[Warning] Gerald(Gerry) LaValette

esmoot

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
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521
Has anyone ever dealt with Gery Lavalette?

If you have any 1st hand dealing with Gerry please PM or e-mail me.

This guy has been posting on Petbugs.com, the ATS site and Tarantulas.com. I don't believe he has posted here yet.

Here is the story. Gerry posted a few different messages claiming to have a wholesale list and to e-mail him for the list. I did so. I went over the list of 60 sp. and saw several interesting sp. that I told him I was interested in. I have seen wholesale lists before and I usually know basically what goes for what. He seemed a little cheaper then most but not by too much. He gave me his terms for payment, money orders only, which always should be a red flag.

I told him I needed references before I sent any payment and he sent me 1 e-mail address which never help and 2 names and numbers. The first guy I talked to was a guy named Ken S. I only talked for a few seconds and the story I got from him did not sound right so I moved on to the next phone number.

I then called the other person, someone that posts here but is kinda new. I won't post his name now but to me he sounded like he really might be telling me the truth. He says he ordered 1 t from Gerry and he got it fine. No real problem with this person unless he's in on something. I would guess he may have gotten the single t from Gerry.

I have seen first hand it before where people sell a single t to one or two people, ask for good reviews then post a big list with some high $$$ t’s, try and score big then vanish. If you remember “Doc” from a few months ago he did this same thing.

Ok back on track. I told Gerry that I wanted to buy a certain 4 t’s that came to $296 with shipping. He then sent me a type of contract…???..... through e-mail. I still have a copy of this and all of his past e-mails. He asked me to sign saying I agree to purchase so and so and mail it to him with a money order. He said he would send me a signed copy. He then would sent me my t’s.

By now my spidey senses are really going off. I have not signed anything or sent any payment. I don’t really want to post how I made this next connection and give it away how I caught him but here is what I found out.

The first reference Gerry sent me was Ken S. I found out from my own sources this guy is Ken Scott. I later found out Gerry has the same address as Ken Scott. I also found out Gerry has the same home phone as Ken Scott. Sound funny??? Hell yea!!!

At best this guy is using himself as a reference(WTH?), lying and putting out false information. I believe he was and still is planning more then just that. I believe that if I had sent money I would have never seen my money again. You decide.

Eric
 
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esmoot

Arachnobaron
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Messages
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Here are the facts. Check for yourself.

Here is the charming message that I just got from Ken(Gerry).

From GERALD LAVALETTE Sat Feb 14 15:54:49 2004
X-Apparently-To: ers2907@yahoo.com via 216.136.224.231; Sat, 14 Feb 2004 15:48:56 -0800
Return-Path: <gerken03@msn.com>
Received: from 65.54.173.122 (EHLO hotmail.com) (65.54.173.122) by mta208.mail.scd.yahoo.com with SMTP; Sat, 14 Feb 2004 15:48:55 -0800
Received: from mail pickup service by hotmail.com with Microsoft SMTPSVC; Sat, 14 Feb 2004 15:48:55 -0800
Received: from 67.2.35.160 by bay5-dav92.bay5.hotmail.com with DAV; Sat, 14 Feb 2004 23:48:54 +0000
X-Originating-IP: [67.2.35.160]
X-Originating-Email: [gerken03@msn.com]
X-Sender: gerken03@msn.com
From: "GERALD LAVALETTE" <GERKEN03@msn.com> Add to Address Book
To: ers2907@yahoo.com
Subject: t's
Date: Sat, 14 Feb 2004 15:54:49 -0800
MIME-Version: 1.0
X-Mailer: MSN Explorer 7.02.0011.2700
Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="----=_NextPart_001_0006_01C3F312.E0930C00"
Message-ID: <BAY5-DAV920MLUq2in0000045c9@hotmail.com>
X-OriginalArrivalTime: 14 Feb 2004 23:48:55.0196 (UTC) FILETIME=[1B47B5C0:01C3F355]
Content-Length: 854


"First of all Eric, I read your charming message on Arachoboard, basically slamming me. If you are not sure of who I am, SHUT your mouth. I will be sure to slam you in the future as well. AS for know, go <profanity deleted - CM> yourself."

End of message




<personal info deleted - CM>What Eric meant to say was that he did a reverse lookup on the phone number for Ken Scott and got the same address that Gerry had given him as Gerry's home address, of course we already covered this above.

