B.C. man who sold Porsche to scammers shares cautionary tale

A man from B.C.’s Lower Mainland who was scammed while selling his Porsche Cayenne online is sharing his cautionary tale – while calling for increased protections from the government.

Mehrdad Ebrahimnezhad was among the victims of a recent fraud scheme that targeted both individuals and dealerships selling high-end cars, as announced by the RCMP last week. 

Authorities said three suspects used forged bank drafts to purchase 16 vehicles, with the combined losses of the victims totalling more than $850,000.

Ebrahimnezhad sold his Cayenne for $87,000 – only to learn the bank draft he received from the buyer he met over Facebook Marketplace was fake.

“I didn’t even know fake bank drafts exist in Canada,” he said. “I’m originally from Iran, they have a central banking system, they can check if a bank draft is fake or not.”

In Canada, only the issuing bank can immediately determine if a draft is a forgery.

Ebrahimnezhad was also frustrated to realize the purchaser had provided a stolen ID card when they went together to an ICBC-affiliated Autoplan dealer to fill out vehicle transfer forms.

The employee looked at the ID, but never ran a check to ensure it was legitimate, or asked for a second piece of identification – none of which is required under B.C. law.

“When I asked them, they said they don’t have a policy of ID verification,” Ebrahimnezhad said. “If you’re transferring a title, why shouldn’t you ask for ID verification?”

In a statement, ICBC acknowledged the seller was put in a “very distressing situation,” but said it’s up to buyers and sellers to protect themselves during these transactions.

“This unfortunate case is a reminder to anyone who may be selling or buying a used vehicle to do your research and take every precaution to avoid being scammed,” a spokesperson said.

ICBC also echoed a recommendation from the RCMP to verify bank drafts at their originating financial institution before completing a sale.

Three suspects – Ka Tin Hong, Shing Wai Wong and Pui Hei Chu – are facing 30 criminal charges in connection with the purchases, including fraud over $5,000, ID-related offences, and instructing the commission of an offence for a criminal organization.

Authorities said they have also recovered 10 of the 16 vehicles allegedly purchased with forged drafts – including Ebrahimnezhad’s, after he spotted the vehicle on sale through a dealership.

He believes that led investigators to the suspects.

“Once I reported my car to the RCMP, they got there and the dealer said the person is bringing another car,” he said. “They chased the seller and caught the group.”

While his situation could have ended much worse, Ebrahimnezhad said he had to pay a lawyer $7,000 to ensure he could get his Cayenne back from the dealership, which also lost tens of thousands of dollars it paid in cash for the vehicle.

He’s considering a lawsuit against the government, arguing some simple additional verification could spare others like him from getting taken for a ride.

“They have to upgrade their system, they have to upgrade their policies,” Ebrahimnezhad said. “Because scammers know how the system works.”