Will_Evo 0 #1 August 18, 2009 Hey all, I was on facebook the other day and saw a guy post on the skydiving fan page. He had said that his parachute has popped open and this spring and pilot chute were out and he wanted tips on how to pack it back. I told him what it was(his reserve), who had to repack it, etc...but then he said this. "thanks for the post man i managed to pack it back last night wow it was really hard to do it but its back in the bag and looks the same as i got it i am not looking to skydive with it i got it from a mate and im trying to sell it and the person i sell it to i will let them know that i have opened the reserve and that they must get it checked before they jump cause i have not packed it back 100% as it should be cause there are these wires in there that open your chute automaticly if somthing goes wrong like you pass out and and i have not connected those wires as i dont know where to put em lol but anyways i have never been skydiving and im not going to be skydiving with this parachute for when i do go just have it from a friend do you know how much i can sell somthing like this or where to sell it ?" Sounds extremely fishy to me. Why would this guy have a rig, not know anything about it, and then want to sell it. Anyways, I am going to try and friend this guy on facebook so I can get his location and things. What do you guys think, this guy have stolen gear he is trying to get rid of? Will EvoZoo Crew Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
virgin-burner 1 #2 August 18, 2009 sounds VERY fishy to me.. bet it must of fallen from a truck.. “Some may never live, but the crazy never die.” -Hunter S. Thompson "No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try." -Yoda Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kmills0705 0 #3 August 18, 2009 Act interested in buying it. Tell him you can find out how much it is worth but need some serial numbers... then check stolen gear sites here and at USPA. I have had gear stolen and it sucks. The thing is at this point if I ever "found it" it has surely passed hands a couple times and the person who has it probably has no idea it is stolen. But I still watch the gear sales and get a serial number and am always on the lookout.Kim Mills USPA D21696 Tandem I, AFF I and Static Line I Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
virgin-burner 1 #4 August 18, 2009 even when its been through many hands, its still legally yours, and you can claim it back; if the guy doesnt comply, he can be charged with handling stolen goods..“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.” -Hunter S. Thompson "No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try." -Yoda Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Will_Evo 0 #5 August 18, 2009 I will see what I can do...yea man that sucks, I hate getting anything stolen form me let alone my rig, id be devastated. Will EvoZoo Crew Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 0 #6 August 18, 2009 QuoteI hate getting anything stolen form me let alone my rig, id be devastated. If you haven't done so already, talk to an insurance agent (or two) about insuring your rig against theft. I see you're in the military, so I don't know if you own or rent your residence or live on base, etc. Some homeowners' or renters' insurance policies may cover your rig of you specifically schedule it on the policy. Some auto insurance policies may cover stuff that gets stolen from your car, including your rig. Or, you might look into a personal-property policy to cover your rig. Talk to an agent. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Will_Evo 0 #7 August 18, 2009 Well the guy is from South Africa. From the sound of it, he is in the states right now and is taking the rig with him back to South Africa where he plans on selling it. He wouldn't give me any serial numbers, just said he wasn't to worried about getting full price for it, just wants some cash. Man that sucks. -EvoZoo Crew Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
fallfast69 2 #8 August 18, 2009 QuoteAct interested in buying it. Tell him you can find out how much it is worth but need some serial numbers... then check stolen gear sites here and at USPA. I have had gear stolen and it sucks. The thing is at this point if I ever "found it" it has surely passed hands a couple times and the person who has it probably has no idea it is stolen. But I still watch the gear sales and get a serial number and am always on the lookout. Don't ask for serial numbers...that might tip him off. Tell him it's prolly worth $1000.00 or so, but you need some pics to be certain, then circulate the pics around to see if anyone is missing the gear. Jon Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Will_Evo 0 #9 August 18, 2009 Here are the last two messages, the first from me, the second from him. ME- "Ok listen, I don't know you, I don't know your intentions, but I have to be perfectly honest, from the way you are talking about this rig, it sounds like you, or someone you know stole it. I asked for serial numbers because I wanna check it against stolen gear articles I know of. If you truly got this rig for free from a friend, I would ask you to please let me have the serial numbers so I can check. A skydivers gear is very personal, and sometimes fitted to that person specifically, and having it stolen, is devastating. At least try and find a serial number for the container and let me check that. It may be stolen gear, and you dont know it, which is fine, but I am asking you to do the right thing, and at least give me a chance to cross check this before you go selling someone elses stuff." HIM- "yeah i know that's why u wanted the serials as i did not see how u would be able to see what parachute it would be from the serials and im not going to open it all up for that as i know 100% that it is not stolen but the way i come across does make it seem like it is stolen and i can understand why u doing it i would do the same but to be honest about 2 years ago my friend and his dad died in a car accident , 1 year on was helping his brother clean out loft of all his brothers and dads things and there was a sky diving helmet jump suit and parachute that used to belong to his dad and he was going to throw it all out so i asked if i could have it may seem abit cold hearted of me but if hes going to throw it out anyways then why not when i can make some money by selling it instead of the garbage men to have it would be such a waste" Could be legit, could not be. Zoo Crew Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
