Commercial debt collection scam using the names Takeo Yamamoto and Kanehira Steel
Date First Reported: June 2015
Primary Name Associated: Takeo Yamamoto
Description of Potential Fraud:
An Ontario firm notified us that they received an email from the purported Takeo Yamamoto of Kanehira Steel looking to retain them with regards to a commercial debt collection.
This is a bad cheque scam that presents as legal matter requiring the assistance of a lawyer. In this scam lawyers will be duped into wiring real funds from their trust accounts after depositing a fake cheque received as payment from the purchaser (who is part of the fraud).
See our Confirmed Fraud Page for more of an explanation of how these frauds work and to see other names associated with it. Our Fraud Fact Sheet lists the red flags of a bogus legal matter that is really a fraud.
Here is the initial contact email sent by the fraudster to the lawyer:
From: Takeo Yamamoto [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: April-14-15 5:41 AM
Subject: Legal matter inquiry
Dear Attorney,
I am making an inquiry, Please do indicate if you handle commercial, contract or business related matters? And if this is not your area of practice, kindly refer me to an attorney who might be in a position to assist us with regards to the above mention areas of our needs.
Thank You
Takeo Yamamoto
Replying to the email brought this response:
Thank you for the response to my enquirer; it’s of great important to know your firms do handle such matters. Fristly ,let me quickly intimate you with matter requiring your services. Kenehira Steel Co.Ltd is a trading company and We engage in wholesale/direct retail sales of multi-service Steel and Aluminum products. The company’s head office is based in Osaka, Japan with office in the United Kingdom.
We sincerely wish to know if your firm services will be available in assisting us with a breach of contract and payment delay matter as it relate to our customer in your province. We have customers with overdue payment invoice who is yet to make full payment for the goods supplied in line with the agreement enter into. We have send out notification and remainder notice of the due payment. It is my belief that a Law firm likes yours is needed in a matter of this nature. We would want your firm to provide legal assistance in the area of our Account receivables collections as we sincerely wish to eliminate the delayed in receiving due payment for product supplied to our customers. We need your firm to issue demand notice when require or possible litigation and to bring actions in court against any customers now and in our future supplied since there is an agreement in place.
However, It will be important for me to point out that we necessarily do not have payment defaulters but we wish to being to bear that all invoice should be settle within the stipulated due date as litigation may be introduced as a last resort. Our expectation upon engaging your firm services will be within the scenario of payment remainder notice to any of our purchasers who are reluctant to settle their invoices as at when due. We believe this will trigger a positive response from them towards settling their outstanding invoices in a timely manner. Presently the overdue invoice amount to $891,939.66 only
We might be requiring your services on a long term contracts basis in view of our continuous trading with Canadian customers. However, you may wish to notify us of the requirement as to engaging your services. The documentation for any customer’s transaction and invoices will be provided at your request.
We have suffered so much loss as a result of payment which is being delayed by some of our customers and this has inversely affected our operations. Let us know the best way to have this issue tackled. Furthermore, we have concerns as we have always had a cordial and successful business relationship with our customers and we sincerely wish to maintain this relationship. And so,we do requires a cost-effective solutions utilizing a range of alternative dispute resolution if possible without having to resolve to litigation. But if ever litigation is involved, the distance gives us some concern with regards to court appearances. How can this and our receivables be handled by your firm? Do you charge on hourly basis or on a contingency fees basis? What are our responsibilities, what should we expect from you? Please advice on the best way possible as we will comply. A quick response will be appreciated.
Thanks
Takeo Yamamoto
President
KANEHIRA STEEL CO., LTD
TEL. +81-6-4560-4495
http://www.kanehira-steel.co.jp/
How to handle a real or suspected fraud
If you have been targeted by any of these frauds, please forward any of the emails and supporting documents that you have received to [email protected].
If you suspect you are acting on a matter that might be a fraud, call LAWPRO at 1-800-410-1013 (416-598-5899). We will talk you through the common fraud scenarios we are seeing and help you spot red flags that may indicate you are being duped. This will help you ask appropriate questions of your client to determine if the matter is legitimate or not. If the matter you are acting on turns out to be a fraud and there is a potential claim, we will work with you to prevent the fraud and minimize potential claims costs.
If you have been successfully duped, please immediately notify LAWPRO as there may be a claim against you.
For more immediate updates on fraud and claims prevention, subscribe to the email or RSS feed updates from LAWPRO’s AvoidAClaim blog.
Fraud Fact SheetMore fraud prevention information and resources are available on the practicePRO Fraud page, including the Fraud Fact Sheet, a handy reference for lawyers and law firm staff that describes the common frauds and the red flags that can help identify them.
