Mike Jones, ICREF, Investor CRE Funding, ICRE Funding Agreed to fund a 2.5MM Commercial Real Estate Loan if I would send funds in advance Fort Myers & Naples Florida

My name is Rob Seimetz and I am a Financial Investigator with the Florida Office of Financial Regulation.  Will someone please call me about this at (813) 218-5339?

Thank you. 

Well, 5 months after he told me he was going to send me my money back it finally showed up in the mail, in the form of 4 separate money orders that were purchased on the same day...  Glad I got it back but that is entirely sketchy practice of an investor...  If it took him this long to get my money back to me how was he ever going to fund an entire $350k?  I hope he has fun hiding from the feds the rest of his life.

Glad to hear someone got at least their own money back out of Mike.  He also told me he was going to refund me and to date, have seen no refund of any type.  Seems he has dissappeared.  He is a real tool!

what project did he fund?, i would like to see what he funded, through public records.

I started working with Mike back in October. And yes there was back and forth with him for weeks, and tons of paper. There were also plenty of reasons why things were held up inclduing his health issues. I really thought I got screwed. But he sent me back every penny I sent him, so go figure. While I wish he could have done my deal, he did say he would refund my money and he did. 

Filed FBI IC3 report today. I would recommend everyone on this complaint do the same. Regardless of good or poor health, if Mike Jones is aka Douglass Carter then he is a professional real estate criminal.

He did the same thing to me:  called my lawyer and the title company and maybe the seller.  Then he blamed me for not supplying needed information while he ignored all of my requests for the same info.  He told my lawyer that he wanted a corporation formed rather than using my LLC but he wouldnt provide any information to accomplish that.

I too have egg on my face with the seller, the realtors, the title company, and several other professionals.

Nevertheless, first, file a report with your local police dept and the police in Ft. Myers if they will take it.

Then contact the victims unit of the District Attorney's office in your area and in his (though no one knows where he really lives).  Then call and write the Attorney General's and the US Attorney's office in your state.

Then write a paper letter to your Congressman and demand that laws be enacted to protect American citizens from scammers in the US, Nigeria, and elsewhere.

If you have identity theft insurance, tell them too.

 Well I'm sorry to say that I too am a victim of this man. He seems to be a kind honest fellow and has courted my loan for the past 2.5 months. We have spoken weekly sometimes daily about the progress of my loan, he has spoken to the title company, and to my realtor, so it has us all baffled why would he invest so much time in this scam. It makes you think he's for real. I made excuses for his not returning calls or not countersigning the agreement due to his age and moved ahead with the process, when I should not have. Now I have involved 2 more people in my delusion (the sellers) they have a half sold commercial property for which I'm back on the road again looking for funding to buy. This guy needs to be stopped. Also the bank account I deposited my C&D funds into has been closed. My inquiry at the Strada Place suite did connect him to a Davis Auto & Truck Company which according to the Florida SOS sight is owned by another scammer named James Spillers Jr. who may reside right here in hills of KY. Like an earlier post I feel a little hopeless and of course my stomach is in all kinds of knots. Its not just the money its your hopes and dreams. Should we involve the Attorney General since this fraud crosses state lines?

Mad Hatters Custom Leather Goods on facebook would be the best now because I had to shut down the website due to this situation.  Actually the website isn't the only thing shut down over this. 

Mad Hatters Customs ? I tried what you suggested and came up with dead links.  Try again, plz.

Anyone needing to contact me about this report can find me with a simple web search, just add scustoms and a dot com to my name. Last conversation with Mike Jones I had, he threatened to take me and all of us on this report to court because we are bullying him. He said he had the right under the federal bullying law... Even the federal govt doesn't know about this law... Sadly, there will more than likely be no resolution and too much damage is done from this.    

I would like to contact you and Mad Hatter too, but dont know how.

Bottom line is this:  Forget about Mike Jones and ICREF.  If you sent him a dime, you'll sadly never see it again.  Ripoff Report has some suggestions about trying to get your money back.

Submit detailed accounts about how he deluded you and stole your money on as many scam websites as you can find.  Sparing other people from being victims is about all the satisfaction you might receive.

It's entirely clear that Jones' scheme is the same with everyone: He blames the entrepreneur for not supplying contacts, contracts, and information in order to get funding for their projects.

The truth is, he doesn't read anything you send to you, couldn't understand it if he read it, and doesn't have a dime to invest in anything to begin with.

He changes his lies but uses similar stalling tactics with all of his victims.

He told Mad Hatter that he has been ill at the same time he told me that he was visiting someone in the hospital.

No matter what he says or does, he will not address any of your concerns even if you point out his inconsistencies.

No matter what the problem is, it's always your fault.

It's hard not to believe a scammer like Jones when you want the funding so badly to achieve your dreams and ambitions, but this is what dirt-bags like Jones prey on. 

Learn from it and move on.  There are honest, professional investors out there if your project is good enough to attract them.

I HEREBY RETRACT MY 11/27/13 RETRACTION THAT WAS WRITTEN UNDER DURESS. 

In my opinion, "Mike Jones" is every bit the crook I hoped and wished he wasn't.  He threatened me severely if I didn't retract my original RIPOFF REPORT and still promised to fund my project. He said he has enough money to paper me with lawsuits forever if I didn't revise my opinions of him. Apparently, he doesn't know the definition of libel or slander.

DO NOT BE AFRAID OR BELIEVE ONE WORD OUT OF THIS MORON'S MOUTH !  HE IS A PATHOLOGICAL LIAR and INCAPABLE OF BEING HONEST !

Thanks to Ripoff Report, two more people have come forward with similar stories.  Sadly, they may have sent large sums of money to "Mike" and have been considerably harmed as a result.

