Two Saskatchewan hockey card fans say they’re out greater than $5,000 every after a deal gone mistaken involving a Quebec-based hockey card vendor.
Jordie Gagnon and Rocky D’urso every preordered instances of extremely sought-after 2023-24 Higher Deck Passion playing cards, however say the playing cards by no means arrived. Each have demanded refunds, however say they have not arrived both.
“My coronary heart sunk into my chest and I am like, ‘oh, he obtained us,'” Gagnon mentioned in his Saskatoon residence.
The SP Genuine set dropped on Oct. 30, giving consumers an opportunity at a brand new slate of uncommon playing cards. Maxime Brown, a recognized vendor within the passion area and proprietor of a card store known as Brown’s Cartes Sportives in Longueil, Que., marketed instances of the brand new set.
Gagnon mentioned he is in a web-based group the place greater than 70 folks from throughout the nation have mentioned they’ve gone to the police after ordering playing cards from Brown and never receiving them.
Brown confirmed to CBC that his consumers haven’t obtained the playing cards. He mentioned he plans to pay everybody again, however that his financial institution has frozen his account.
Deal fell via
Gagnon began getting nervous when he noticed posts pop up on Fb saying Brown’s card store was closed and his web site was down.
Gagnon pay as you go $5,659.72 by e-transfer to Brown for one case. D’suro mentioned he paid slightly extra, about $6,200 for a case.
Each males say Brown was a trusted determine within the card enterprise that they’ve had dealings with prior to now. D’suro mentioned there was belief constructed up over years of offers.
“I am often not like that, I often do not give away cash that simply,” D’suro mentioned.
“My birthday is in November, so it was a birthday reward for myself, so once I discovered about this … I wasn’t feeling too good about it, let’s put it that approach.”
The Regina Police Service mentioned in an e-mail that as a result of the suspect lives out of its jurisdiction, the file was despatched to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre and forwarded to the Service de police de l’agglomération de Longueuil (Longueuil’s police service).
The Saskatoon Police service additionally obtained a criticism about Brown, however mentioned the problem is civil, not legal.
Gagnon mentioned this needs to be greater than a civil case given the amount of cash concerned within the failed deal.
Vendor guarantees refunds
Brown agreed to do an interview with CBC by video chat, however did not present up. He additionally did not comply with up on a number of different makes an attempt by CBC to get an interview on digicam.
Brown did reply through e-mail to most of CBC’s questions. He mentioned he isn’t a scammer, and that allegations he noticed on-line that the cash was spent on, “a Ferrari, a Lamborghini, a Tesla and that I had gone to the Bahamas,” are unfaithful.
He mentioned he has the cash to pay folks again, however the financial institution has frozen his accounts due to prospects submitting cost again claims for his or her bank cards.
He is additionally mentioned he has been in contact with the consumers periodically and created a gaggle chat the place he promised to return everybody’s cash.
Brown mentioned 12 folks have been utterly refunded and one other 12 have been partially refunded. He mentioned there is not an actual timeline on when the cash shall be refunded to everybody else.
Brown not licensed vendor: Higher Deck
CBC reached out to the cardboard firm Higher Deck about whether or not Brown was a licensed vendor of its product.
“The person you reference [Maxime Brown], in addition to their storefront, just isn’t a licensed member of Higher Deck’s Licensed Diamond Vendor program, making them an unauthorized retailer of Higher Deck merchandise,” senior advertising and marketing supervisor Paul Nguyen said in an e-mail.
“Our CDD program exists for this precise cause — to guard prospects and assist them really feel safe understanding they’re making a official buy.”
Nguyen mentioned Higher Deck’s customer support will not help or refund purchases made via a non-CDD.
Brown wrote that he did not order from Higher Deck instantly. He mentioned the non-public vendor he’d agreed to purchase the playing cards from backed out.
He mentioned the eye from this controversy has price him his retailer and status.
“I by no means meant to rip-off anybody and I nonetheless do not right this moment,” he mentioned. “I misplaced management.”
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