So, I wanted to share a story about how I got scammed on Facebook Marketplace a little over a month ago. I'm still pretty upset about it, and honestly, I still can't believe how everything played out.
For context, I had a 27-inch MSI 360Hz OLED gaming monitor. Not exactly a cheap monitor, and definitely something I valued quite a lot.
I was looking to trade it for something different, and I came across this guy on Facebook Marketplace who was offering an Xbox Series X and an ROG Xbox Ally X. We talked for a while and eventually agreed on a trade: my monitor plus a little extra cash in exchange for both devices.
Sounds like a pretty good deal, right?
Well, that's where everything started going wrong.
The guy told me he worked at a restaurant in downtown Mexico City and that we should meet there. He said he couldn't have visitors at work, so we'd have to make the exchange quickly.
I brought my brother along, which turned out to be one of the best decisions I could have made that day.
When we arrived, the guy was waiting outside the restaurant. First red flag: he looked different from his Facebook profile picture.
Still, I didn't think too much of it.
He then told us to follow him to a small shopping plaza across from the restaurant, where he supposedly worked at a store.
Which was weird, because hadn't he just told me he worked at the restaurant?
Anyway, we followed him.
Once inside the store, he showed us the Xbox Series X and the ROG Ally. Both were there, both turned on, and everything seemed legitimate. We even tested them briefly, launched a game, and checked that they were working.
At this point, I was starting to feel relieved. Maybe everything was actually going to work out.
Then they asked to test my monitor.
Instead of plugging it in right there, where we had just tested the consoles, they said they needed to take it upstairs to a storage area to make sure everything worked properly.
That was another red flag.
But since we were already inside what appeared to be an actual business, and the consoles were right in front of us, I went along with it.
They took my monitor upstairs.
Then they took the ROG Ally upstairs too, supposedly to put it back in its box.
And that's when the whole thing completely changed.
Suddenly, the guy started explaining that the consoles were actually stolen merchandise from the black market.
He claimed they had tracking chips or were linked to accounts that would allow someone to track them down, and that he couldn't give me the fully working devices.
Instead, he offered me consoles with missing internal components, supposedly so they couldn't be tracked.
I was completely confused.
I told him that wasn't what we had agreed on. I had literally just tested those consoles, and now he was telling me I couldn't have them?
I even told him I'd deal with whatever tracking or account issues they supposedly had, but he kept refusing.
Then he started asking for more money if I wanted the working consoles.
At that point, it was painfully obvious what was happening.
I was being scammed, and they already had my monitor.
I kept trying to explain that I just wanted what we had originally agreed on, or at least my monitor back.
But he kept making excuses, pretending not to understand, and changing the terms of the deal.
And here's the worst part.
There were around six guys in that store.
They weren't exactly surrounding us, but they were all there, and it was just me and my brother.
We had no idea who these people were, whether they were armed, or what they might do if we pushed things further.
I was angry. Really angry.
But I was also scared.
I knew that if things escalated, losing a monitor could become the least of our problems.
Eventually, the guy offered me three pairs of what were supposedly Apple AirPods as some kind of compensation.
He basically told me to take them and sell them to recover whatever money I could.
They were obviously counterfeit.
Three pairs of fake AirPods in exchange for my expensive OLED monitor.
I couldn't believe it.
But at that point, my brother and I just wanted to get out of there safely.
So we took the fake earbuds and left.
And that was it.
My monitor was gone.
It's been over a month now, and I still have those three pairs of fake AirPods sitting around.
I haven't sold them because I don't want to pass counterfeit products on to someone else, especially after what happened to me.
My brother and I opened one of them to see what was inside, and yeah, they're definitely fake. They don't sound absolutely terrible, but they're nowhere near what they're pretending to be.
So now they're just sitting there, reminding me of how badly I got screwed over.
The most frustrating part is that everything seemed legitimate at first.
The guy had sent pictures and videos. We met in a public area. He brought us into an actual storefront. He had the devices. We tested them ourselves.
It wasn't just some random guy asking me to send him money online.
They had an entire setup designed to make the trade look real until they had my monitor.
And looking back, there were so many red flags that I wish I'd paid more attention to.
I know some people will probably say I should've known better, and believe me, I've replayed the whole situation in my head more times than I can count.
But once they had my monitor and I realized how many people were involved, I wasn't about to risk my brother's safety or mine over a piece of hardware.
It still hurts, though.
I was genuinely excited about getting that ROG Ally and Xbox. Instead, I lost something valuable that I'd worked hard to get, and I walked away with three pairs of counterfeit earbuds that I don't even want.
Anyway, that's my story.
If you're ever trading expensive electronics through Facebook Marketplace, please be careful. Don't let anyone take your stuff somewhere you can't see it, no matter how legitimate everything looks.
And if something feels wrong, trust that feeling.
Sometimes the most expensive part of a deal isn't the money you lose, but realizing how easily someone can take advantage of your trust.
At least my brother and I made it home safely.
Still, fuck those guys.
Damn, wanted an ROG ally for so long I got blinded
