NetPosse.com Reports Horse Found when Shipper Vanishes after Internet Sale

NetPosse.com Reports Horse Found when Shipper Vanishes after Internet Sale

22 August 2011

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Look who NetPosse.com found in Colorado! With the NetPosse.com Alerts and website Macy, aka Legs, who currrenty lives with her young owner has been located. Macy was bought from the same seller a few days before she was sold again by the seller to Ms. Fang though an internet website transaction.

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And what about the Shipper? To this date NetPoss.com has not found the person who was stated to be the shipper nor his wife or missing person report.

See the NetPosse.com page for Legs here.

NetPosse.com received the following information shortly after our alerts went out to thousands. We found this to be very interesting.

"I witnessed the original owner of this horse selling the mare to another party while she was boarded at my stable.  The woman then apparently sold the mare again to a lady in Illinois."

Has anyone else been sold a horse they didn't get by a seller in Colorado. How about another state? If so, contact us becuase we like to hear your story. Click on the Contact US link on the tool bar above.

July 27, 2011 – Longmont, Colorado – From Colorado to Illinois, a horse thought to be lost in transport is found; two buyers are scammed – one is out the horse, one has an unsound horse; an insurance company is saved from a fraudulent claim; and it is all exposed by one nonprofit: Stolen Horse International, Inc., known as NetPosse.com.

Formed in 1998 after the theft and recovery of her husband’s horse, Idaho, NetPosse founder Debi Metcalfe worked this case behind the scenes once a report was received on this missing mare on August 5, 2011. In a matter of hours, Debi uncovered the whereabouts of the American Saddlebred mare, Standing Still, and the person who sold her to Ling An Fang in Illinois. The most important news she learned was that the mare called "Legs" is safe and alive, but she was sold two days before Ling’stransaction to a third party. In fact, the mare never left Colorado and there was no shipper.

The ordeal began when Ling, a first-time horse buyer, decided to purchase a horse online. Because she had never completed a transaction of this nature, Ling trusted the seller implicitly. She gladly paid the asking price for the mare, the veterinarian check, and the cost of shipping the mare from Colorado to Illinois.

When the transportation company failed to show, the seller told Ling that the shipper, along with his wife and four horses, was missing in transit. Not one to sit idly by, Ling quickly filed an online report with NetPosse.com. She needed answers and to find the mare she already adored, sight unseen.

After contacting NetPosse, volunteers processed her report, created a flyer and began disseminating the missing horse information worldwide to thousands of NetPosse members and hundreds of list groups worldwide. As Ling’s plea was sent out in the form of a NetPosse.com Alert, the horse community’s equivalent of the Amber Alert, answers began to come forth. However, they were not those expected.

Utilizing NetPosse’s all-volunteer network and contacts cultivated in the equine industry from aiding the public in locating missing and stolen horses, the tale the seller wove to Ling began unraveling shortly after Legs' report was posted on NetPosse.com. A witness saw the report on the site, and contacted Debi. This led to communications by Debi with the witness, the seller, and the insurance company, and the truth was discovered in short order.

This witness was present when Legs was sold prior to Ling’s transaction. Now renamed, the mare was purchased for a young girl who fell in love with her. The family that bought Legs was coerced by the seller into paying back board on top of the asking price before learning the mare had been foundered. In fact, the seller did not even mark the horse as “sold” in the ad online until after Debi spoke to her regarding the suspicious transaction.

Ling’s situation is a lesson in “Buyer Beware” when you purchase a horse, sight unseen, from a stranger. Finding Legs alive was a relief, but Ling will never be able to claim the mare as her own. With her heart and trust broken, Ling is determined to stop this seller from conning other people in the horse world. Not surprisingly, it has come to light that the seller has a trail of suspicious activity in several states along with numerous judgments for collection against her. This seller needs to be stopped, and legal options to do so are being explored.

While thousands of transactions occur successfully online every day, there are measures to be taken to ensure that you are not being scammed. Aside from tips found on www.netposse.com, the nonprofit is supported by other organizations such as RateMyHorsePro.com. A site for the equine community geared to assist all parties involved in horse transactions. This seller gave herself a high rating on the site but was immediately banned for entering fraudulent information. The NetPosse network works, and is continuously forming partnerships within the equine industry to protect the horses that are so important to us. Please join NetPosse.com and learn more about protecting yourself and your horses from all types of theft.

A Few Comments from Facebook:

If I may just added to the PR: The seller spoke to my trainers for hours before we decided to buy Legs. She is very knowledgeable about horses for sure. Also, she told us her sad stories she couldn't keep Legs due to both her brother and mother passed away within one week. She is in the college and a single mother with 3 daughters. In fact, she mentioned the young buyer and her mother to me. She stated they don't desert to own Legs, and asked me to buy Legs soon. She was heartbroken to see Legs without getting into a good home....In short, I have learned the lessons, but still want to keep my trust to all kind souls. Again, I thank Debi Bailey Metcalfe, netposse, and all the kind people have helped me find Legs. Also wish Legs is doing well with her new family. - Ling An Fang, August 22, 2011

What a sad story. I'm glad Legs is safe with a family who loves her. But the heartbreak! - Janet Collester, August 22, 2011

The horse community does try hard to help each other out. So sorry for this bad experience for you Ling. Hope you find your Dreamhorse soon. I also hope you will get your money all returned to you. This is as bad as horse Thieft. I think you could also file an internet fraud claim with the FBI. Not that hard to do and you can do it online. - Jan Davis, August 22, 2011

But who can afford an attorney? Their fees rack up very quickly even if you are in the right. Buying another horse probably will be cheaper than going though the legal system. Sad but true. That's why horse thieves are getting away with this because the police say it's up to the courts. Talking major money here. There is not much help out there for victims when it comes to horses. - Tina McElhattan, August 22, 2011

What a story! Please tell us she's going to jail! - Dianne Garnett Killen, August 22, 2011

To see more on this discussion or to make a comment join us on Facebook.

© 2011 – Stolen Horse International Public Relations – This article must be kept intact and credit given to Stolen Horse International, Inc. and/or NetPosse.com. A lead portion may be used if a link to NetPosse.com is provided. For more information on Stolen Horse International and its programs, visit the website at ww.netposse.com. Stolen Horse International is a Section 501(c)(3) organization under the Internal Revenue Code. Contributions to it are tax-deductible as charitable contributions.

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