I think this was the same company that claimed to be based in Moree a year or so ago. Website looked convincing, but didn’t stand up to examination. Complete scam.
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Hi. I was also scammed by DMS Auctions. Bank is attempting to return my money and police are investigating. I was scammed just before the thread began and the bank has only just began to take my case seriously. They apparently use peoples stolen Id to launder the money. I would love the person in this thread to take this to Current Affair as i see DMS are still online! They need to be stopped, police say once my money is transferred outside Australia its lost. Banks have made it too easy for the criminals running the sham as they cite account holder privacy, even though the account i paid into it was opened with stolen id. Its a criminals playground.
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Hi @Kr1st1e, welcome to the forum and we feel for the terrible situation you find yourself in because of being scammed. We hope that the police are able to prosecute those involved and the bank is able to return your monies.
The other way is they use mule bank accounts. Mule accounts are when others also fall victim to the scammers and allow monies to be transferred through their own personal accounts. This is becoming an increasing problem and there are warnings from the Australian Federal Police…
Unfortunately falling victim to being use as a mule accounts doesn’t make the headlines, like many other scamming methods (like paying by gift cards). Possibly the media should focus on the victims of mule accounts. Controlling this pathway for laundering money out of the country would reduce opportunities for scammers to be successful in Australia.
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Hi there, a new one is JGE machinery. I’ve just been stung by them. Same deal as the other dodgy companies. Wish I had found this site a couple of weeks ago. Run by Russian nationals with money ending up in an offshore account.
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Hi @Col2, welcome to the community and we all feel for you since you have been stung by a scam.
It is assumed this is the website:
Looking at the website, it is one to definitely avoid.
Their rouse appears to be to use a legitimate business address to appear more convincing…
It is always worth searching the claimed business address to see what it picks up. As there is an existing business at the same address, it is strongly recommended to call them to verify that the other business exists on the same property (highly unlikely, but possible). It may also be worth contacting them now anyway to let them know that there is a scam website using their business address as part of the scam.
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Very sorry to hear you were ripped off by these scammers.
Certainly not since 2003 as they claim.
Another give-away that they are dodgy is the lack of the SM links, they all just link to their web home page, as with the other scam sites.
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I guess your never too old to learn. Unfortunately for me, it’s the hard way.
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While it won’t save you, your post has the ability to save others from the same scam.
Choice Community appears high in internet search results (your post and the inclusion of the website link ensures this is the case). This means there is a high chance others will find the above information, if they do a search, saving them from the same fate as your own.
All the community and other readers of your post can say is … thank you.
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The business JGE Machinery returns an ABN and ACN per Google, as well as numerous other links.
Is there more to this story?
Google results:
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The web site jgemachinery.com was registered 62 days ago in Nassau with the server in Rostovskaya Oblast.
However the contact email office@salesjgemachinery.com is on a different site. salesjgemachinery.com was registered 61 days ago and is hosted by the web page mill Namecheap in California. Please tell me what purpose there is in registering a separate domain just to get your email.
The principal James Leslie Godfrey does not appear to exist on the web other than as a director of this company and another called Zayrate at the same address in Picton. Zayrate seems to have something to do with plastics.
Their blurb says:
JGE MACHINERY PTY LTD is Australia’s largest asset disposition company. We sell some of the largest units of heavy equipment down to industrial support items for smaller projects.
Is it likely that James is so reclusive that all he does is work?
At the same address 2 (or lot 2) Wonga Rd Picton, we have: Picton Sand and Soil, JGE Earthmoving and Earth Civil. I haven’t run these down to see if they are real and who their principals are. Of these Earth Civil at least appears to be alive and well. It also has a phone number that is in Picton unlike those given by the web site.
So the answer is yes, there is more to this story. My guess is that somebody is using a real company as an apron for their dealings while directing you elsewhere using phone and email.
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It appears they are more sophisticated than past scammers. They have tried to fill the first page of a Google search with paid placements (their own plus knowing others that can be used for such purposes -Yellowpages, Dun & Bradstreet etc)…in attempt to push any websites exposing their scam to pages 2 onwards. They look like they are aware that a lot of consumers only look at the first page with some only looking at the top of the first page.
