David Turner Dave Turner online car sales scam Sydney, Australia Internet

My partner and I found a late model Toyota Landcruiser on eBay (also in the Sydney Daily Telegraph) with low Ks, for $20,000. When we enquired about inspecting Dave Turner explained that he was an  Australian based in London and had just inherited the car from his father who passed away two months ago. He was able to provide VIN and registration details. He also said another buyer had just conducted an RACV revs check and found everything above board. When we asked to inspect the car he explained that it was in the Northern Territory and suggested that in order to protect ourselves, we transfer payment for the the car to a secure third party (Alert Pay), and we he would arrange delivery of the car to Melbourne. He assured us that we would have days to inspect the car before consenting for Alert Pay to transfer the funds to him. He even called my partner to talk through any questions we might have about the vehicle! Shortly after he arranged for Alert Pay to email us a "secure link" with details for the funds transfer. We nearly fell for this, and only avoided losing a lot of money thanks to other reports on Ripoff report and press coverage of similar scams.