July 14, 2017 at 1:28 pm, Maury said:
Being duped by a Toyoda Medical Co Ltd as we speak. Yoshi Yamamoto is the name of rep being used
July 20, 2017 at 11:12 am, Bob Beal said:
hi ive just received a MOU memorandum of understanding from Toray Global for acting as a collection agent on their behalf,sounded fair, went to website,it looked legit, i had indicated interest however when reading the terms of the contract(MOU) i see that i am paid directly by the creditors of this company and then asked to remit the balance less 5% commission, this is a great scam, so they give you a cheque or bank draft,get you to send your money to them and then find out that the draft is false or forged or othewise non-existent, great scam, ive sent this guy mr. shogo masuda of toray my name address and contact phone numbers, hope this doesnt come back to haunt me,glad i read this stuff on your site, the offer sounded good,too good, but the collection from debtors in your own personal name? duh how stupid
July 30, 2017 at 9:22 pm, Omar said:
Hi,
I’ve recently received a position as a part time representative for a company called Harumi steel; a steel company based in Hong Kong. Their website and email address are listed below. It is a fraud?
http://www.harumisteels.com/
[email protected]
August 07, 2017 at 11:41 pm, Tony said:
Hi,
Harumi Steel is definitely a scam. I received the same email not too long ago.
August 08, 2017 at 8:36 am, tony said:
Harumi Steels is definitely a fraud, they stop answering my emails as soon as I started asking too many questions. Their website has only been up for 30 days and they’ve been operating since 1993, lots of red flags.
[email protected]
August 22, 2017 at 2:17 pm, Al said:
Thanks for information…got email trying to get me to collect bad debts for their company…glad I checked you guys first. So sad since many senior citizens, like myself, are struggling to make ends meet.
August 22, 2017 at 3:12 pm, Ajay Singh said:
Initially, I was contacted by a local (American) seeming recruiter. The e-mails to recruiters have started bouncing back. Their so called customers in Canada have a website but none of the people or company on this website are on Linked In. Definitely smells like a fraud. I believe the fraud is of the type: They will send you a huge check, then tell you to keep 5% and send them (Harumi Steel) the other 95%. Original check would be fraudulent.
August 24, 2017 at 1:16 am, Robby said:
I have the same story with Harumi Steel Co. Ironically the scam is so well done that one may easily fall into it. They provided me with a phone number of what supposed to be one of their customer and it was exactly the same number in the customer website, and when I called the phone number they provided me with I got a guy who appeared as part of the scam who insisted that I send him an email, but when I clicked on the email link sent to me it took me to a Russian website. I am glad that I visited this website to expose this scam
September 03, 2017 at 4:32 pm, L Mackey M said:
Dear ————-
Prior to your Approval as Toyoda Medical Co. Ltd representative in-charge of its delinquent account collections/receivables in USA & Canada. Below is the details of your first delinquent account collection on behalf of Toyoda Medical Co. Ltd.
TMCL First Official Assignment:
You are to contact this customer/client (Cedarton Investment) as your first delinquent account collections on behalf of Toyoda Medical Co. Ltd, Be inform that Cedarton Investment is one of our numerous Customers/Clients that owes our company, although the management Toyoda Medical Co. Ltd has already spoken to Baker Cedarton (CEO of Cedarton Investment) regarding your employment as our company representative in-charge of delinquent account collections in USA & Canada and also we have sent him your contact details, informing him to remit all payment they owe Toyoda Medical Co. Ltd, to you as Toyoda Medical Co. Ltd representative, who is in-charge of our delinquent account collections. You are to contact this delinquent customer/client immediately you receive this message.
Details Of Delinquent Customer/Client are below:
Baker Cedarton (CEO)
Cedarton Investment
Tel: 1-306-501-7084
Email: [email protected]
Be inform that this delinquent customer/client owes our company the sum of $430,300.00 (Four Hundred And Thirty Thousand, Three Hundred Dollars). So therefore you are to contact this delinquent customer/client via phone and E-mail communication to discuss on how and when their company (Cedarton Investment) intend to remit payment to you, as Toyoda Medical Co. Ltd representative. Although Baker Cedarton told our company management that they were ready to remit payment installmentally as soon as you establish contact with their company. Also you are to update me on every discussion and contact you establish with this delinquent customer/client.
Note: Attached to this email is the scan copy of the Toyoda Medical Co. Ltd Purchase Agreement and the Purchase Invoice that was use in transacting business between Toyoda Medical Co. Ltd and Cedarton Investment.
I await your swift response to this email.
Regards,
Yoshi Yamamoto
Toyoda Medical Co. Ltd
September 12, 2017 at 5:06 pm, Mickey said:
Likewise we were targeted by an entity called Tamagawa-Seiki of Japan and Windsor mold in the US. This article helped us identify the fraudsters
If it seems too good to be true, it always is
September 25, 2017 at 3:50 pm, Paul said:
The Management of Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd, thank you for your accepting to work with our company, as its representative in your region. Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd, is based in Tokyo, Japan. We engages in manufacturing of different Medical Equipments that are used in Medical Hospitals, Veterinary Clinic and Industries. We have been providing services and trades to global Companies, Industries and Individuals in Asia, Canada and USA.
Due to the high purchase of our products in Canada & USA, we want to establish our branch offices in some part of Canada & USA. Until these offices are established, we need a reliable company/individual (irrespective of their business class or type) that can stand as an intermediary between our customers/clients in Canada & USA and our Company (Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd). Hence we wish to contract you or your company as our “intermediary representative” in your region.
Such person/companies should be able to handle the below responsibilities on behalf of Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd, in USA & Canada as our Delinquent Account Receivable Agent/Representative:
1. You shall Work together with Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd, to seamlessly reach our company goals of retrieving all debt owe by its Delinquent customers/clients In USA & Canada as instructed.
