Huge Email Scam attacking Fitness and Martial Arts schools Please Share!

As a Martial Arts instructor, I feel I work hard for the community, not only do I pride myself on providing a service of teaching others self defense and fitness, I inspire other to compete, or help them find the self confidence needed to really change their lives.  Lately there has been a pack of scam artists prying on the MMA, Karate, Fitness, CrossFit, and general workout communities, for back of a better term we will call them ‘Private Prepaid Scam’ from fake future students.

The scammers get your email from the Internet, they search databases that we use to advertise, promote, or market our martial arts, fitness, and other opportunities with.  Anyone who uses the Internet…You should already be cautious with emails that are too out of the ordinary. (If I really got the 40,000,000 dollars from Nigeria sent to me from a lost prince, the free Viagra samples, and my health care benefits after reading my daily SPAM mail, I’d have no reason to complain in life, lol)

Last week I got an email from ‘Wendy Williams’  and the person was trying to schedule a pack of ‘Private Lessons’ from me, while paying by credit card.

Initial Scam Email to start the hustIn my Reply I basically asked where they were located, what goals they were specifically looking to achieve, and if they were already doing something to reach those goals currently.  I had already heard about this scam online, so i figured I would play along and see where this went.

Be careful of every email, realize in 2015 Catfish isn’t just something that swims!

Originally I replied to the email with a fake phone number, then however decided to play along with the scam and gave him my real cell number.  Of course he sent me a text from the Infamous 202 Area code (+202 is notorious for phone scams!!)

+202 Area code is famous for Phone Scams!

As you can see by the reply the continue with the story, telling me they are already playing basketball, working on goals on strength and mobility, genuinely selling the story, but still no one has questions WHERE MY ACTUAL GYM IS (if its too good to be true….it usually is)

Wait, you still don’t know where MagicalRay.Com gym is located

Without knowing where the gym (or training area) was located, “Wendy” then goes on to tell me that she is going to organize a chartered van to facilitate the driving for the group, and that the driver is unable to process credit cards, she then tells me to charge her credit card for the &1,958.98 that the transportation company is going to charge, remembering to include my 5-7% credit card charge, and that she would reward my ‘good deed’ with a 100$ tip for my services after I have transferred the transportation funds into a non traceable account, probably funding some off ship pirate crusade in Nigeria.

They want to send me the money to pay for the van, then have me wire that money to an account so when it ‘bounces’ I am the one who loses the $$

The Scammer really tries to use the motivation of an extra 100$ and the thought of selling 12 privates (side note…I charge 100$ an hour a private, packages of 10 or more get 20% off)