The type of paid placements also are deliberate to trick the unsuspecting, by appearing to be a credible business.
It is good to see the Community still made the first page of results, albeit at the bottom for a desktop browser search (noting it is pushed off the first page with smart device searches). I suspect in the future more paid placements will be made to ensure websites like that of this Comunity are buried deep into the second page.
It is a concerning tactic as searchs are one/possibly most popular method used by many to substantiate an unknown business.
Maybe Choice should look at preparing a detailed article on how to check legitimacy of a new/unknown business…as it apears as scammers become more sophisticated, it will be more and more difficult for most to work out using simple methods such as a basic internet search.
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Which will likely be a problem for the real JGE Machinery Pty Ltd which is a registered Company. The ABR reports it as first being registered as a business in 2003.
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Possibly something else you could do is contact Earth Moving Civil:
http://earthcivil.com.au/contacting-earth-civil.html
and advise that you have been scammed by a business (JGE Machinery Pty Ltd) using some of their credentials (e.g. phone number - even though the phone number of the website is different, address etc). Hopefully they will take action to protect their own reputation.
It is also worth reporting the scam to the police and also to ScamWatch if you haven’t already done so. Reporting may also assist in recouping any monies you have lost as well as providing another avenue potentially for others to be warned of the company.
Searching the website phone number - 61 2 8005 0752, it appears that others have fallen or nearly fallen victim to the same scammer masquerading as a business in Picton.
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But the web page has the same look and feel, we will probably never know for sure but I suspect this is the same mob as before reincarnated. Which leads to the question; in explaining their errors are we helping the reading public or tipping off the perps so they can build better scams? I don’t feel right about saying xyz is a scam without justification yet their business model is to run each instance for a while and then pack it in and start another so we are always playing whack-a-mole.
Another point to ponder; why repeat the same formula but with heavy equipment each time not something else? It seems that market is chosen for good reasons, one being that buyers do not necessarily visit in person and inspect the goods, another that the items are valuable and each “sale” will net a good return. What other reasons might there be? My reason for raising this is to find out what other markets match the same criteria of a good scam. If there are others do they need examination?
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I’ve contacted the real company today and they have been trying to get the website taken down. 5 people apparently need to be ripped off before anything will happen. They’re not happy either. Cyber crime reported and has been forwarded to NSW police. I was able to speak to a cyber security guy yesterday and he checked it and found it’s a Russian national running it with the money going through an anz account ( the account owner is probably not even aware of this) and then offshore.
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The reason I went this way is because of border closure. I couldn’t go look at the machine. Also with covid lockdowns, an answering machine is the norm. Hopefully no-one else gets stung.
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I agree and @Col2 has been awarded the ‘Scam Stopper Challenge Award’ badge for his efforts on this one. @col2 has done far more than the average person to protect others from this particular scammer.
Congratulations @Col2
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Another may be limited local options. Depending on what ones machinery needs are there may also be a limited market/supply. Hence looking on line for your options may be the only way to go. Looking on line is also a good way to size up and price the market. There is scope for trickery there too. In the real market place similar models and aged machines can vary greatly in price for a number of reasons. Operating hours and duties being two. Some prospective customers may be used to seeing wide variations in pricing.
I can empathise with @Col2.
Before Covid I was looking for a tractor etc. I started on the net, before making a list of potential suppliers of new, used and reconditioned. I spent 3 days all up tyre kicking 6 of the 9 within 150km of home. If it had been Covid days the options would have been 0, 2, or 3 depending on the lockdowns on the day. One needs to touch and feel the product and know what to look out for or have someone trustworthy who can. It’s higher risk compared to purchasing a second hand motor vehicle.
Both I would suggest.
There were several other warning signs I shared in a PM with @phb. Whether there is benefit in a closed discussion, we could do through adding those interested to a PM, or is there another way, @PhilT?
Is the current public (Govt) and Choice advice on how to verify a business and avoid a scam adequate for this example? Considerable resources and bounce appear to have gone into preparing the web site of this recent example. How many consumers have the knowledge or skills some of the community used to identify the site was a risk?
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Probably a small percentage, the rest need to read this thread before they buy! 
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