Also when I asked Gerry if I could just have someone visit him because I have friends in the area, he said yes. Then he backed out and said he would not be able to. Hmmmm. I wonder why?

Enough said.
 
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clawingpanther

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 18, 2003
Messages
31
Eric, you called me at my place of work and I gave you my honest impressions of a dealer who gave me a great deal on a great T. Wasn't "in" on anything.
peace,
Marshall
 

esmoot

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
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Messages
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Originally posted by clawingpanther
Eric, you called me at my place of work and I gave you my honest impressions of a dealer who gave me a great deal on a great T. Wasn't "in" on anything.
peace,
Marshall
Marshall, I do believe you. What you told me sounded right and matched the spp. you were looking for. I left out your name just in case you did not want your info out or if someone took my post the wrong way.

Eric

Here's the latest. I sent Gerry(Ken?) an e-mail saying that if he was on the level please explain what was going on. Gerry has never tried to defend himself or explain why his reference has the same address and HOME phone number. I asked him to do so. I told him that even if he was just trying to skip a few steps and got caught in a lie to fess up. I told him that if he was on the level I would him him clear this up but that instead of just attacking he need to give us the real story.

So far it has been 2 days and I have not heard from him. I also said that if he's not on the level it would be best for him to just drop the whole thing.
 
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MizM

Arachnoprincess
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Has anyone had success dealing with Gerry? He has posted "full grown" t. blondi's on the ATS website for <edit>. This sounds too good to be true and I'm not going to order ANYTHING until I have a first-hand report of a successful deal!

Thanks!
 

esmoot

Arachnobaron
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Originally posted by MizM
Has anyone had success dealing with Gerry? He has posted "full grown" t. blondi's on the ATS website for $50.00. This sounds too good to be true and I'm not going to order ANYTHING until I have a first-hand report of a successful deal!

Thanks!
I have not heard anything still from him. I don't see what post you are talking about on the ATS site. When did you see it and is it still there?

Eric
 

MizM

Arachnoprincess
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ip 67.2.52.40
Name: gerald lavalette
City/State: milwaukie, OR
Country: usa
Home Page: GREAT TARANTULA SPECIALS!!
Date: Sat Feb 7 17:30:27 2004
<ads can not be posted or linked>
 

esmoot

Arachnobaron
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That is an older post. I don't believe he is still posting. I wonder why????????????
 

MizM

Arachnoprincess
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I received an e-mail from him today, he said he still has plenty of t. blondis left... but I'm still waiting to hear more feedback. Perhaps I could arrange a C.O.D. delivery or something?
 

esmoot

Arachnobaron
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Messages
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Be careful what ever you decide. Gerry(Ken?) has not replied to any e-mails asking to explain his story about the matching phone numbers and address. I have offered to help him clear any problems up if there are really any. So far nothing.

I'm not saying he's a thief but if you were on the level and had tens of thousands of dollars in t's you wanted to sell, wouldn't you post or reply with an explanation, not just angry rants?

I also asked him where he got his t's from, which distributor or other source. If he really has the t's he could just tell us who sold them to him. He has things on his wholesale list like Acanthoscurria jurenicola “Brazilian Orange Banded”: ¼” + $10 and Pseudotheraphosa apophysis “Goliath Pink Foot”: 1” $20 that only come from a few sources. If some know distributor could say he sold t's to Gerry it would really help. No answer on that either.

Another thing, why did he cancel his meeting with my friend to come and see his t's with a money order in hand and never try to set up a new time? Only he really knows.


Gerry, If you are on the level you need to explain a few things. If you are just out to rip people off just disappear.

One more thing. I know Regals list has been changed recently but still isn't it strange how close Gerrys wholesale list is to it? It's still reallllllllllyyyyy close.
 
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MizM

Arachnoprincess
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Well, I'm going to wait until I hear from more people. These prices really ARE goo good to be tru... this is what he e-mail me today:

"I have the following t. blondi's:

<ads can not be posted or linked>

Let me know if interested in any of the above.

The are all captive bred except the 4-5"."


Why would a 6-9" be only $8 more than a 4-5"? Especially if they were captive bred and raised to that size? I'm still skeptical....:?