2. You shall maintain effective communications with the Management of Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd and its delinquent customers/clients in USA & Canada.
3. You shall be in-charge of collecting all overdue Debt owes to Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd by its customers/clients in USA & Canada.
4. You shall maintain proper records of transactions with Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd Management.
Compensation: You shall earn a monthly Salary of $4,200 USD plus 5% commission on every Delinquents Account you receive on behalf of Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd. Also if we are satisfy with your services within the first two months (60 days) we shall increase your monthly allowance by 15%.
Please get back to us if you are interested in working for Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd, so that we can send you our Memorandum of Understanding/Agreement Document and other forms for you to fill. Please confirm to us that you are ready to work as our company representative in good faith, without any illegal act of any kind.
Regards,
Okamoto Yoshiya
Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd
October 13, 2017 at 5:21 pm, Okimoto medical scammer beware :) said:
Thanks to this page – I was able to see the scam like https://avoidaclaim.com/2015/commercial-debt-collection-scam-using-the-names-takeo-yamamoto-and-kanehira-steel/comment-page-3/#comment-591611 from [email protected] or [email protected] – Ted Reyes (Managing Director) & James Adam (Senior recruiter) for Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd. — watch out for the scam.
October 24, 2017 at 7:31 am, W Anderson said:
I have been contacted through LinkedIn by a Senior Recruiter at Toto, Amy Fisher, offering a link to a firm Takeshigroup. Same situation, be their North American rep, collect their debt, debtors will pay by check. I keep $6000 US plus 6.25% commission. Asked for my name, Address, phone, email address. To prepare a contract. I am awaiting reply but now confirm what I at first suspected, that this is a scam.
November 03, 2017 at 8:43 am, Kmeyer said:
I received this a few days ago from Linkedin, the person that sent it to me is Margie Yansura, which says she’s part of Linkedin, I seen the profile the day of the email, and inquired, but is now none existed. See below for more information on what they are trying to draw you in on. Like why would they offer one person a chance to collect on their behalf over 8Mil? There are collection agencies that do this for no additional fee just a percentage of the debt. So if you get these type of emails really dig into who it’s from and do some research.
Takeshigroup, is a global automotive parts supplier with a focus on wire harnesses, instruments and components such as connectors and terminals. Our company’s product lineup includes electrical cables, meter and auto instruments, gas equipment, air-conditioning, and solar-powered systems and we are well known for providing high quality Optical Cables, Fibers, Splicers and connectivity solutions to the telecom market.
We seek the services of a competent individual or business establishment to act as our regional offshore liaison officer in North America. The need for regional business manager became necessary as we are experiencing delay in processing payment from some of our customers in your region due to differences in banking laws and procedure also we do have some vendors in North America. through the B2B marketing communities who we have supplied goods but they are yet to remit the complete amount in the sales invoices of goods we supplied them. The current debt owned to us by vendors in North America are over $8,907,414.30 which we are currently trying to recover these outstanding debts from our independent vendors in your region.
As professionally advised, customers especially debtors respond to debt owned when means of remittance is available within the confine of their region. So we need a competent individual or a business establishment who will stand as intermediary between Takeshigroup japan and customers in your region, to help manage our company’s presence and these payments. As our account representative, Your presence hence, will be seen as our company’s presence in your region. Your duties will include:
Follow up on current debtors to clear up their debts
The representative will be a direct link with all customers in the region
Make contact via phone calls/email with our customer
Receive payments from our customers on behalf of our company
Receive and process payment from our customers who will choose to make payment by check for outstanding and future invoices.
Maintain transaction records efficiently.
Keep us updated in at most 72 hours of any recent happenings
The remuneration set aside by our company’s management for this position is a monthly salary of US$ 5,000 and a 6.5% service commission which will be deducted by the representative on every payments you received from customers in North America.
No capital or investment is needed to start this position and also, these job opportunity will not disengage you from your current job. Should there be need to travel to meet with a customer, traveling and hotel expenses will be paid for by us before the trip.
If you are interested to continue with this opportunity, kindly provide us with the following details
Full Names:
Full Contact/Postal Address:
Company Name if Any:
Telephone Number:
Contact Email:
to enable us carry out our due diligence and also to prepare an agreement for your perusal and signing which will make you our representative in North America region after signing.
We await your acknowledgement of this email and your response.
Regards,
Yuigo Iitsuka,
Takeshigroup.
460-0003: Nishiki, Nagoya-shi, Naka-ku, Aichi, Japan.
Phone: +81 682-494-263,
November 06, 2017 at 6:54 pm, Abue said:
I just received the same exact email from takeshigroup-jp, i checked the date the website was created and it points to september 27 2017…. even though a google search will tell you that other parts of the site were available since 2010.
November 17, 2017 at 11:25 am, Shane said:
Today it’s the Yamaguchi Metal/Steel Co. Ltd. Pretty well the same text as that used by Okimoto Medical Co. Ltd (above, Sept 25). Thanks everyone for sharing!
