New variation of the bad cheque fraud: Dog bite cases
[First posted May 2019. Updated January 2020]
Several lawyers have notified us of a new variation on the old bad cheque debt collection scam. This scenario involves a dog bite, and the promise of an insurer to pay a settlement for medical expenses. It even comes with gruesome dog bite photos that were apparently taken from a British newspaper story.
As with all bad cheque scams, it 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 other party (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 Cybercrime and Bad Cheque Scams Fraud Fact Sheet lists the red flags of a bogus legal matter that is really a fraud.
Below is a sample of an email received by the lawyers. Other names associated with the scam include Rick Ferguson, Cesar Justicia, Danny Haupt, Aaron Diaz, Anthony Grinner, Mundo Edgardo, Carlos Raul Jack Gregory, Julio Alfonso, and Santos L. Opelanio
From: Eddie barrington [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: April 26, 2019 8:38 AM
Subject: Dog Bite Case
Dear Counsel ,
I will need your service in a personal injury case(Dog Bite).
Please let me know if you handle such cases, so I can send you more details.
Regards,
Eddie Barrington
Replying to the email brought this colourful response:
Thanks for your response.
This incident happened on October 16th, 2018 while on I was on holiday in Saint John, NB with my beautiful wife Rebecca. , when I was attacked by a neighbor Pit bull dog. Am from Bahamas, 2013 i got a job in Dragados Offshore México, since 2013 i base in Mexico.
I was in our Un-fenced back yard getting wood from the wood pile when the dog approached me. So it was a great surprise when this Vicious dog, without provocation or any warning signs at all, attacked my face, biting me and causing gaping wounds near my left eye and and leg and serious scratches to the skin around my eyes (See attached photo). I was standing right next to the wood pile when it happened, as were the owners of the dog who could not control his dog.
With Hands clutching my eye as blood pours from my face completely soaking my clothes , I was rushed to hospital in an ambulance, where I had immediate treatment to stop the bleeding.
It was agreed then with the owner of the dog for a settlement, they agreed to pay the cost of treatment and the out of court settlement amounting to the sum of $120,500.00.
I went to New York for plastic surgery. Despite first-rate treatment at the Hospital, I will be forever scarred my face don’t look the way it was before.
During my surgery I spent a total of $21,300.00 out of my pocket because the dog owner has failed to pay the settlement of $120,500.00 as promised.
I entered this agreement then without a legal representative as I was assured that all costs will be paid in full.
I need your help to get the dog owner and his insurer to pay Settlement sum.
Please note am already in the field, i can’t call or receive call, Let me know when we can speak, i will make myself available.
January 21, 2020 at 8:08 pm, NATHAN WEBB said:
Just received one from a “Rick Ferguson” with almost the exact same language as Todd Richardson received then I did minimal research and found this site. We are in Kirkland, WA.
January 21, 2020 at 8:17 pm, NATHAN WEBB said:
Here was the first email:
—
Hello,
I will need your service in a personal injury case(Dog Bite).
Please let me know if you handle such cases, so I can send you more details.
Regards,
Rick Ferguson
Tel:+1 (660) 283-0864
January 22, 2020 at 2:39 pm, John H. said:
Rick Ferguson and Mr. Heisenberg are up to their old tricks, contacting me on Jan. 19 as an offshore oil worker who just needed some wood from the wood pile while vacationing in my not very attractive city. Apparently, he thinks I’m interested in his fraud because he keeps e-mailing me. Thanks for this post to confirm my suspicions. I get these inquiries at least once a month.
January 22, 2020 at 7:10 pm, George A. Bouagdis said:
On Jan.22, 2020, fraudster “Rick Ferguson” (a.k.a. Aaron Diaz, Mundo Edgardo, Santos L. Opelanio, Ceaser Justicis, Carlos Raul, and the original Eddie Barrington) emails me in Toronto, Canada. One of the same phone numbers is given: +1(660) 283-0864 as previously reported and the same truncated previously reported Dog Bite personal injury inquiry is provided and reproduced below. Hard to believe that this scammer fails to even mention the beautiful Rebecca (or Brunilda) in the initial contact; I hope that she’s okay.
