My Encounter With A Fraudster - - - - Experience Is The Best Teacher
I've been worried about so many things of late. Starting up a business, getting capital to start the business and ensuring it grows... Paying off my college school fees and growing in life generally.
I thought about so ways to get my capital... Selling my phone, my wrist watches or probably working till I save up for it. Unfortunately, having sourced for a job and not succeeding I decided to opt for option two..."selling my properties!".
It wasn't an easy thing to do.. I'm still having a hard time getting used to the fact I have to let go of them... but I believe "only a fool will take a loan to start a business rather than selling things he can still acquire in the future"
Taking a bold step, I decided to sell off my phone... I posted an ad of my phone on Olx (a Nigerian marketing website/app).
On the evening of the said day in which I posted the ad, I got a call from an interested buyer.. Who said he'll call me the next day for us to meet and finalize the price. The next day, in the afternoon, he called back and asked where we should meet up... Since he was passing through my junction, I told him to drop by my house junction. I was already out, so I rushed back home to arrange the phone and told my younger brother about the buyer and asked him to follow me to the place which he accepted.
Not less than thirty minutes, I got a call from him saying he was close by and I decided to change our meet up location. I asked him to meet me up at a fast food (Kilimanjaro). He willingly accepted and I and my brother stepped out to meet our potential buyer. I was so overjoyed!! Finally I was close to achieving my goals... Finally close to starting up a business of my own (even if the capital will not be enough).
On getting to Kilimanjaro, I rang him... Did I forget to mention that he sounded really off to me on phone?? If I didn't even notice his scattered nature via call then his seeing him in person gave him away.
There was something fishy about him. He walked into Kilimanjaro with a black nylon which contained oranges all the while leaking an already juiced one in his mouth. He wore a very ruffuled blue jeans, an obviously worn out shirt which must have seen a lot of bad days, a very tattered hair.....He asked to see the phone and while he was going through the settings (i actually showed him how to get to the settings) and phone info, he was answering seize less calls! After he had seen what he wanted, he confirmed it was and still in good shape.
I felt like a big part of me was being erased during that process!
All of a sudden, he gives my Brother #200 to go buy water for him at Kili stand which was a bit off to me and my brother. Out of respect, my brother took the cash and proceeded to the stand.
Immediately he left us, he brought out bundles of cash (#1000 notes with two #500 attached to it).
I said to myself "Finally! This is gradually becoming a reality!"... I gladly took the cash to count. Being so overjoyed and also a novice to dupes, I counted the cash and confirmed it was complete.
Once my brother came back, I gave him the cash to hold (I trust my brother a lot). I didn't know what moved him, he went on to counting the monies again. He counted it the first time and went on to counting it again.... Towards the middle of the cash, he brought out a #1000 note and asked the buyer "Baba, why you give me Canta (fake money) na!"
The guy was shocked and didn't even deny that it was fake... He told my brother that he can change it..( i.e) just the #1000 note. My brother rejected it.. Saying that all was fake!
I was utterly shocked..! ( I didn't know what/how a fake money looked like and I was entirely grateful for that experience)....
All of a sudden, the guy was sweating and all nervous. He wasn't his jovial (fake) self any more.. He stopped sucking on his orange and told my brother he'll do a transfer to our bank... Transfer ke!! I thought to myself. Hmmm....
My sim card was already out of my phone and my bro's battery phone was dead. Having instilled fear and doubts in us, we declined and he said he had some cash in his car(I didn't see him with no car). He looked like he trekked from whatever location he was coming from. Not even wanting to dispute nor argue that the monies was fake, he got up from where he was seated and said he'll be back. I immediately withdrew my phone from his reach and I and my brother watched him as he left.
Still in doubt, and hoping for some miracle... I asked my brother to wait with me maybe he might come back with real monies. My brother told me there was no way that guy was going to come back and even if he did, he'll still have fave money with him.
We waited for twenty minutes and he didn't show up.. Unfortunate for him and luckily for us, my brother still had the change from the water he got for the dupe. We had no other option than to use it to transport ourselves back home.
Entirely grateful to my brother for being able to recognize fake money!!!! I would have been wallowing in thoughts and angry with myself for letting someone trick me... Still am glad it didn't happen.
Disclaimer : Beware of fraudsters they are everywhere.. Mostly on all these online platforms emanating from nowhere!!
Don't take anyone for granted too. Young or Old.. The world is changing.. What you don't know, your younger one or someone who is much older than you might know. So, listen to every one's opinion.
Never be fooled by one's jovial act. It might just be a play to cajole you into a deep pit
Thank you for your ⌚
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