Dear _________________,
The Management of Yamaguchi Steel Co.,Ltd thank you for your accepting to work with our company as its representative in your region. Yamaguchi Steel Co.,Ltd is the world’s leading steel company specialized in supplying of all kinds of steel and metallic products. Our headquarter is situated in 6-22-19, Higashi-Naebo 1-jou, Higashi-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido 007-0801, Japan and the branch companies are located in Shanghai, China and India With the competency to integrate resources both from outside and inside of the Group, Yamaguchi Steel Co.,Ltd can supply global clients with diverse steel products, such as stainless steel, alloy steel, galvanized steel, pre-painted steel, carbon steel and aluminum in sheet, plate, coil, strip, welded and seamless pipe/tube, bar, wire rod, copper, brass and so on. We have been providing services to Companies, Industries and Factories in South Asia, East Asia, Canada and USA.
Due to the high purchase of our products in Canada & USA, we want to establish our branch offices in some part of Canada & USA. Until these offices are established, we need a reliable company/individual (irrespective of their business class or type) that can stand as an intermediary between our customers/clients in Canada & USA and our Company (Yamaguchi Steel Co.,Ltd). Hence we wish to contract you or your company as our “intermediary representative” in your region.
Such Individual/Company should be able to handle the below responsibilities on behalf of Yamaguchi Steel Co.,Ltd in USA & Canada as our Delinquent Account Receivable Agent/Representative:
(i) You shall be in-charge of collecting all overdue Debt owes to Yamaguchi Steel Co.,Ltd by its customers/clients in USA & Canada.
(ii) You shall maintain effective communications with the Yamaguchi Steel Co.,Ltd and its delinquent customers/clients in USA & Canada.
(iii) You shall Work together with the Management of Yamaguchi Steel Co.,Ltd to seamlessly reach our company’s goal of retrieving all debt owe by its delinquent customers/clients in USA & Canada.
(iv) You shall maintain proper records of transactions with the Management of Yamaguchi Steel Co.,Ltd.
Compensations:
You shall be entitle to a monthly Salary of $5,000 USD plus 5% commission on every Account/Payment you receive on behalf of Yamaguchi Steel Co.,Ltd from its customers/clients. Also if we are satisfy with your services towards our company within 60 days (2 Months) of your employment, we shall increase your monthly allowance by 10%.
Please get back to us if you are interested in working for Yamaguchi Steel Co.,Ltd, so that we can send you our Memorandum of Understanding/Agreement Document and other forms for you to fill. Please confirm to us that you are ready to work as our company representative in good faith, without any illegal act of any kind. Find the below link attached for more details or reference to our company website.
Regards,
Shinzo Abe
Yamaguchi Steel Co.,Ltd.
November 24, 2017 at 9:18 am, James Green said:
I just got this from “Kirk T.” who appears to be new to LinkedIn and claims to be a recruiter:
Hello James,
Thank you for your response.
Takeshigroup develops, manufactures and market reliable, high-quality products and service to create long-term value and potential growth for their customers. They provide innovative electrical wires, non-ferrous metals, electronics and automotive products, etc.
Takeshigroup are in search of a goal oriented and competent individual, company or firm in North America to act as a Credit and Collections Facilitator/Representative to help recover and handle funds from customers in the North America(U.S & Canada) region.
You should contact the company directly via email [email protected] should you be interested in a position with the company.
December 04, 2017 at 11:54 pm, Franklin Horwich said:
I received one from Veronica N., Senior Recruiter at Alliance Consultancy
https://www.linkedin.com/in/veronica-n-061b1b79/
Same scam
Today
Let’s Connect!
Dear Frank,
I’d like to use this network introduce a partnership opportunity with you as Takeshigroup’s representative in North America(U.S & Canada).
After going through your profile, I thought that perhaps you might be interested in this partnership opportunity.
Just in case you would like to know about the company and the roles associated with the position send a mail of interest to the HR via [email protected]
Veronica Nielsen
Senior Recruiter at Alliance Consultancy
Hello Franklin Horwich,
You are receiving this email because you have requested for more information on an inquiry previously sent to you for a business partnership and job position in North America from our company. Note that no form of start-up investment is required for this position.
Takeshigroup, is a global automotive parts supplier with a focus on wire harnesses, instruments and components such as connectors and terminals. Our company’s product lineup includes electrical cables, meter and auto instruments, gas equipment, air-conditioning, and solar-powered systems and we are well known for providing high quality Optical Cables, Fibers, Splicers and connectivity solutions to the telecom market.
We seek the services of a competent individual or business establishment to act as our regional offshore liaison officer in North America. The need for regional business manager became necessary as we are experiencing delay in processing payment from some of our customers in your region due to differences in banking laws and procedure also we do have some vendors in North America. through the B2B marketing communities who we have supplied goods but they are yet to remit the complete amount in the sales invoices of goods we supplied them. The current debt owned to us by vendors in North America are over $8,907,414.30 which we are currently trying to recover these outstanding debts from our independent vendors in your region.
As professionally advised, customers especially debtors respond to debt owned when means of remittance is available within the confine of their region. So we need a competent individual or a business establishment who will stand as intermediary between Takeshigroup japan and customers in your region, to help manage our company’s presence and these payments. As our account representative, Your presence hence, will be seen as our company’s presence in your region. Your duties will include:
Follow up on current debtors to clear up their debts
The representative will be a direct link with all customers in the region
Make contact via phone calls/email with our customer
Receive payments from our customers on behalf of our company
Receive and process payment from our customers who will choose to make payment by check for outstanding and future invoices.