—-
FROM Email: Rick Ferguson
Hello,
Your service in a personal injury case(Dog Bite).
Please let me know if you handle such cases, so I can send you more details.
Regards,
Rick Ferguson
TEL +1 (660) 283-0864
January 23, 2020 at 1:34 pm, terry zuckerman said:
I just got one from Aaron Diaz. He provided pictures, a settlement agreement and a very terribly forged medical report.
January 23, 2020 at 11:22 pm, Angela said:
I received one from Rick Ferguson and Mario Heisenberg.
January 29, 2020 at 1:34 pm, Anonymous said:
Just received same scam email fact pattern, but incident happened in Atlanta GA.
Rick Ferguson
TEL +1 (660) 283-0864
927 Dammert Ave, Saint Louis, MO 63125
January 29, 2020 at 4:29 pm, Rebecca said:
They’re trying a new version of the scheme. Santos L. Opelanio needs to sell some tanks to a purchaser in CA. He’s international and needs a CA lawyer. The purchase will may an initial deposit, additional sum and the final payment to the lawyer. Then the lawyer will send the money to Santos. We only had contact with Santos and the buyer’s broker. The buyer’s broker could not prove that the buyer’s company existed.
January 30, 2020 at 5:27 pm, John McF said:
Same scam, different name: Stuart Anthony Wilcox. Thank you for helping me suss out the scam!
January 31, 2020 at 12:57 pm, James said:
Just received the same email from “Aaron Diaz” in Indianapolis. I googled his name and “dog bite”, and this site came up. Thank you to everyone for posting your experience with this scam.
January 31, 2020 at 5:02 pm, Noohi Law said:
Apparently, he is now targeting Canada.
“ Mr.Grinner dog owner Chubb Insurance proposed the settlement amount. My last phone conversation with Mr.Grinner dog owner and the “Chubb Insurance” stating that his having some issue with his Insurance “Chubb” regarding the settlement payment and i let them know that i am planning in retaining your firm to pursue my settlement, they stated they knew about your firm.
This is the contact information of Chubb Insurance as below.
Mr. Mario Heisenberg
TEL +1-(604)-316-2810
Email: [email protected]”
February 03, 2020 at 11:58 am, Maria Garcia said:
Hello,
I will need your service in a personal injury case(Dog Bite).
Please let me know if you handle such cases, so I can send you more details.
Regards,
Rick Ferguson
Tel:+1 (660) 283-0864
This is the email we received at our law office. I’m glad I found this website. Thank you.
February 04, 2020 at 1:42 pm, Mat Slechter said:
Poor ol’ Rick Ferguson. If he would simply devote to some legitimate trade or enterprise the time and effort he has invested in trying to scam lawyers, he could really make something of himself. He might want to bone up on English syntax while he’s at it.
Thank you for posting this site to confirm the scam. I received the email in Louisville, KY.
February 05, 2020 at 10:17 pm, Rafael D. said:
Hi, the same Santos L Opelanio ir sending emails to chilean lawyers, looking for assistance in a contract drafting. He says that represents a company from Netherlands but using a hotmail email.
Hello,
We are privately owned Engineering company and we need an attorney to
assist us in drafting a purchase and Sales agreement for Intellectual
Property with a buyer in your state. Are you able to take this matter?
If not, a referral will be appreciated.
Regards,
Santos Opelanio .
Executive director IBS Precision Engineering BV
Esp 201, 5633 AD Eindhoven,
Netherlands.
+31850013855
February 05, 2020 at 11:37 pm, Carrington Mead said:
Cujo and Rick Ferguson ran into each other in Jacksonville Florida yesterday. I suppose he is looking for warmer climes. LOL!
February 11, 2020 at 8:29 pm, Daniel J Haus said:
Pretty much the same scam in the Kansas City, MISSOURI area.
Dear Attorney,
I appreciate you giving me a chance to discuss my case. My name is David Hoffman. I work in the Rig at Diamond Offshore Drilling (Mexico). Due to the nature of my work i will not be able to put a call through to you at the moment. The incident occurred on 06/09/2019 at Belton, Missouri. while i was on I was on holiday with my wife. I was taking a walk around the neighborhood one evening being the first time there when a neighbors pit-bull dog hurriedly attacked me thereby causing damage to my face. I was rushed to hospital nearby (emergency unit), where I had immediate treatment andsurgery.(See attached photo). The owner was informed and he came to the hospital were he pleaded and agreed to cover the hospital expenses and the out of court settlement amounting to $221,500.