And his e-mail address is "GERKEN @ blahblah.com". Is he Gerry or is he Ken?:?
 

kellygirl

Arachnoprince
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That's funny that he's replying to you... he won't reply to me. If I don't hear from him within the next few days, I'll post my experience with him.

-Kelly
 

esmoot

Arachnobaron
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Messages
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Once again this guy is posting on the ATS site, petpugs.com and tarantulas.com. I'm done posting on those sites to warn people that he at least has some funny business going on. I know it's not my just to play protector for everyone. I just know what it's like to be scammed.

I think someone should let the owners of those sites what's going on or at least post a link to this thread. Since he has not posted here(now he's banned) Scott and Debbie really can't do more for this site. I don't want to see people get ripped off. If he was on the level he would reply to e-mails and post his side of the story.

I'm sure there are others on those 3 sites that have not seen this thread.

As for your other question we don't know if he is Gerry(Gerald) or Ken because he will not respond.
 
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kellygirl

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He finally responded... says he "doesn't want my business." So since that is the end of the beginning of my dealings with him, I will let you guys know what my experience is with Gerald.

I was hoping to buy several spiders from him and we spent a few weeks negotiating prices. During our negotiations, he asked me if I would be a reference for him. I replied that I'd be happy to give him a reference *after* we had completed our transaction. I gave him permission to share my email with potential customers at that point. Apparently he listed me as a reference before then, however, because I received an email from someone who was considering buying from Gerald and told me that he'd gotten my name as a reference. I thought that was a bit shady but I just told the guy that I'd let him know how things worked out but that I didn't have any prior experience with Gerald--other than our negotiating, which was going well.

Well, we finally settled on what I was going to buy and Gerald sent me a contract to sign and I was going to send a money order. Then I saw the warnings posted about him so I sent him an email letting him know that I had heard some bad reviews and that I did not feel comfortable sending money first because I had JUST been ripped off by Lambskein. I suggested one of the following solutions: (1) He could ship first and then I'd send the money for our first transaction, since I have several positive reviews and am well-known on the boards; or (2) He could provide some references from well-known online dealers or sellers. Here is the email I sent to him suggesting these options:


=======================

----- Original Message -----
From: Kelly Wakefield
Sent: Friday, February 13, 2004 9:02 PM
To: GERKEN03@msn.com
Subject: Re:

I am starting to hear bad things about you. I do not feel comfortable sending money first. I would rather you send the tarantulas and then I send you payment for them. If you want to see my reviews go here:
http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?threadid=7052

I am well known on the Arachnopets boards and many people can vouch that I am trustworthy. I have already been had by someone else recently ($500 loss) so I don't want to take any chances with this happening again. If you are not comfortable with this then I need you to get several references from well-known online dealers or sellers--they can post them in the reviews forum at Arachnopets.

Sorry, but I just can't afford such a large monetary loss....


-Kelly

=======================


He was not happy with this email (I think it may be the one that caused his rant here). I'm guessing he didn't notice the second option. Or maybe he did... I don't know. But this is the email I got in reply:

=======================
From : GERALD LAVALETTE <GERKEN03@msn.com>
Sent : Saturday, February 14, 2004 1:34 PM
To : "Kelly Wakefield" <kelly_wakefield@hotmail.com>
Subject : Re:

We will call the deal off then. Don't know what you have heard, but I don't do business that way. Thanks anyways.
=======================

Nowhere in my email did I say that I wanted to call the deal off. I just let him know what I'd heard and said that I didn't feel comfortable with what was being said... but I was willing to work something out. He was not. I emailed him several times after this trying to say that I was interested in his business and that I understood that he was not comfortable with shipping first but that I needed good (real) references--I didn't want to end up getting a reference from someone like myself who hadn't actually completed a transaction with him. He stopped being quick to answer emails as he had been before--usually within the same day. Here is an email I sent to him after I didn't hear from him for a couple of days:

=======================
----- Original Message -----
From: Kelly Wakefield
Sent: Monday, February 16, 2004 11:19 PM
To: GERKEN03@msn.com
Subject: hello?

Please respond to me. I'm still hoping to buy from you, I just want to work out a way to do it that is safe for both of us. You have such a variety of species... you must have had some contact with some of the well-known online dealers. I don't think I am out of line with my caution. Please let me know what is going on. If I don't hear from you, I will have to post my dealings with you in the Warnings forum at Arachnopets. I don't want to do
that to you if you are indeed an honest dealer.

