A businessman has been jailed for 12 years after he was convicted of stealing $1.5 million from more than 250 customers in an eBay scam.
Darin French and his wife sold high-end home appliances on the Internet auction site and then kept the cash without sending out the products. They used the money to finance a luxury lifestyle, buying a new $60,000 truck, a $50,000 Bayliner boat, a $5,000 stallion and tens of thousands of dollars worth of stocks and shares.
Prosecutors in Nevada said French, 40, and wife Jennifer, 38, set up an online business called ‘Look What We Got’ and advertised kitchen appliances by Sub Zero, Viking and Wolf at low, discount prices. But although they shipped the first few stoves and refrigerators, they failed to send merchandise out to about 250 clients after receiving their victims’ money.
They claimed they were authorised dealers, set up various eBay accounts and gave themselves fake positive feedback to make it appear they were trustworthy to potential buyers, according to prosecutors at Reno Federal District Court.
Customers believed they were buying the goods through eBay but they were purchasing it through the couple’s site.
When clients called to complain and asked about the whereabouts of their appliances, Jennifer French allegedly used a string of ruses, including claiming the delivery truck had broken down.