During my days at the hospital, i spent a total of $34,850 out of my own pocket as i had not received the settlement as promised. I entered into an agreement without a legal representative as i was assured all cost will be paid one time in full but to no avail. This is the reason why i result this case through legal means. Are they any weakness you see in this case? If litigation is involved, How can this be handled? How much is your legal fee? Do you charge on contingency basis because i would like to retain your firm? What should i expect from you? Any guarantees? Please advise on your assessment of this case. A quick response will be appreciated.
Regards,
David Hoffman Phone: 628-203-6333
February 21, 2020 at 1:39 pm, Erika said:
Received one from Aaron Diaz and then from Mundo Edgardo. The defendant was Jason Schneider and the incident occurred on 9/16/19 in Hayward, CA. Aaron lives in Japan.
February 24, 2020 at 2:18 pm, Ron Preyra said:
I just received one from “Rick Ferguson” with an alleged settlement of $98,500.00
much in line with the above. I am in Toronto Ontario 24Feb20
February 24, 2020 at 5:09 pm, Jose Saldivar said:
I appreciate you giving me a chance to discuss my case. My name is Anthony Wilcox. I work in the Rig at Diamond Offshore Drilling (Mexico). Due to the nature of my work i will not be able to put a call through to you at the moment. The incident occurred on 06/09/2019 at Phoenix, Arizona. while i was on I was on holiday with my wife. I was taking a walk around the neighborhood one evening being the first time there when a neighbors pit-bull dog hurriedly attacked me thereby causing damage to my face. I was rushed to hospital nearby (emergency unit), where I had immediate treatment and surgery.(See attached photo). The owner was informed and he came to the hospital were he pleaded and agreed to cover the hospital expenses and the out of court settlement amounting to $221,500.
During my days at the hospital, i spent a total of $34,850 out of my own pocket as i had not received the settlement as promised. I entered into an agreement without a legal representative as i was assured all cost will be paid one time in full but to no avail. This is the reason why i result this case through legal means. Are they any weakness you see in this case? If litigation is involved, How can this be handled? How much is your legal fee? Do you charge on contingency basis because i would like to retain your firm? What should i expect from you? Any guarantees? Please advise on your assessment of this case. A quick response will be appreciated.
Regards,
Anthony Wilcox
Phone: 628-203-6333
February 29, 2020 at 5:49 pm, Matt Tabakman said:
Add “Jack Gregory” to the list of aliases. Just received the same opener email, and a simple Google search of the phone number led me here. Glad I checked.
March 01, 2020 at 9:17 am, Laura Sammons said:
He is targeting Texas lawyers too — same email. He says that represents a company from Netherlands but using a hotmail email.
Hello,
We are privately owned Engineering company and we need an attorney to
assist us in drafting a purchase and Sales agreement for Intellectual
Property with a buyer in your state. Are you able to take this matter?
If not, a referral will be appreciated.
Regards,
Santos Opelanio .
Executive director IBS Precision Engineering BV
Esp 201, 5633 AD Eindhoven,
Netherlands.
+31850013855
March 18, 2020 at 6:31 pm, Robert Sciglimpaglia said:
Now they are getting sophisticated. The other party is emailing me now.
Dear Attorney: Robert Sciglimpaglia,
My name is “Mr. Robert Jordan”. I am writing you this email in respect of the email i got from your client “Mr. Jack Gregory”.
I know that there has been some default on my side to keep to the “Settlement Agreement” of “$198,200.00” and remit funds to Mr.Jack as agreed upon.But due
to some issue’s i have with my Insurance “Echelon” then, that is why i and my insurer is unable to keep to the agreement.
Please I do not want to go to court or face any form of litigation here in “Norwalk”.
Therefore, In regard of Mr. Jack Gregory, I will get back to you and discuss with you regarding the payment by my Insurance “Echelon”.
Please be considerate and accept my offer.