-Kelly
=======================


And he replied with this email:


=======================
From : GERALD LAVALETTE <GERKEN03@msn.com>
Sent : Tuesday, February 17, 2004 10:21 PM
To : "Kelly Wakefield" <kelly_wakefield@hotmail.com>
Subject : Re: hello?

I sent you an e-mail a few days ago after I heard from you regarding the fact that you had reservations because of some bogus posting on Arachnboards about me. You stated you felt that I should ship you your order and then you would pay me. I wrote back that I do not do business that way. I cannot afford to send someone merchandise without having payment up front (which is the way the rest of the world operates, to my knowledge...). At that time, I told you that was not going to work for me, so let's cancel the transaction. What now is the problem, that you feel that you have to threaten my reputation and tarnish my business by posting a bad report about me. I have told you in the past that I liked our correspondence, but the last e-mail you wrote, as far as I am concerned, has ended our POTENTIAL order. If you feel that you must post a message about me, please include the fact that I have worked hard with you for over a month, trying to negotiate good prices, but that I did not feel comfortable with sending merchandise (over $600) before I received payment. I am in no way being unreasonable or unbusinesslike. This is the way I have to operate to ensure I get paid, and if you are not comfortable with that then you should seek another source. Please respond, as I feel that threatening me is way out of line. I have really tried with you, Kelly, and feel that I have been VERY fair.

Thank you.

=======================


He obviously was misreading my emails because he NEVER addressed the references I requested, as an option instead of shipping first. And he also took what I said as a threat, which it wasn't. I told him that I did NOT want to post a negative review of him if he was legitimate... here was the reply I sent to the previous email:


=======================

From : Kelly Wakefield <kelly_wakefield@hotmail.com>
Sent : Wednesday, February 18, 2004 12:23 AM
To : GERKEN03@msn.com
Subject : Re:


Perhaps you missed this part of that initial message:

" If you are not comfortable with this then I need you to get several references from well-known online dealers or sellers--they can post them in the reviews forum at Arachnopets."

Obviously I was pleased with the way things were going enough to pursue business with you despite the rumors. I just want to do so safely. The truth is, I was one of the many who got scammed by Robert Lambskein--and I am out $500 because of it. I'm sure you can see why I want to be cautious.

I don't want to tarnish your business reputation. I would much rather HELP it than hurt it. I already said I'd be happy to be a reference AFTER I have received the tarantulas. I didn't think it was quite right for you to use me as a reference before we had completed our transaction but if all goes well, I'd be happy to vouch for your honesty as a businessman.

The suggestion of sending money first was not outlandish, in my opinion, because I've heard of it being done plenty of times. And I DO have a reputation on the boards and I think it's a rather good one. It was just a thought and I don't think you should have cancelled the transaction just because you didn't think it was a good idea. I didn't DEMAND that be how we did it. I just thought it might work for the first time, under the circumstances.

Please, let's work this out. Do you know John Hoke or Kelly Swift or someone else well known in this business that could give you a reference?

-Kelly

=======================


And this is the reply I finally received today from him to that email:


=======================
From : GERALD LAVALETTE <GERKEN03@msn.com>
Sent : Wednesday, February 25, 2004 9:57 AM
To : "Kelly Wakefield" <kelly_wakefield@hotmail.com>
Subject : Re: tarantulas


I have told you, I am not interested in your business. Thanks you. Good bye.

=======================


Okay okay, I can take a hint! ;) So I gave up on that and hence, this review. Again, things were going very well until those warnings came up and then he became hostile. I don't think I was out of line, especially since I STILL don't have my money back from Lambskein. But apparently I wasn't being reasonable enough for Gerald... if he IS a legitimate dealer, than I apologize for any misconceptions or jumping to conclusions. BUT there have been several points in our dealings that seemed strange. I guess you'll have to judge for yourself. But just to review the shady stuff:

(1) Listed me as a reference *before* we'd completed the transaction.
(2) Became very harsh after I mentioned the online warnings, instead of explaining himself.
(3) Cancelled the transaction without talking about it, and based on an exaggeration of the truth/misreading my emails.
(4) Would not address the issue of references, even though I brought it up several times.
(5) Stopped swift reply to emails after I mentioned the warnings, when previously he had been very good about replying quickly.


