‘It seemed legit': Woman paid hundreds for a puppy she never got

When Roz Tomas saw Luna, she knew the puppy was the one for her family.

“If you saw her pictures, she’s just absolutely adorable,” she said. “Just so cute. Exactly what we were looking for.”

Roz said she found Luna in December, listed for sale on a website during an online search for Staffordshire terrier breeders in Florida. She said she texted and emailed with a person who identified himself as a breeder in Jacksonville.

“He also told me he was a veterinary nurse, which gave me confidence,” she said. “It seemed legit.” 

“He even sent me videos of the mom with her puppies playing,” she added.

So, Roz said she felt comfortable making an initial deposit of $500 and later paid the rest using PayPal. The seller, she said, was particular about how he wanted her to send the money.

“He specifically asked that I check friends and family,” she said.

Payments sent through that option are not covered by PayPal’s purchase protection. 

Roz said she signed a contract, and they agreed on a delivery date in January. The family was excited to welcome Luna to their home.

“We bought a bed for her and feeding bowls and toys,” she said. “Everything.”

But then things took a turn. Roz said a company that was supposed to fly Luna to her demanded more money and became aggressive. It made her uneasy, so she reached out to the breeder to call the whole thing off.

“I said, ‘I need my money back,’” she said she told him. “Of course, then radio silence. That was it. I haven’t heard from him.”

That’s when she turned to NBC6 Responds.

NBC6 did some digging, and it didn’t take long to discover red flags. A reverse image search of a couple of the puppies listed for sale on the site found the same images on other sites.  We also found the video Roz said she received of the mom playing with her puppies on a different website in a postdated years earlier. We also found a similar complaint filed with the Better Business Bureau in September against the same website, from another prospective buyer in Miami.

“Puppy scams are quite common,” said Cinthya Lavin of the Better Business Bureau of Southeast Florida. “They’re usually in the top 10 every year when it comes to our scam tracker.”

Lavin said these types of schemes are becoming more difficult to spot.

“The more awareness that we do, having people ask for pictures and video, then the scammer goes above and beyond to find videos online, even if it’s stock video or stock photos, to be able to send to the victims,” Lavin said.

PayPal declined to share specifics about Roz’s situation, citing privacy concerns, but told NBC6 if someone you don’t know encourages you to send money through the friends and family option, instead of sending the money to a verified merchant or seller account, that may be a red flag. The company also said if you think you’ve been scammed, you should always contact customer support directly. 

Roz said she filed a claim with PayPal to try to get her money back, but that request was initially denied because she sent the money using the friends and family option. PayPal took a second look after we got involved.

“I want to first of all thank you,” Roz said. “PayPal reached back out to me … to tell me that they looked at my claim again and decided to issue me a refund.”

Roz was thankful she got her money back and hoped her story would serve as a warning to others.

“If somebody wants a dog, please go physically in person to see that dog,” she said. “Don’t send any money online.”

We sent an email and a text to the contacts Roz had used to communicate with the seller and received a response to our text saying they would be sending us a statement. We never heard back.

Roz said she has now decided to adopt from a local shelter. She’s looking for a Staffy and is waiting to connect with the right one for her family.