Why "Mike" continued to try and con me is unfathomable given that I never sent him a dime and refused outright to do so from the beginning.  Maybe he thought he'd screw me eventually, but GUESS WHAT MIKE, you're IT !

NEVER SEND ANYONE YOU DON'T KNOW A DIME UP FRONT WITH THE PROMISE OF THEM DOING A DEAL UNLESS YOU USE A BIG-4 CREDIT CARD COMPANY and NEVER, NEVER, EVER SEND MONEY VIA WESTERN UNION TO ANYONE BUT YOUR MOTHER (if you like her) !

"Jones" went so far as to call the title company on my deal and also called my lawyer.  He wanted to "punish" me for refusing to send him an "application fee" by requiring me to pay all the legal fees.  (Sorry MIKEY, I have lots of lawyer friends who could chew you up and spit you out if you had an honest dime worth going after).  He revealed his ignorance and lack of business acumen on both occasions as well as during several conversations with me.

Cons all have one thing in common:  They are all stupid and assume that you are more stupid than they are.  If you let your emotions and ambitions get ahead of your brain, they win.  DONT LET IT HAPPEN TO YOU !

Report them to RIPOFF REPORT, FEDERAL, STATE & LOCAL AUTHORITIES and anyone else who will profile and publish them BEFORE they rape you or someone else.

Unfortunately, the authorities are reluctant to find and prosecute theses bastards and they know it.

"Jones" had all of the RED FLAGS of a con-man in my opinion, but I was still hopeful he was honest.

•    He has a generic email address: ICREF@Yahoo.com.  As I predicted, he informed me today(12-10-13) that his email has been corrupted and that I need to resend all the documents I have sent at least twice before.

•    He has a virtual office in Naples, FL with a fictitious suite number (10155) in a two-story building

•    He doesn't have voice mail and rarely answers his phone (a throw-away, most likely that shows up as Ft. Myers) that will soon be disconnected along with his email.

•    He occasionally returns a call soon after you call him (Crooks love caller ID)

•    He sends one word replies to complicated emails (doesn't have a clue, in my opinion)

•    He brags about how many millions of dollars he has and that his son is a lawyer (Whoopee !)

•    His knowledge of business and real estate is abysmal: elementary school level

•    He is oft to mention about going to church and visiting people in the hospital

•    He CLAIMS to have lived all over the world and speak several languages (but can't spell) (http://www.meetup.com/Naples-Travel-Group/members/41107002/) Wonder where he really was for those 25 years ???

•    Meets the classic definition of a sociopath or worse ("a person with a personality disorder manifesting itself in extreme antisocial attitudes and behavior and a lack of conscience") and/or a psychopath, ("a person suffering from chronic mental disorder with abnormal or violent social behavior.")

In all likelihood, Mike Jones will soon emerge with a new name, email address, phone number, etc., but his MO will be the same.

·      If a prospective investor asks for ANY money upfront, FORGET IT !

·      If a prospective investor refuses to provide YOU with banking, accounting,  and legal references, FORGET IT!

·      If they don’t ask for a business plan, FORGET IT !

·      If they don’t read the business plan you sent them, FORGET IT !

·      Get your own legal advice even if from a site like justanswer.com (which I use).

·      Don’t do anything without a signed contract.

·      If you’ve already been screwed by the likes of Mike Jones, consider it an expensive lesson, because law enforcement won't do anything about it unless it's more than $50K, and maybe not even then.

I also have been in touch with this person for some time now. I keep hearing its coming. Has anyone recieved funding from him? I would like to speak privately to anyone thats willing to contact me, I guesss though this website. 

Dear Mad Hatter,

I am the guy who wrote the original report.  Please call me at (((redacted)))  asap.

Turns out that Mike Jones has been ill and this is the reason for the delay with this loan.  I am not certain of his health issues and do not feel comfortable in explaining any health information he has disclosed with me over the internet. 

People helping people is what this is all about and he is a people helper.

I am sure he will come through with my request because he has been behind due to his illness.

I am also involved with ICREF ran by Mike Jones. My request was also answered by Mike Jones through lending universe. The only thing that I can say is settling about Mike is he has always stayed in touch but never has any answers as to when we will be funded.

I broke a lease on the building I was renting for my business just to send him all I could for the commitment fee and that was on the 11th of October.  He said it would be 28 working days from that date and we are well over that timeline with no answers as to when we will be getting our funds.

On the 28th day I called him and he said he couldn't send funds until he hears from my title company, then days later he complains to me that I am the one who has to fool with the title company that he doesn't.  He has had the number for the lawyer filing our title/deed since that conversation and has yet to call him to even attempt to get this strait.

I have a contract on the property we are supposed to be purchasing with these funds and I was very up front that I needed approval before I make the contract on the property.  My contract was drawn for 60 days signed on the 16th of October.  Still no funds seen from Mike Jones and I will loose the contract in 7 days.  My business won't have a home nor will my family due to this delay. My request is only $350K.

I would like to offer my most sincere apology to Mike Jones of Investor CRE Funding, also known as ICREF. 

When I began looking for an investor to help fund a Real Estate Venture I posted a notice on a website where investors and entrepreneurs can connect.  I was contacted by several investors who expressed interest in my project.  Mr. Jones was one of them.

Two other investors turned out to be scammers who made wild promises and wanted large sums of money upfront.

Mr. Jones was the only legitimate investor and wanted only a small application fee, but I was gun shy, and mistakenly assumed that he was like the others.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

Mr. Jones is as legitimate as one can be.  Despite my misassumptions and the fact that I so hastily posted this notice on ripoffreport.com, Mr. Jones is giving me, truly, the opportunity of a lifetime by investing in my project.  It's heartening to know that there are honest, sincere, and capable people out there that truly are "angels".

If anyone who reads this wants to speak with me personally, please contact me through this website.