Maintain transaction records efficiently.
Keep us updated in at most 72 hours of any recent happenings
The remuneration set aside by our company’s management for this position is a monthly salary of US$ 5,000 and a 6.5% service commission which will be deducted by the representative on every payments you received from customers in North America.
No capital or investment is needed to start this position and also, these job opportunity will not disengage you from your current job. Should there be need to travel to meet with a customer, traveling and hotel expenses will be paid for by us before the trip.
If you are interested to continue with this opportunity, kindly provide us with the following details and specify unit, apartment number and P.O Box where necessary.
Full Names:
Full Contact/Postal Address:
Company Name if Any:
Telephone Number:
Contact Email:
to enable us carry out our due diligence and also to prepare an agreement for your perusal and signing which will make you our representative in North America region after signing.
We await your acknowledgement of this email and your response.
Regards,
Yuigo Iitsuka,
Takeshigroup.
460-0003: Nishiki, Nagoya-shi, Naka-ku, Aichi, Japan.
Phone: +81 682-494-263,
December 13, 2017 at 12:06 pm, Tom Reed said:
Hi,
I’ve recently received an e-mail offering me a position as a part time representative for a company called Mizunami Group, Inc; a company based in Tokyo, Japan. They want me to collect past due monies from various companies within the USA and Canada.
THE FOLLOWING IS THEIR E-MAIL OF ACCEPTANCE TO ME:
Hello Tom Reed,
Prior to the brief meeting that was held by the management of our company, regarding your employment as our company representative in Usa in-charge of handling all our company’s delinquent accounts collections as directed. Be informed that Mizunami Group, Inc. has formally approved you as our company representative/agent in Usa Region and you have been given the sole rights to assist our company in retrieving all overdue Delinquents Account from our offshore customers/clients and also every affairs of Mizunami Group, Inc. in Usa.Thank you for picking the interest to work with our company and also we hope that we have a mutual relationship during your assistance to Mizunami Group, Inc. You are advice to notify us that you receive this email, so that we can brief you with our next update regarding your first delinquent account collection on behalf of our company. I await your swift response.
Regards,
Sansuki Mizunami
Human Resource Dept.
Mizunami Group.,Inc.(MGI)
Their website and email address are listed below.
I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IF THIS IS A FRAUD?
Address: 39-31, Toranomon 6-chome,
Minato-ku,
Tokyo 105-8451,
JAPAN
Tel: +81 345 798 377
Email: [email protected]
http://www.harumisteels.com/
[email protected]
Thank you,
Tom Reed
December 21, 2017 at 2:13 pm, JB said:
I received the same email. (Mizunami). It is a fraud. Google map the address, and it will show that it does not exist. In addition, the CEO is also pictured on another similar scammed website.
December 22, 2017 at 10:36 am, G. Dean said:
Mizunmai Group is definitely a scam. It does not exist in Tokyo at the address listed on the Web site. They will send you a huge check and tell you to deposit it in your personal account and then steal your information.
December 24, 2017 at 6:19 pm, John steph.... said:
Hey Everyone,
Any recruiters looking for accounts receivable agents for Asian corporations is a dead give away…. all Asian or European corporations selling product to North American corporations/individuals, etc. always get paid before shipment or at time of delivery to shipping port (all deliveries are done by sea). No foreign company would be in need of a North American accounts receivable agent! No money is collected after sale!
February 04, 2018 at 1:01 pm, Mark said:
This was sent on linked In…
When I checked out the sender- zero contacts and employment history.
Dear XXX,
I’d like to use this network to introduce a partnership opportunity with you as Takeshigroup’s representative in North America(U.S & Canada).
After going through your profile, I thought that perhaps you might be interested in this partnership opportunity.
Just in case you would like to know about the company and the roles associated with the position send a mail of interest to the HR via [email protected]
William Reynes
—
February 08, 2018 at 9:58 am, Mike Rudy said:
I recently received the same Accounts Receivable rep request from Japan Steel Works. ldt..
Beware
February 12, 2018 at 10:09 am, rudy metcalf said:
here is what i got, it started from linkedin.. a Martinez thomas Thanks for your response. In regards to our previous email we here by write to acquaint you with the company profile and also to let you know the responsibility we expect you to discharge on behalf of the company.
ABOUT THE COMPANY
Hengyang Valin Steel Tube Co. Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as HYST) is a subsidiary of Hunan Valin Iron & Steel Group Co., Ltd. founded in 1958, is one of the seamless steel tube & pipe enterprises with the most entire rolling mills, advanced equipment and complete product specifications whose production scale has been tanked the globe fifth by “Metal Bulletin” US. Its export volume has continuously kept the leading position in China seamless tube & pipe industry for dozen years.
REPRESENTATIVE OPPORTUNITY:
With our vast distribution network, we are able to source and deliver products all over the world. Due to the challenges in processing payments here in China from our customers in USA/Canada, we are soliciting reliable companies and firm or individuals to partner with us and help us receive and process payments from our USA/Canada customer base. Owing to the fact that we don’t have a branch of our company in your region, we cannot operate a foreign account and as such we need individuals or company to act as our representative.