Warmest Regards,
Mr. Robert Jordan
March 25, 2020 at 6:28 pm, larry rubin said:
Got on today. Looked very phony.
Hello,
I will need your service in a personal injury case(Dog Bite).
Please let me know if you handle such cases, so I can send you more details.
Regards,
Jack Gregory
Tel:+1 (660) 283-0864
April 07, 2020 at 8:14 am, James Barber said:
Nice to know my instincts were right…..
> On Apr 6, 2020, at 4:05 PM, jack gregory wrote:
>
>
> Hello,
>
> I will need your service in a personal injury case(Dog Bite).
>
> Please let me know if you handle such cases, so I can send you more details.
>
> Regards,
>
> Jack Gregory
>
> Tel:+1 (314) 200-4957
May 01, 2020 at 2:14 pm, David said:
May 1, 2020, received same initial email from “Aaron Diaz”
May 24, 2020 at 7:56 am, K. O. said:
This one showed up this morning also in Jax, FL, so I notified my colleagues:
Counsel ,
Kindly let me know if you practice personal injury on (Dog Bite). Please let me know if you handle such cases, so I can send you more details.
Thanks
Regards,
Aaron Diaz
914 603 8231
[email protected]
June 01, 2020 at 10:19 am, Mike Berbiglia,Esq. said:
Apparently, he also changed his name to Aaron Diaz and works for JXTG Holdings, is from Ecuador, and was bitten in Encino, Ca.
June 04, 2020 at 9:16 pm, Dan said:
I received one today in St. Petersburg, FL.
Apparently, Aaron has a very bad luck with dogs.
See email below:
Counsel ,
Kindly let me know if you practice personal injury on (Dog Bite).
Please let me know if you handle such cases, so I can send you more details.
Thanks
Regards,
Aaron Diaz
June 09, 2020 at 9:07 am, Mark Kawinski said:
Just received one from Aaron Diaz – 914 603-8231 … same exact, except they forgot the photos (in the narrative were to be enclosed). June 8 2020 [email protected]
June 16, 2020 at 6:23 pm, Jordan M said:
We got one. Mateo Abundio and William C. Russom.
Thanks for your response.
This incident happened on October 16th, 2019 while on I was on holiday
in Santa Clarita, CA with my beautiful wife Patricia, when I was attacked by
a neighbor’s Pit bull dog. I am from Ecuador, i live in Japan, i
work with Japan Drilling Co., Ltd.
I was taking a walk around the neighborhood that evening being the first time there when the dog approached me. So, it was a great surprise when this Vicious
dog, without provocation or any warning signs at all, hurriedly attacked my
face, biting me and causing gaping wounds near my left eye and serious
scratches to the skin around my eyes (See attached photo).
With Hands clutching my eye as blood pours from my face completely
soaking my clothes , I was rushed to hospital, where I had immediate
treatment to stop the bleeding. The owner was informed and he came
to the hospital were he pleaded.
It was agreed then with the owner of the dog for a settlement, He
agreed to pay the cost of treatment and the out of court settlement
amounting to the sum of $192,800.00. I went to New York for plastic
surgery. Despite first-rate treatment at the Hospital, I will be
forever scarred. My face don’t look the way it was before.
During my surgery I spent a total of $41,300.00 out of my pocket
because the dog owner has failed to pay the settlement of $192,800.00
as promised. I entered this agreement then without a legal
representative as I was assured that all costs will be paid in full.
Please note am already in the field, let me know when we can speak, I
will make myself available.
Thank you
Regards,
Mateo Abundio
407 688 2337
My name is William Russom. I am writing you this email in respect of the
email i got from Mateo.
I know that there has been some default on my side to keep to the
“Settlement agreement” and remit funds to Mateo as agreed upon. But
due to some issue i have with my Business, am ready to keep to this
agreement.
Please I do not want to go to court or face any form of litigation.
Therefore, in regard of Mateo, I am willing to send out settlement
from the few savings that I have.
Please be considerate and accept my offer.
I look forward to hearing from you soonest.
Warmest Regards,
William C. Russom .
[email protected]
June 22, 2020 at 4:08 pm, Barry Shabbick said:
Aaron Diaz from Ecuador was bitten by a dog owned by Jason Schneider in Phoenixville, Pa. Mr. Schneider signed a settlement agreement for $320,500 dollars but is having difficulty raising the money due to business set backs. The pictures were gruesome.
