LEAD STORY: Puppy-love scam costs pair $1500

Jamelle Kirkland
They chose and named their new puppy and couldn't wait to meet it. But $1500 later, they realised the whole thing was a scam.
Their new pet didn't exist.
Hastings couple Ben Epplett, 21, and Anya-Lee McLaren, 19, were eagerly awaiting the arrival of an English bulldog they had "fallen in love with" on a website and paid for this week.
They spent $150 on food, toys and a bed. They had even named it Draco, after a favourite Harry Potter character.
They were convinced through emails that the seller was a dog breeder from Christchurch.
"She sounded so caring and loving towards her puppies. We hadn't heard of the scams before," Ms McLaren said.
They had paid for the dog to an African bank account through Western Union and were told the woman's family was in Africa for her daughter's birthday.
Mr Epplett said it was not until a 3am email, in which the seller claimed to be washing dogs, that alarm bells had started to ring.
"We realised she couldn't be in Christchurch," he said.
The seller had asked them to deposit more money, saying the sale was not in New Zealand dollars and demanded another $1500 before sending the dog.
The couple is devastated, after spending two months saving for the puppy. The scam has dealt the two a financial blow on top of their new mortgage.
"We can't get any dog now. Our money's all gone," Ms McLaren said. "We don't feel stupid or anything, just upset."
Consumer website www.consumerfraudreporting.com said it was not the first time "English bulldog puppies" and "yorkies" had been used to scam pet buyers.
"Once a potential victim contacts the scammer, he is asked to pay shipping fees, customs, duties, shots, adoption fees and vaccinations. But the puppies never arrive. There never were any puppies," the site said.
The advertisement was listed on classifieds.co.nz with similar scams appearing on auction websites and pet sale websites, and in newspaper classified advertisements.
Other scams have been traced to Cameroon.
The Ministry of Consumer Affairs said it had not had reports of scams such as this one for a while. It was a variant on the "upfront money transfer scam" in which buyers got less than they paid for, or nothing at all.
"We haven't heard about www.classifieds.co.nz. However, there don't seem to be any contact or other details that may allow people dealing through it to track down traders," the ministry's senior communications adviser, Angus McLeod, said.
He suggested people visit www.scamwatch.govt.nz for information on the types of scams and how to protect themselves.
NZ Police warned consumers to ensure they saw pets before they paid, not to send money overseas or give out credit card details.