COMMISSION AND COMPENSATION:
Compensation: The company/firm or individual is entitled to 10% commission of each completed transaction plus a $6,700 monthly retainer fee. Business and communications shall be mostly conducted online and on phone and hence will not affect your current job.
Kindly get back to us with these details (name, address, phone number and occupation) if you are interested in working with our company.
Sincerely,
Chen Hanchu
Director
HYST group Int’l Trading Inc
Hengyang. Hunan. China
Direct Number: +81345807582
www.hysteeltube.com
March 16, 2018 at 10:14 am, Julie said:
So grateful for this site! Here is the first email I received:
I got your info on LinkedIn, I’m contacting you so i can relate a proposal with you for a part time job offer with ENERGY SUPPORT CORP as a company representative
Regards,
Akio Hayato
Human Resource Dept.
Energy Support Corporation.
www.energys.co.jp/english/
When I asked for more info I got the same emails u all received about collections.
Scam scam scam
March 22, 2018 at 10:59 pm, Gerry said:
I recieved a similar offer from [email protected]. First red flag, why would a company executive use gmail?
He said he is with Kyushu Electric Power. Second red flag, they don’t sell power in Canada. Offered $5000 a month to be a debt collector. LoL
April 30, 2018 at 10:49 pm, Chandler Herreman said:
What about Gradco Japan? I got a check from them today and need to know how to proceed. The check looks real. Thanks!
July 04, 2018 at 9:58 pm, Anonymous said:
Here is what i just received:
Brian Wilson
Representative Opportunity
Greetings ,
You seem to have a very nice background here on Linkedln.
Let me introduce you to a partnership opportunity with Takeshi group as it’s company representative in North America (U.S & Canada). Takeshi group is a Japanese based company seeking a representative. Meanwhile I’m a recruiter. So just in case you would like to know more about this job description, roles and benefits do write the HR directly via [email protected] and you can check their website www.takeshigroup-jp.com
Brian Wilson
Senior HR
Managing Director at LifeCell, An Acelity Company
sent the following message at 1:06 PM
1:06 PM
Brian, thanks for reaching out. I’d love to hear more about this.
Brian Wilson sent the following message at 9:49 PM
View Brian ’s profile Brian Wilson
Brian Wilson
9:49 PM
Hello
This is a Japanese based company and a global leader in providing innovative electric wires and non-ferrous metals, new materials and automotive products etc.
takeshigroup are in search of a goal oriented and competent individual, company or firm in North America to act as a Credit and Collections Facilitator/Representative to help recover and handle funds from customers in the North America(U.S & Canada) region.
If interested kindly contact the HR via email [email protected]
July 20, 2018 at 4:06 pm, Vincent Meyer said:
Here is a new one Account Department (Keiretsu Electric)
September 19, 2018 at 8:00 pm, Kevin said:
I just received an offer from Tajima Steel Co. which is a scam. Same info, 7%commission plus $5,000 per month. Be aware.
September 23, 2018 at 5:10 pm, Anonymous said:
Thanks everyone. Here’s another ‘recruiter’ Bill Phillip:
Greetings (My name), Hope all is well. I came across your profile and was very impressed with your background and it was so solid I was wondering if you might be open to a job opportunity with Takeshigroup as a company representative in North America (U.S & Canada), Japan have a lucrative partnership opportunity for you in North American region. Kindly contact the HR department directly via Email ( [email protected] ) Meanwhile I’m a recruiter.
October 16, 2018 at 3:12 pm, Robert Howard said:
Here’s a new one I got today:
Dear Robert Howard,
I am sending this to verify the payment meant for TAJIMA STEEL CO., LTD as I have been instructed that the payment be made out to you (Company).
We are making modalities to issue out the payment in the next couple of days, however in other for us to do that we will need the following information.
Please fill out the information below.
Name to be on the Cheque:…………………………………………………..
Physical address to send the cheque: ………………………………………….
Cell:………………………….
What is the highest cheque amount you’ve deposited $………………………..
Name of the bank that you intend to deposit the check in……………………….
This information will allow me to process the payment and I will let you know once I send out the cheque.
Your Sincerely,
Scott Viktor Stegen
November 21, 2018 at 8:42 am, Kidsan Barnes said:
New one company misrepresents Galileo inc who is a staffing firm. Very similar email address to the true company but true company has an employee on LinkedIn who wasnt aware buy acted quickly to make it clear it was not them. Same process. North America rep, 6 percent of payment with salary. First check received but not deposited, all companies mentioned so far exist. So its very hard to identify the scam….
December 24, 2018 at 3:03 pm, Robert said:
Is anyone aware of “Genki Steel”?
Their pitch to me sounds like the hysteeltube.com above.
The Genki website looks legit and the rep who contacted me has an @genkisteel.com email address.
January 27, 2019 at 11:02 am, Faisal K Lodhi said:
I receive this message via Likedin , please confirm is it real or a scam
January 31, 2019 at 7:37 pm, Scott Hilchey said:
Doh! They got me! Same scenario. Contacted by a recruiter from Linked-in… etc., etc., all above remains true thus, I will share the latest variation as of today. Sent NA Representative agreement. Asked for no personal info – just business name, address, phone and email info. Agreement was signed and stamped “Takeshi Group Japan” by Takurou Makino. They quickly “approved” me as their agent asking for a signature which lamely, I provided and returned document. They provide an email – [email protected]. This is happening in real-time now; email exchange was yesterday, 01/30/2019. Glad to share a copy of this “agreement” with any other potential NA “candidates”. May play this out to see where it goes to better document for others.