June 30, 2020 at 4:19 pm, Kim Carasso said:
I am so sorry I won’t be able to help Aaron and his beautiful wife…I forwarded him a copy of this article so hopefully “he” will get the clue that we are on to him…
July 01, 2020 at 6:09 pm, Joel S. Crosby, Esquire said:
I have been approached by “Arron Diaz” with the same emails as stated herein. I have just been approached by Santos Opelanio! I have been suspicious of fraud from the beginning. Too bad the FBI does not get involved.
I word to the wise: My banker has informed me that bank and cashiers checks can be stopped; in other words the funds refused after issuance. The only secure finite way, I was told, to receive funds is by wire transfer.
July 21, 2020 at 11:02 am, Pam Gottman said:
I received the same email from Aaron Diaz. He was attacked while on holiday with his wife in Rio Linda. The settlement amount was for $120,500. Nobody holidays in Rio Linda and nobody in Rio Linda has that kind of money. These people really should research these locations before using them as part of their scam. It was the Rio Linda part that made me suspicious…He also provided an Oregon phone number, which I thought was weird. Fortunately, for me, he forgot to attach the photos.
July 27, 2020 at 12:40 am, Sean Park said:
The scam continues. Aaron Diaz responded to me this morning with the exact same description as above, though he failed to attach photos. I just googled Aaron Diaz dog bite and this page came up. Glad my instincts were right to disregard.
August 06, 2020 at 8:32 pm, John Doe said:
Same.
Mateo Abundio
407 688 2337
August 10, 2020 at 6:09 pm, william koontz said:
I got the same guy, Aaron Diaz. Vicious dog attack and guy lives in Ecuador. Everything was the same as reported here, the settlement was $120,500 and he had pictures and a settlement agreement with a carrier i had never heard of in Ohio. I saw the pictures and told him he was ripped off the case was worth much more. Interestingly he never mentioned the insurance carrier just the dog owner. I told the guy by email that an insurance carrier that settled a case like his for only $120,500 would have paid yesterday. if was obvious something was wrong, so i got rid of him 15 minutes ago
August 11, 2020 at 6:22 pm, william koontz said:
i was contacted by an Aaron Diaz. he claimed to be in Ecuador and said he had been attacked in Beaumont California. He attached photos and a Settlement agreement with an Ohio ins. carrier.. After a number of email exchanges i sent him a retainer. i did so to see what he would do, because he claimed the insurance carrier had reneged on the settlement that was agreed to some 7 months earlier That alone was suspicious and the magnitude of the injury and the settlement didn’t make much sense either. Finally, there are just too many lawyers for a non-referral source such as my web site (which i learned was down temporally)to come of with a case that good. While mussing over my concerns about the validity of this guy, i found your site. The facts are exactly the same as many of his other scams such as; the same name, the same amount, dog etc. he called later that day the conversation was less than cordial
August 14, 2020 at 10:51 am, Alvin Wolff said:
I’ve heard from Aaron Diaz twice. The first time I received a check for $141,000 a week later with a release where the owner of the dog attacked the victim. What idiots. I heard from Aaron again today. I reminded him that I kept all the money from the first settlement.
August 19, 2020 at 12:37 pm, Jerry J. said:
Got the same emails and same story from Mateo Abundio and Willam Russom as did Jordan M.
August 21, 2020 at 8:11 am, Vishal G said:
I also heard from Aaron Diaz, with the same story, this time in Westport, Connecticut. This guy seems to have the worst luck with dogs. Then today I got this email from the dog’s owner:
My name is Jason Schneider. I am writing you this email in respect of
the email i got from Diaz yesterday.
I know that there has been some default on my side to keep to the
“Settlement Agreement” and remit funds to Diaz as agreed upon.But due
to some issue i have with my Business, am ready to keep to this
agreement.
Please I do not want to go to court or face any form of lawsuit.
Therefore, In regard of Diaz, I am willing to send out settlement from
the few savings that I have.
Please be considerate and accept my offer.
I look forward to hearing from you soonest.
Warmest Regards,
Jason Schneider .
