Seller's Beware of Scammers!

I know this has been discussed previously, but I wanted to bring this topic up again so it remains fresh in seller's minds.

I recently listed my sailplane for sale on Wings and Wheels. One "buyer" contacted me via the W&W response tool and offered to buy my sailplane "sight unseen", "no inspection", and to be "picked up by a shipper". At first I scoffed at this approach to buying a sailplane, since over the years I have purchased two sailplanes, and I wouldn't think about buying one without much closer pre-purchase scrutiny. Nonetheless, I negotiated with this person who was "buying the sailplane" for her husband. I queried "her" regarding her address, her husband's name, the shipper's name, etc. And with each question I asked, the responses were slow in coming, or never provided. The queerest effort this person made was actually to send me a check via FedEx, and the check was made out for $5,200.45 more than the selling price. The kicker was that this "buyer" wanted me to deposit the check, and then provide the "shipper" with $5000. And the $5,200.45 was to be a USPS money order (not , not a personal check, nor a bank check, or certified check. I purposely lead this scammer along as long as I dare, but the "this is a rip off" signs were there from day 1. Just for your perusal, the buyer said "she" lived in the Chicago area, and provided a name of a person living in "Bellwood, IL". The "check" I received was printed on a personal computer, and was riddled with typos. The buyer's messages frequently used phrases that didn't seem "American". The check was sent via FedEx from a Wanaque, NJ address, which incidentally was the address for a courthouse annex. The check was supposed prepared by a BB&T bank in Kernersville, NV, and it displayed the name of "Corilam Fabricating Co, Inc�, in Kernersville, NC. This scammer was all over the place regarding where "she" lived and did business, and banked (Illinois, New Jersey, North Carolina ....). As a warning, depositing a fake check in the amount of thousands of dollars or (tens of thousands!) may result in felony charges, and may get the federal government involved in the case as well. In many states, the line between misdemeanor and felony check fraud is drawn around $500.00. Had I attempted to deposit this fake check, I would have been in serious trouble, and the scammer would walk away with no concerns. Needless to say, once I exposed this individual as a fake and scammer, the buyer tried to lay a guilt trip on me for thinking "she" was such a person, but after I indicted I was providing all the correspondence to "the authorities", the scammer ran away. You've heard it before ... if it sounds too good to be true, or smells like a rat, it's probably a rat looking to chew on some of your hard earned money. Don't be a victim.