cjwils
Member
At the address below you can quickly verify whether an FFL is valid. Apparently this connects to an ATF database.
https://fflezcheck.atf.gov/fflezcheck/
https://fflezcheck.atf.gov/fflezcheck/
I used the website above ; the ffl comes up as the name from the email I received.
Did the address also match?? If so I think I would call the FFL and have a talk,
Personally, I like the idea of a wire transfer. It is instant and irrevocable. (I would never send a wire transfer, but that doesn't mean that I wouldn't accept one....)
No real life ffl dealer would buy a pricey item without any discussion. Is it possible that the scammer usurped the name of an ffl that he lifted off the internet?
My understanding is that when the bank first says that the check has "cleared" they're really just issuing you credit - presuming it will clear. But if it doesn't clear - the credit you've been given is revoked and the "money" is taken back out of the account.
What really astounds me is that I've heard anecdotal accounts of banks coming back to account holders 6 months later and saying "That check was bad." - that's how long the process can take.
It would be really easy to get an electronic copy of a FFL. I've sold stuff online and I have electronic copies of FFLs - because that's what was sent to me as proof of where I need to send the item. What I don't get with *this* scam is that, at the end of the day, if the shipper ships to the address that has been verified with the ATF EZCheck system, it's still going to be sent to the FFL. If it's a Type 03 FFL (Curio & Relic) then that FFL type can't be checked at the website. But supposedly one can call the ATF and they'll verify that type over the phone. Maybe, if it is a C&R, the "purchaser" hopes the shipper won't check it?
Don't call what's on the copy the buyer sent, call what's on EZCheck.Why would you want to call a thief, so they can lie to you and promise everything's legit?
A cashiers check is ALWAYS a scam. The FFL is never legit. Ever.