McDowell of <a href="http://www.theapparelend.com/glasses-gucci-c-1021_1054.html"><strong>brand Gucci sunglasses on sale</strong></a> Spartanburg, South Carolina was leaving a McDonalds whenÂ*approachedÂ*by two men in the parking lot. Inside a large cardboard box, the men claimed to be selling discount iPads for 300 based off a volume discount. After showing her a working model, the duo convinced McDowell to purchase an iPad. While McDowell was only able to offer 180 for a new iPad, the deal was quickly made and McDowell received a sealed, cardboard FedEx box. When she returned home, she opened the box and found a piece of wood painted to look like an iPad (pictured above). The plank had the Apple logo painted on the back <a href="http://www.theapparelend.com/sport-shoes-c-998.html"><strong>training shoes on sale</strong></a> of the unit and Safari, Mail, Photos, and iPodÂ*app buttons on the front of the unit. The crooks even included a ######## Best Buy label on the front of the wooden iPad. OnÂ*Wednesday night, two more women wereÂ*approachedÂ*at aÂ*Spinx gas station in Spartanburg, South Carolina by a man claiming to be selling discount Apple laptops. After convincing the women of their authenticity, the ladies withdrew money from an ATM to purchase a new laptop. Also packaged in a FedEx box, the women learned that they purchased a stack of paper wrapped in black duct tape with a white power cord. The ######## laptop also included another Best Buy sticker. Both scams are believed to beÂ*perpetratedÂ*by the same man as the descriptions included similar facial features <a href="http://www.theapparelend.com/men-tshirt-paul-shark-c-1001_1012.html"><strong>discount Paul Shark men t-shirt on sale</strong></a> and an identical automobile (a white four-door sedan). This type of scam is typically called the brick con, parting a mark from a large amount of money by dangling the concept that they are getting a high value object for an extremely discounted price. Oddly, the scam doesn't require the extensive lengths that this criminal went to in recreating the design of an iPad on a block of wood. The scam usuallyÂ*entailsÂ*swapping out anÂ*expensiveÂ*item for something of a similarÂ*weight, regardless of design.Â*
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