TSPN received a report from a local man regarding a scam that cost his daughter $3,300. His daughter advertised a car for sale and a man responded to the ad, asking if he could make a $3,500 deposit on the car while he got financing and had the car smog-checked. After the woman deposited the check, the man came back and said he couldn’t get financing and wanted his deposit back. He offered to pay $100 for the smog check and another $100 for the seller’s time and trouble. The woman wrote him a check for $3,300, which he immediately cashed – in the meantime, the seller’s bank called her to report that his deposit check bounced. The seller is now out her cash and police investigators are looking for the buyer, who used a fictitious name and ID for the transactions. It’s definitely a case of “seller beware” – sellers should insist on cash, money order or certified bank checks when selling vehicles to people who are strangers to you – even if they seem especially nice and trustworthy.