We got scammed by Ross at the end of 2023. Between the last week of Oct and the first week of Nov, we gave Ross $28,000 USD (half cash, half wire transfer) for a specific vehicle he took us to view with the owner. Once all the funds were in his hands (Nov 7, 2023) his entire demeanor changed--stopped being responsive and started making excuses week over week for hold up with payment being made to the owner. First it was covid, then a car accident, then a family emergency, then illness in his family.

Ultimately, the seller lost patience and sold the vehicle to another individual at the beginning of Jan 2024. I was able to recover on $7000 for the seller, which Ross had paid with half of the cash I'd given him. He still owes me $21,000 and has blocked me on both Whatsapp (our primary method of communication) and doesn't reply to messages sent to his Facebook business page.

Just wanted to share our cautionary tale.

ROSS ANDREWS - KINGS AUTOMOTIVE - HE ALSO APPEARS TO OWN EMU CARS - IS A THIEF, SCAMMER AND LIAR

What do you do when you are scammed?

First of all, try to forgive yourself for falling for the scam. It’s not easy. It’s embarrassing and extremely difficult. I am still figuring it all out. I don’t want it to consume much of my time and energy as I have a lot to “get on with” in life.I am newly a widow after many difficult, heartbreaking, exhausting years of being the primary caretaker for my terminally ill husband.

ROSS ANDREWS knew all of this before, during and after he cultivated my trust and ultimately took $20,000 of our life savings and stole our only vehicle in Costa Rica.

I “met” him on FaceBook in some of the Costa Rica “groups”.

For almost two years he communicated with me and my husband. He stayed in very regular contact via WhatsApp sending both text and voice messages. He was attentive, responsive, seemed proactive in his concern for us, was very personal in his communication and was very charming. His “Scottish brogue” made his voice messages all the more enjoyable to receive.

He repeatedly talked about what a pleasure it is to serve his clients and in particular us as he knew the importance of needing a vehicle that would be safe for us due to the medical vulnerability of my husband. On our first trip, he arranged for a discounted price for a room for us at a nice hotel in San Jose.

Then over the many months, he shared pictures of his farm, his animals, his family. All seemingly very nice. Real? Who knows. He showed vehicles he had sold and seemed highly credible.

When we were finally ready to purchase a vehicle in anticipation of returning to Costa Rica for the winter (winters where we live in the US were far to physically difficult for my extremely ill husband). We gave him our preferred price. He immediately went to work to find “a reliable, comfortable vehicle in perfect condition” so we would be able to be safe and comfortable. In a short time, he found one. It was higher than we had hoped but he assured us it was an unusually excellent vehicle and worth the additional cost. He also said he would offer a year long - bumper to bumper warranty and a free new, high quality battery.

He assured us he had the vehicle mechanically inspected and it had passed every aspect with flying colors. He sent us countless pictures of the vehicle, the process and updates that gave us the utmost confidence in both him and the vehicle.

We decided to proceed.

He sent us an invoice for the vehicle and all of his wire transfer information. Of course it all looked very legitimate. I gathered all of our savings and sent the wire transfer.

It was going to be about a month before we would arrive back in Costa Rica and to pick up the vehicle. He stayed in communication for approximately a month after receiving the wire transfer which was very assuring. He made plans with us to pick us up at the airport and deliver our vehicle to us. It was going to be perfect! We were so relieved, happy and excited!

But then, he told us that he and his family had contracted covid and in particular his daughter had been very severely impacted. I continued to reach out, expressing our sympathy and concern. I had also contracted covid during that time frame. His communication became less frequent and then none at all. At one point he said he had taken his daughter to the UK for urgent treatment yet his Facebook page showed being at a favorite bar in Costa Rica for the Super Bowl Football game. It showed a picture of his daughter riding a horse on their farm in CR. He was lying to give a “reason” why he could not be in communication with me and deliver our vehicle as promised.

ADDITIONALLY, prior to disappearing, he knew that my husband and I had an older Ford Ranger pick up truck from our previous visit. It was unreliable and needed mechanical work but did at least run. He said he really needed a truck for his farm and would we be interested in selling it to him. I thought that would be a great solution as I didn’t want to try to sell it myself in CR - not speaking Spanish or knowing the laws or systems. He wanted to pick it up from our neighbor so he could mechanically assess it to know what price he would pay for it. Foolishly, I arranged for him to be able to pick it up. That was the last I saw of it.

In the interim, in December, my husband passed away. It was now up to me to come to Costa Rica by myself to close up the home we had rented and to sell the vehicle we “bought” from Ross and the truck we had already owned.

ROSS ANDREWS KNEW MY HUSBAND HAD DIED AND THAT I WAS NOW A WIDOW RELYING ON HIM!!!!! THE TIME GREW CLOSER FOR OUR ARRIVAL - IT BECAME HORRIBLY CLEAR THAT WE HAD BEEN SCAMMED. THERE IS NO JUSTIFICATION FOR THIS. IT IS FRAUD, LIES, DECEIT AND A HORRIBLE, HEARTLESS SCAM.

I assume responsibility for “falling for a scam” and will suggest for you what I would do differently to avoid a situation like this in the future. 1. When you are under tremendous stress or pressure - realize you may not be thinking as clearly and analytically as you normally are so check your decisions (and purchases and financial decisions) with someone you know and trust well (family or friends) with good, objective perspective. The more serious your circumstances, the more vulnerable you are and less likely you will be fully able to evaluate risk and make wise decisions. I am not prone to falling for scams, yet I did. In hindsight, I can see many things I should have done differently. 2. NEVER wire transfer money to someone you don’t REALLY know. ESPECIALLY IN ANOTHER COUNTRY! Though inconvenient, we should have waited to buy a vehicle in person. 3. I should have asked for a copy of his passport and driver’s license and verification that his business was actively licensed and properly registered in Costa Rica. 4. References from happy “past customers” are easily written and published.

After arriving and of course not receiving a vehicle and having no further communication from ROSS ANDREWS - KINGS AUTOMOTIVE, my daughter did some additional research and found several other people he had scammed.

SCAMMING IS HIS BUSINESS.

She made a couple of posts to warn people about him and sent him an angry message because she was furious that he would steal from me and her dad and leave me in such dire circumstances. THEN he has the nerve to contact me - angry that she would “unjustly attack him and his business” and impact his livelihood and his ability to support his family!!!! I told him it was incredible that he would contact me ONLY when he felt impacted but not to have integrity in our situation. I have not heard from him since. I have heard from others who have been scammed by him.

DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH ROSS ANDREWS- KINGS AUTOMOTIVE. PROTECT YOURSELF. BE SMART, SCAMMERS ARE EVERYWHERE.

When Ross moved to Atenas, we took the site down to give him a chance to turn over a new leaf. Guess what. He didn't. We received a credible report of a scam he pulled at the end of 2023, so the site goes back up. Don't do business with this guy, people.

Submitted by a reader. Thanks SD.

Submitted by a reader. Thanks SD.

Submitted by a reader. Thanks TM.

Submitted by a reader. Thanks TM.