South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg and Department of Revenue Secretary Jim Terwilliger are warning consumers to be aware of a fictitious RV transport company by the name of DakotaFalkTrucking.com. The company claims to be physically located in South Shore, South Dakota. The site has stolen the Motor Carrier and USDOT numbers from a legitimate trucking company and is also making use of the identity of a real person, not affiliated with their operations.
Consumers purchasing recreational vehicles are being targeted when going through well-known sites such as Facebook, Craigs List, RVTrader.com, etc. Fraudulent sale postings are listed with discounted prices as the enticement. The majority of these listings are being posted under the guise that Brigadier General Joane K. Mathews is the individual selling the RV.
The scammers then attempt to facilitate the sale through DakotaFalkTrucking.com because of their “escrow service”. The scammer tells the consumer this service will keep the parties from being scammed in the transaction. The South Dakota Consumer Protection Division has received calls from multiple consumers from outside of the state that have been scammed out of thousands of dollars or have come very close to becoming a victim. DakotaFalkTrucking.com has no physical presence in South Dakota, the address listed is a valid address but not for a big shipping company as the site would have you believe.
This knowledge, and caution on the part of consumers, will raise awareness to the point where, ultimately, this site will no longer be productive for the scammers. However, this means that they will shut it down only to create yet another scam site. Consumers are encouraged to check all aspects of any site before agreeing to do business online. Just because the address listed is legitimate does not guarantee that the address will match what the site is about.
The South Dakota Department of Revenue’s motor vehicle division has received inquiries regarding the legitimacy of several RV titles. The department urges consumers to take caution when reviewing titles associated with this website. If you have questions regarding the legitimacy of a South Dakota vehicle title, contact the motor vehicle division by phone at 605-773-3541.
Anyone who has fallen victim to this scam is encouraged to contact the Consumer Protection Division in their state.