February 01, 2019 at 7:12 pm, Josif Jurtsuk said:
I received this today. They contacted me with a job offer via Linkedin. New company name but similar scam. Beware!
How are you today, I have received an email from the company recruitment consultant regarding you and the representative position with the company. Prior to more details on the representative position with the company, Hideyoshi Machinery Limited is one of the largest construction machine manufacturers in Japan dealing in sales of Lifting equipment’s, Construction machinery, Power and Industrial plants in the region. Our growing reputation of excellence is due to scientific management and coordinated efforts of all the employees. Hideyoshi’s products are divided into four major categories: Loaders, Excavators, Forklifts and Road machinery, totally 500+ models. Since1993, Hideyoshi has been intensively operating on international and have become the global leader in terms of both quality and sales. Our products are also exported and we enjoy a high assessment by overseas users and with high demand of our products globally, Hideyoshi Machinery Limited is currently setting up a wide range of domestic and overseas production and sales platform, to build a sound global sales network, partners around the world. We look forward to establishing representative offices in Canada and United States. Until the offices are established, we need a reliable company or individual (irrespective of the business type) that will stand as an intermediary between our customers in your region and Hideyoshi Machinery Limited, Hence we wish to contract your enterprise as our “representative” in your area.
We already have existing customers from this region that have not met with the company payment schedule of 30 days after receipt of products delivered in good condition. Based on our research and past experience, we have discovered that having a representative in the same region with our customers makes it easier for them to comply and pay in due time. This is why we require a Representative in either Canada or United States who can easily communicate with our customers via email and telephone means only.
DETAILS OF FUNCTION: Maintain effective communications with managements of Hideyoshi Machinery Limited and Customers. Establishes, develops and maintains business relationships with current customers and prospective customers in your region and Maintain proper records of transactions.
QUALIFICATIONS: Must possess excellent verbal and written communication skills. Must be results-orientated and must be willing to work as required. Also note that you are entitled to 5% of every payment transaction processed through you from the company customers on behalf of the company and this is a representative position you can attend to after normal business hours as it requires only few minutes of your time each day.
COMPENSATIONS: As compensation for this service, you will be entitled to 5% commission of every completed transaction (i.e. 5% of every payment received, processed and remitted less your commission), plus $5,000 monthly allowance to cover out-of- Pocket expenses such as telephone bill, fax, etc.
If interested in this position, Kindly forward your resume for our review, also please provide us your cell phone number as we would like to give you a call.
We look forward to your reply,
Regards,
Mr. Haruki Atsuto
Representative Director
—
1-3-7 Shintomi,
Chuo-ku,
Tokyo 104-0041, Japan.
www.hideyoshimachinery.com
February 12, 2019 at 10:49 am, Michael said:
Looks like the same scam.
Their ICANN record shows
Domain name: takeshigroup-jp.com
Registry Domain ID: 2167145704_DOMAIN_COM-VRSN
Registrar WHOIS Server: whois.namecheap.com
Registrar URL: http://www.namecheap.com
Updated Date: 2018-09-28T21:39:29.90Z
Creation Date: 2017-09-25T16:19:25.00Z
Registrar Registration Expiration Date: 2019-09-25T16:19:25.00Z
————————
We write to acknowledge the receipt of your email and it’s content.
Takeshi Group is a manufacturing and trading company in Japan, as a trading company we specialized in non-ferrous metals. Our fields of business are domestic sale and Import/Export of nonferrous metals, Iron and steel, Machinery, Miscellaneous goods, Chemicals, Electronic components, Computer software, etc.,
Takeshi had two job openings, one is the job of a Sales representative and the other is that of credit collection/facilitator. But the sales representative position has been filled out, as the company now only has the position of a collection/facilitator representative available.
Your duties as our collection/facilitator representative, listed below:
Contact customers assigned to you and update the customer(s) with their accounts record.
Follow up on current debtors to clear up their debts.
Receive payments from our customers if they decide to make orders via representative.
Make contact via phone calls/email with our customer.
Keep us updated in at most 48 hours of any recent happenings
Maintain transaction records efficiently.
Please let us know if this opening is suitable for you, as it’s the job available at this time.
Note: No capital or investment is needed to start this position and also, these job opportunity will not disengage you from your current job.
The representative will be on monthly salary and on service commission to cover for certain cost as telephone calls and intra-city movement if the need arise. The monthly salary will be paid on a 30 days period and it amounts to Five Thousand USD ($5,000) paid via Wire Transfer or a preferred method by the representative. And a 6% service commission which will be deducted by the representative for every transaction completed.
If you would want to proceed with this partnership, do provide your basic contact information for review and due diligence by the company’s directorate and also to prepare an agreement for your perusal and signing which will make you our representative in North America region.
Full name:
Complete Home/Office address for mailing:
Phone number:
Email Address:
Company name if you have any:
Do note that no form of start-up investment is required for this job and the partnership will not interfere with your other employment or business commitment.
