Is it a Pomsky Scam? Inside Look at a Real Pomeranian Husky Scam

Scam Step 3: The Setup

Some scams are easy to identify. You’ll know it’s a scam because after a few emails the “breeder” is pushing for the sale and has no knowledge of the transaction process. That wasn’t the case with this scam…

After a few emails back and forth, Ed from Ed Williams Pomskies seems to be a nice and respectable person. He’s considerate of Debbie’s concerns and even mentions that “we like to meet our customers in person”. This is the process of setting the customer up for the scam. Ed is building trust with Debbie so that next, he can ask for personal information and payment.

Notice after a couple emails back and forth Ed is already talking about the transfer of ownership, sales contract, and a deposit. Debbie barely even had a chance to ask questions! Within the first day, after barely answering any questions, without any proper screening of the buyer and without a phone call, Ed the “breeder” is already asking for personal information to set up the transfer of ownership and sales contract.

But unfortunately, this happens all too often. The buyer is too excited. They just found the perfect pomsky! They want to pay and get their puppy as soon as possible.

See the “setup” emails below.

Scam Step 4: Payment Request

See the emails, transfer of ownership and sales contracts below. Here’s where we start to see even more red flags.

Payment request red flags

In the payment request email below, Ed is asking Debbie to transfer $400 through a western union wire transfer to reserve her pomsky. Here are the red flags:

Here are the red flags:

• Who is David Mabin? This whole time Ed Williams has been talking to us but now we’re sending money to David?
• The phone number doesn’t match. The website phone number is listed as (210) 600-0770 but this western union transfer request has the phone number listed as (210) 465-1927
• In earlier emails, Ed says they are located in Irving Texas but the zip code 77001 seen in the payment request email is Houston Texas (almost 4 hours away from Irving)

Contract red flags:

Ed Williams asked Debbie to sign and return the sales contract. See the contract below (marked up to hide personal information). The contract looks okay, but there are a couple red flags that could make you question the legitimacy of the breeder.

• There’s a watermark across the contract that says “Michael Richards Pomsky Pups Farm”
• The colors seem patched together, see for example the “Our payment regulations” section on page two of the contract. This section seems patched together.

Transfer of ownership red flags

See the transfer of ownership document below (marked up to hide personal info). This is likely a real transfer of ownership contract downloaded from online, it’s tough to tell if this is legitimate or not.

Tips:

If you’re unsure about these red flags, here’s what to do:

• Call the breeder – ask them about any concerns that you have
• Ask the breeder to use a different, safer payment method
• Post the contracts to a legal advice forum. Ask for advice on the legitimacy of the contract
• DON’T get bullied into trusting the breeder. If the breeder pushes you, walk away.

Scam Step 5: The First Payment

See the email exchange below. Debbie gets cold feet! Rightfully so…Notice a couple things:

1. The breeder keeps complaining about being “busy”, they’re beginning to distance themselves from the constant emailing
2. Look how the breeder responds trying to bully Debbie into paying. Ed responds saying “if you don’t feel comfortable dealing with us then you can as well buy from other breeders”

Unfortunately, this tactic works and it works well. You’re struggling to find the perfect pomsky, of course you’re going to pay up to get your perfect pomsky!

In this case, it worked. Debbie paid $400 through a Western Union wire transfer for her pomsky.

Scam Step 6: Let The Excuses Begin

See the continued email exchange below. Now a couple days after the initial contact Debbie is asking for new pictures of her pomsky. This is good! This is our #2 tip to avoiding pomsky scams published in our blog 6 tips to avoid pomsky scams.

But see how the breeder responds…all of the sudden, the excuses begin. The breeder is away from home and can’t send new pictures. (uh oh)

Scam Step 7: Suddenly Busy

And the charade continues…see the continued email exchange below. Debbie wants to plan a time for Saturday morning but of course, Ed the breeder is “busy” but they still plan to meet in a central location to pick-up the pomsky.

Scam Step 8: Can’t Meet – Need to Ship

Of course the non-existent breeder doesn’t want to meet! Now, Ed can’t meet to drop off the pomsky because he’s too busy (as he’s been subtly dropping hints). He knows you want your pomsky as soon as possible, so “How about shipping?” Heck he’ll even “cover part of the expenses” what a nice guy!

So now Debbie is being charged an additional $345 to cover shipping expenses and remember, she already paid a $400 deposit!

Ed continues to act friendly and apologetic, he asks for some basic shipping info and the nearest airport to ship to.

See the email exchange below.

Scam Step 9: Time To Meet Your Pomsky! (NOT)

Finally! The time has come. Debbie’s pomsky will be shipped soon, Ed says we are “going to ship in the early hours tomorrow” but of course there’s more to be skeptical about. Ed says we “can’t guarantee flight time”.

See the email exchange below.

Scam Step 10: Shipping Confirmation – last effort for more money

Ed keeps his word; the next day shipping is confirmed with a Courier service. This scam is tricky; they even go as far as sending Courier confirmation to Debbie. See the email below, notice Ed is asking for MORE money, saying the courier service requires a refundable life insurance deposit and he’s again “busy”.

Below the email exchange, we’ve included the “confirmation” emails from the courier service. Anything look sketchy about this email confirmation from the courier service? (Hint: all of it looks sketchy)

Courier service red flags:

• The email confirmation does not look legitimate, poor color scheme and lots of cropped sections.
• The courier service is asking for a direct transfer from your bank or western union. What professional courier service doesn’t have a better system for accepting payments?
• Who is Thomas Marrell? Why would you western union a payment for courier service to an individual?
• Poor formatting and spelling errors throughout the email
• This email is supposedly from the company “Fast Couriers”. This is a real company, but the phone number on the email does not match the phone number on their website.

Tips:

• Fast Couriers is a real company – contact them and ask if this was their email and if your pomsky has scheduled to ship

Scam Step 11: The Scam

You know how this story ends. Unfortunately for Debbie, she drove to the airport and there was no pomsky puppy. She paid nearly $800 just to waste an afternoon driving to the airport.

We’ve decided not to post the final email from Debbie, simply because Debbie realized the mistake of the scam and contacted Ed Williams in regards to the scam. Ed Williams made off with $800 never to be heard from again.

Scams are tough to identity, we hope this can help others going through this process realize the red flags as they happen. For more details into how to avoid scams, checkout our blog six tips to identify and avoid a pomsky scam.

Learn From Debbie

The purpose of this pomsky scam breakdown is to show you that scams can happen to anyone. Scams aren’t so obvious, especially when you think your dreams are coming true bringing a pomsky puppy into your home. This is an example of a very thorough scam, this process can easily trick anyone. You must be diligent and wary of scams, look for red flags and act on any suspicions you have. If you’re uneasy about something, take action and ask questions. If you’re questioning if a breeder is a scam, contact us, we’ll review the breeder and let you know if it’s a scam or not.

Debbie has asked us to publish her story so you can learn from her mistakes. Learn from Debbie and avoid the potential scams.

Our biggest tip to avoid scams: work with a registered breeder from a pomsky breed club. See some of our pomsky breeders, each breeder is vetted and verified. And download our list of reputable pomsky breeders around the globe, we have a list of 40+ breeders all over the world so you can find a breeder near you.

More Pomsky Resources

Need more help finding a Pomsky? Check out our other Pomsky articles and videos including:

• Free Download - Litter Updates and Reputable Breeders
• Article - How To Find a Pomsky Breeder
• Article - How To Avoid Pomsky Scams
• Article - Size of Adult Pomsky
• Article - The Cost of a Pomsky
• Article - Pomeranian Husky Mixes

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