virgin-burner 1 #10 August 18, 2009 gawd, if i was the guy, i'd give you a heartbreaking story too.. uhm, if you get one of those emails that ask you to give out details because someone deceased wants you to have their fortune, do you give it out too!? “Some may never live, but the crazy never die.” -Hunter S. Thompson "No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try." -Yoda Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Will_Evo 0 #11 August 18, 2009 No I understand, but there is not much else I could do but be honest with him. I had already asked in a discrete manner for the serial numbers so I could find out a price for him etc...but he wasn't budging. I tried man, he could be lying, could not be, but I dont know, and really have no other means of finding out. Anyways, heres the only other info I have about the gear. "103b tear drop 1 pin container system" -EvoZoo Crew Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
likestojump 3 #12 August 18, 2009 Quote Anyways, heres the only other info I have about the gear. "103b tear drop 1 pin container system" -Evo With that info I can tell you that it's very unlikely that the gear is from the US. you could ask him for the pictures of the data card, and outside of the container. That can tell a great deal. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy0689 0 #13 August 18, 2009 What FB group is it listed in? I'll try getting some more information from him.Andy I'll believe it when I see it on YouTube! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kmills0705 0 #14 August 18, 2009 QuoteQuoteAct interested in buying it. Tell him you can find out how much it is worth but need some serial numbers... then check stolen gear sites here and at USPA. I have had gear stolen and it sucks. The thing is at this point if I ever "found it" it has surely passed hands a couple times and the person who has it probably has no idea it is stolen. But I still watch the gear sales and get a serial number and am always on the lookout. Don't ask for serial numbers...that might tip him off. Tell him it's prolly worth $1000.00 or so, but you need some pics to be certain, then circulate the pics around to see if anyone is missing the gear. Jon I usually ask for a photo of the data panel. It is a good idea to get a detail photo of this regardless because it has good indication of wear and tear on canopy (some well worn canopies are illegible) and verification of the dom.Kim Mills USPA D21696 Tandem I, AFF I and Static Line I Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kelpdiver 2 #15 August 18, 2009 Quotegawd, if i was the guy, i'd give you a heartbreaking story too.. Yeah, it sounds like the story when someone wants $5 in gas or bus money. 'I got a job interview in Canada and my wife is pregnant and I just found out I have rabies.' Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SEREJumper 1 #16 August 18, 2009 OK, gotta share a story. I found an ad for a complete system on the internet, not a lot of info in the ad, but enough to make me feel like it wasn't stolen. Emailed the guy, he gave me all the serial #'s and had pictures of the specific parts I asked for. Price was a little high ($1800) so I offered $1500 and the guy said ok. I checked USPA and DZ.com and no stolen gear was reported. This guy said he was cleaning out his brothers apartment since he was killed in Iraq (checking the last name to a database on KIA and didn't find anyone). Guy wanted to do a western union transaction, and I said I would only do PayPal and he could send it to my rigger for inspection. The guy agreed to send it to my rigger and do the paypal transaction after it was checked out. He was going to ship it the following day, brought it to a shipping place close to his apartment and got a shipping quote for me. I was looking in the ads again and saw one posted that said "stolen skydiving gear $1800", so I clicked on it and the ad basically said this gear was stolen, the previous ad was taken down by the thief, and if anyone had any info to give them a call. So I give the # a call and a guy answers, I say I think I know who has your gear and I was planning on buying it from him. He is pretty calm, goes into the other room to get a pen to write down the details, and then asks, "What's their name" and I say the guys name. Then their is a long pause and the guy says...dude that guy is sitting on my couch in my living room right now! I couldn't believe it. Turns out this guys "friend" came to stay with him for a few days, eats this guys food, stays at his house, then while the guy is at work, steals his rig and trys to sell it saying someone stole it. They even talked about beating the ass of whoever stole the rig while eating dinner that night! I guess they were both sitting on the couch when I called, came up with my phone # with a different area code that the guy didn't recognize and said " I wonder who is calling from XXX area code), when the guy got up to go write down the details, the thief snuck out the front door. In the end, the guy went to the local shipping place (which the thief left the rig through) and the guy behind the counter thought that was weird and gave the rig back to the owner. Moral of the story kiddos: don't let dirtbag friends live with you, if things smell fishy they are (trust your instincts), and if you get your gear stolen put up your info ASAP to avoid quick sales like this. Glad everything worked out on this one. The thief was never to be seen again to get his ass beating that he deserved either :(We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Will_Evo 0 #17 August 18, 2009 He never listed the gear for sale, just said he needed help getting the chute back in the container. Anyway, its the skydiving fan page posted directly on the pages wall. -EvoZoo Crew Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 0 #18 August 18, 2009 Quotethe guy is from South Africa. Is he originally from Nigeria? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lost_n_confuzd 0 #19 August 18, 2009 QuoteQuotethe guy is from South Africa. Is he originally from Nigeria? My thoughts aswell. Sounds like a 419.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Will_Evo 0 #20 August 18, 2009 DurbanZoo Crew Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
virgin-burner 1 #21 August 19, 2009 Quote Quote gawd, if i was the guy, i'd give you a heartbreaking story too.. Yeah, it sounds like the story when someone wants $5 in gas or bus money. 'I got a job interview in Canada and my wife is pregnant and I just found out I have rabies.' he asked you too!? “Some may never live, but the crazy never die.” -Hunter S. Thompson "No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try." -Yoda Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hackish 8 #22 August 20, 2009 I wonder if it looks at all like this: http://www.dropzone.com/stolen/Detailed/677.html -Michael Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
