Website spoofs Wisconsin address, victim loses $47K: 'It looked legit'
MILWAUKEE - A woman lost tens of thousands of dollars after making a major purchase online. She thought the seller was in Wisconsin, but the address on the website was spoofed.
Sindy Castillo said it was a strategic investment. Instead, it quickly went south.
"Basically, they just took my money," she said.
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Castillo lives in Rosamund, California, where her family used to make a living selling cars and heavy equipment. After her dad’s retirement, she sold his business property and decided to follow in his footsteps by using money from the property sale to buy a backhoe loader on an auction website. She planned to resell it.
"They were going to ship the equipment to me," said Castillo.
Backhoe loader
The backhoe never arrived. Castillo lost more than $47,000.
"I started calling and calling all day, sending emails. Nothing," she said.
Castillo said she found the business – GRTC Repo Time – on Facebook. She said the website disappeared shortly after she sent money. Contact 6 called its phone number, but no one responded.
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The Better Business Bureau issued an alert about the business, which listed a Wisconsin address. Contact 6 went to check it out.
The address on Castillo’s bill from GRTC Repo Time is 2501 West Beltline Highway in Madison. At the address, Contact 6 found a business center called Arbor Gate. Its property manager calls it a "multi-tenant office building that has around 20 separate tenants at any given time."
It’s not an area where you’d expect to find anyone selling heavy machinery.
MIG Commercial Real Estate, LLC, is part owner and property manager of Arbor Gate. Christopher Konz, MIG’s vice president of finance, told Contact 6: "Since opening in 2008, Arbor Gate has not leased space to any tenants that operate in heaving machinery sales."
Statement from Arbor Gate
Konz wrote in an email: "MIG and Arbor Gate alike, have never done business nor heard of a company operating under the name GRTC Repo Time."
The BBB said the website’s URL appears to be from Hong Kong.
"It’s basically scam artists or con artists high-jacking legitimate addresses," said Lisa Schiller of the BBB Serving Wisconsin. "They’ve gotten their money, and they’ve moved on."
Casillo tried to get a refund from her bank, but was told, because she’d authorized the wire transfer, it was her personal responsibility.
BBB study on fake vehicle and machinery listings
Fake vehicle and machinery listings are found across websites and social media platforms. A 2020 BBB study said "scammers simply post pictures and descriptions of cars used in other ads, and then ask interested buyers to wire money…It is nearly impossible to get money back."
Castillo wishes she’d verified the address before sending her money. All she can do now is share her story.
"I was mad. I was angry," said Castillo. "It looked legit."
If buying a car, boat or even a backhoe online, the BBB advises a few Google searches. First, look up the address to see if the location makes sense. Next, check whether the phone number has any online complaints. Then, do a search using the ad’s image to see whether it was copied from another listing.