I think I was pretty decent in my dealings with him the whole way through, even when he was being rude. I don't know. Hopefully my experience with him will help the rest of you to make an educated choice about your business with him. Maybe it was a all a misunderstanding... but maybe not?

-Kelly
 

clawingpanther

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 18, 2003
Messages
31
just to add some balance

....and trust me, I know what it's like to be ripped off, as I currently have a formal federal complaint against two dealers working with each other who took me for some ride last month....

but as I told Eric when he contacted me, yes Gerry sent me a contract, and yes, Gerry sent me the promised T (now confirmed) at the promised price (and then refunded me, via money order, the balance of my overnight shipping - I initially paid $35 and received a money order for $21).

I first contacted him after getting ripped off by the aforementioned duo, and since I was hesitant, I didn't look to putting in another big order, but just a single one at a negotiated price, to 'test the waters' - my case turned out positive (not just "ok").

this is not to say that there isn't something else going on behind the scenes (as Eric has factually detailed to some degree), or as Eric and I discussed after these postings began, that I was given the "model treatment" so that I could be used as a future reference (which is how Eric and I first touched base on the matter). however, I would like to point out, that objectively speaking, it sounds as if I am the only one who has posted here that has actually transacted with Gerry, successfully.

who knows what the "real story" may or may not turn out to be, but I think in fairness to him (esp. since he cannot post to his defense, if that be the case, anymore here), I would publicly post my + experience here.

the flipside of this posting is that one of the two dealers I got scammed by received an informal positive review from a well respected memeber of the boards (informal in that the dealer was mentioned in a regular T posting), so I DO understand that a dealer who will eagerly rip one person off, will turn around and be a 'normal' stand-up dealer the next day (and vice versa).

so this isn't meant to be a conclusive post, but since nobody who was posting about Gerry had actually been ripped off (or a satisfied customer, for that matter), I thought it right to post about a transaction that was closed with him.

knowing what it's like to be cheated, I hope that nobody here experiences any further negative T dealings, be it with Gerry, or anyone.
peace,
M
 

kellygirl

Arachnoprince
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I don't think he's banned... his title would say "banned" if he were, to my knowledge.

-Kelly
 

clawingpanther

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Joined
Dec 18, 2003
Messages
31
there was a post in another thread (same section of the boards) from CM the moderator that read "EDIT: Have been informed that your privileges have already been removed." so I figured he got the boot.

anyway, hope your future T transactions go a LOT smoother than what your RL one sounded like.

peace,
Marshall
 

MrDeranged

He Who Rules
Staff member
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Messages
2,001
Originally posted by clawingpanther
there was a post in another thread (same section of the boards) from CM the moderator that read "EDIT: Have been informed that your privileges have already been removed." so I figured he got the boot.

peace,
Marshall
Nope, didn't get the boot. In truth he shouldn't have been able to post in the first place, but due to an error in permissions, he was able to post without verifying his email. That permission issue has since been fixed and I have resent the verification email to his registered email address. Once he has verified his address with the link in that email, his posting privliges will be restored as long as he stays within the rules of the forums.

Scott
 

MizM

Arachnoprincess
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Jan 13, 2003
Messages
4,914
Just the fact alone that his prices vary by customer is a red flag to me. If he had one standard price list posted in various places, I would feel much more comfortable. He seems to be a surly fellow... if he doesn't have time to follow up with the people who he deals with, I'll stick with our trusted Arachnodealers, each of whom I trust implicitly!!

And, thanks you guys, for the information. I appreciate the honesty and the opportunity to make my own decision. You have all been fair in explaining your personal experiences with this person without slamming him, and have included all of the details. This is the whole reason for these forums, to protect and help each other.

Kell, I am SO SORRY you lost $500. It PISSES ME OFF when people take advantage of our love of Ts. I hope you prosecute and can recover your losses! And you can take comfort knowing that, having shared your experiences, that none of us will be taken by Lambskin!! ;) Thank you.

Terri
 
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PapaSmurf

Arachnodemon
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 22, 2003
Messages
757
bought T's over 6-8 months ago all came 2 were dead never got a refund on the two. it was an o.k/dissapionting deal lost the main T. always had an excuse for why he couldnt refund them, he just moved, lost his job and dosent have money, dosent have any T's let ect ect ect. i wouldnt buy from him ever again id say if you buy from him do at your own risk.---josh---
 
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