[email protected]
August 22, 2020 at 7:44 pm, Keith Halpern said:
I’m seeing how many times I can get the guy to send me a check by overnight FedEx. Came from Spring, TX. Demanded additional money to compensate for delay. He agreed. And after that I will demand replacement checks because they put the wrong insured’s name on the checks. Need to come up with a good story for check #4.
September 08, 2020 at 11:59 am, Jennifer Witt said:
It appears Mr. Diaz can no longer speak because he had vocal cord surgery due the dog attack. Just FYI-his scam has made its way to Washington.
September 24, 2020 at 7:38 am, Michelle Schill said:
Aaron Diaz is very persistent. He has emailed my firm four times at varying times this year as if we won’t notice. Each with a new location of the injury all over San Diego, CA.
October 08, 2020 at 12:15 pm, Heather Work said:
Our firm just received an email from Aaron Diaz. We search his phone number on the internet and this is the first page that came up. Same dog bite story.
November 01, 2020 at 4:28 pm, Arnold Gross said:
November 1, 2020. Aaron Diaz surfaces again. Here is the current spiel:
Dear Arnold,
Thanks for your response.
This incident happened on January 16th, 2020 while I was on holiday in Los Angeles, CA with my beautiful wife Rebecca, when I was attacked by a neighbor’s Pit bull dog. I am from Ecuador, I live in Japan, I work with JXTG Holdings, Inc.
I was in our Un-fenced back yard close to the wood pile when the dog approached me. So, it was a great surprise when this Vicious dog, without provocation or any warning signs at all, attacked my face, biting me and causing gaping wounds near my left eye and serious scratches to the skin around my eyes (See attached photo). I was standing right next to the wood pile when it happened, as were the owner of the dog who could not control his dog.
With Hands clutching my eye as blood pours from my face completely soaking my clothes , I was rushed to hospital, where I had immediate treatment to stop the bleeding.
It was agreed then with the owner of the dog for a settlement, they agreed to pay the cost of treatment and the out of court settlement amounting to the sum of $120,500.00. I went to New York for plastic surgery. Despite first-rate treatment at the Hospital, I will be forever scarred my face don’t look the way it was before.
During my surgery I spent a total of $21,300.00 out of my pocket because the dog owner has failed to pay the settlement of $120,500.00 as promised. I entered this agreement then without a legal representative as I was assured that all costs will be paid in full.
Please note am currently in the Rig, let me know when we can speak, I will make myself available
Thanks
Regard,
Aaron Diaz
914 863 5274
From: Uclawg
Sent: Saturday, October 31, 2020 7:00 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: DOG BITE CASE
My firm and I handle such cases. Feel free to either email me or call me in the office on Monday.
Arnold W. Gross, Esq.
STATE LAW FIRM
17337 Ventura Blvd., Suite 105,
Encino, CA 91316 (main office)
(818) 477-0773 Direct
—–Original Message—–
From: Aaron Diaz
To: [email protected]
Sent: Fri, Oct 30, 2020 5:04 pm
Subject: DOG BITE CASE
Dear Counsel,
I will need your service in a personal injury case(Dog Bite).
Please let me know if you handle such cases, so I can send you more details.
Thanks
Regards,
Aaron Diaz
Reply Reply All Forward
November 20, 2020 at 8:30 pm, Mileva said:
Aaron Diaz contacted our office, sent an executed Settlement Agreement, with the defendant Jason Schneider with an accident date 1/16/2020. Thanks for having this site.
December 01, 2020 at 4:12 pm, John McCormick said:
The dog bite scam hit me in San Diego. Kinda fun to string them along then send them this posting. 🙂
January 08, 2021 at 11:46 pm, Gina said:
Surfaces in Long Island New York, this time he uses the alias Larry Clark and has “the insurance company” email us a prompt settlement offer from [email protected], there is even a website, Flexi Insuritas. Google it, fake employees, etc. Even more sophisticated. We actually spoke to “the client”, the “owner of the dog” and “the insurance company” all of which sounded like the exact same robotic person. Photos they used were Keith Chadwicks.
January 12, 2021 at 4:17 pm, Neil Davis said:
Received same dog bite emails from Torres Rodriguez in Michigan.