We await your acknowledgement of this email and your response.
Regards,
Matsusaki Michiaki,
Takeshigroup.
1-1,1-chome, Shinsuna, Koto-ku, Tokyo 136-0075, Japan
Tel: +81-3-3454-4002
Fax: +81-3-4440-5002.
www.takeshigroup-jp.com
February 13, 2019 at 11:26 am, Robert S. said:
Michael…thank you for the reply.
It absolutely is the same scam.
February 27, 2019 at 1:06 pm, ROBERT BRUCE SWEETING said:
I RECEIVED THE SAME GAME FROM TAJIMA STEEL RECENTLY. THEY WANT ME TO SEND THE PROCEEDS, EVEN BEFORE THE CHECK HOLD HAS BEEN RELEASED. THIS HAPPENED TO ME BEFORE WITH A DIFFERENT BOGUS COMPANY. . I SENT THE PROCEEDS TO THEIR WIRE INSTRUCTIONS, ($100,000) THEIR CHECK CAME BACK TWO MONTHS LATER! AGAINST ME! WELLS DEMANDED REIMBURSEMENT! THE MONEY WENT TO NIGERIA! THE WIRE COULD NOT BE RECALLED!
March 20, 2019 at 8:53 am, Terry Fitzpatrick said:
I received this morning one from Tajima Steels offer a version of the same scam so it looks like they are now targeting the UK. These ones are far more literate that the African ones and more persistent.
April 13, 2019 at 12:24 pm, Ted said:
I received one from Sachiko Machinery. Company didn’t have a website until 210 days ago and no major online presence. The scam has evolved to use business people to perform operations and debt collection. I imagine the mechanics are much the same – deposit the check, write check to company, initial check turns out to be bogus. Names associated with this are Masaru Tomiko and Carney Weinrich. Tellingly, neither has an online presence.
April 22, 2019 at 7:35 pm, Bob said:
If so-in re” Tajima” above I too have been targeted-I did not reply when personal info was requested-they have not written since-but only 2 weeks to date.
June 24, 2019 at 10:53 pm, Ric said:
They’re going by Mieko Corp. now. Once you visit the company’s website, you noticed several misspellings (Mieko Cop. instead of Mieko Corp), and even if you visit the recruiter’s profile on LinkedIn you get some read flags (Customer Service Rep for Agos for the last 3 years)- instead of an actual recruiter….had me duped for a second, but really smelly too fishy.
November 13, 2019 at 10:14 am, Ann Upton said:
I received emails from Onkyo Corporation. Same crap – remit 95%, keep 5%, monthly allowance $2000 plus 5% commission. They even sent me a Memorandum of Understanding to sign. I’m tempted to mess with them!
Has anyone heard from this company Onkyo??
November 16, 2019 at 3:21 am, Mathieu said:
Hi, I just got an email, that looked suspicious to me, so I checked for scams. It’s saying the following:
Contract Opportunity
Salary-$5,000 monthly
Commission-7%
Role- Account Receivable and Payable Agents
Our company K.M Steel & Aluminum Corporation, required the support of individuals/company like you with the aim to develop as our intermediary costumers contact point in the north American region. We are searching for a number of Account Receivable and Payable Agents in Canada And USA. This is a work from home or office (Computer based) job opportunity. You will be entitle to 7% commission and Monthly salary of $5,000 Monthly. Job description is simple. This will not affect your present occupation. Email at ( [email protected] ) for more details. Your acknowledgement of my message would be appreciated
Thanks
President/CEO
Kazuhiko Masayoshi
K.M Steel & Aluminum Corporation
Tel : +81345308963
Email : [email protected]
Website : www.kmsacj.com
January 08, 2020 at 6:16 pm, DEE said:
I received the same thing, but from a company called “ChiDel Electrics”. Very basic website showing the name of the HR manager who contacted me. $5,000/month plus 5% just as others. My first letter – before receiving a $5K payment, was verbatim the same as what L Mackey M posted from 2017. The “customer” name is odd and while there is a basic website without any detail on location of that company, the phone number they included for contacting the “customer” is registered as a cell phone based in Ontario. I wrote back some odd aspects of their invoice along with an inquiry about the $5K monthly salary. The “customer” invoice is for just under $1M. We’ll see if I hear back from them about that $5K first.
April 30, 2020 at 3:11 pm, Bob B said:
Same scam. Nakayama Steel Works Ltd. out of Japan. Something didn’t quite sit right with me when I received the communication and the subsequent “approval” for this alleged representative position. No contract. No details. None of he standard practices when doing contract work (which I’ve been doing for 15+ years). Glad I checked on here when my gut told me to research further. Good luck with these scammers! It would be great if they could be stopped before anyone else gets duped.
July 07, 2020 at 6:25 pm, Almost Scammed said:
Similar story here. We got an email for a http://fmaeco-hk.com Fuchuen Machinery & Equipment Co Ltd company. We even talk to the recruiter twice on the phone. After the official offer letter for a job as a representative with $5000/month salary and 5% commission, they quickly gave an assignment to collect overdue payment for $500,000+. We thought it was shockingly fast to let a new recruit handle such a large order without any training or setting up work email, … Thank god we went with our gut and looked more into this