Scam with high-tech twist picks pockets
Man bilked customers, dot-com staff, police say
By Brian E. Clark
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
March 6, 2002
RANCHO BERNARDO – A flimflam artist who offered modems and high-speed Internet service – but never delivered – apparently has fled the county leaving behind hundreds of victims, authorities say.
Police say a man using the phony name of Corey J. Dyer created a business called DSLMonster.com that bilked subscribers, landlords, radio stations, roommates and even several of his own employees out of more than $100,000 over the past three months.
"It was a classic boiler room-type scam, but with a high-tech twist," said Rob Shelton, a Carlsbad police detective who is investigating the case.
Dyer, who had lived in an apartment on Escondido Boulevard in Escondido, was described by Shelton and those he deceived as a smooth-talking, heavyset man in his mid-20s who wore sweat shirts and sported orange hair.
The man used a New Jersey driver's license and had a business card identifying him as an attorney in New Hampshire. Both were bogus, Shelton said.
"This guy blew into town from L.A. in December, set up shop, advertised inexpensive Internet connections with some radio stations, double-and triple-billed people who signed up, bounced checks all over the place and then was gone by late February," Shelton said.
Dyer first operated out of offices in Carlsbad, but was evicted when checks totaling $12,000 were returned, Shelton said. Dyer then moved to Rancho Bernardo, where he rented space and hired employees while writing bad checks to his landlord for thousands of dollars.
DSLMonster offered lifetime high-speed Internet service and DLS modems for sign-up fees ranging from $120 to $228 and no monthly fees. Shelton said he first learned of Dyer's operation when the Astor Broadcast Group in Carlsbad reported a fraud.
"That was how he got customers, by advertising on the radio," Shelton said.
Heidi Drake, Astor's business manager, said Dyer signed an advertising contract for $70,992 and made a partial payment of $13,772. He ran ads on KFSD in Carlsbad and KMNX in Orange County from Dec. 5 through Dec. 27 before the stations cut him off.
"He also gave away a computer as part of an on-air promotion," Drake said. "And we understand he bought that with a bad check. He was scamming everyone."
Shelton said Dyer also paid for advertising spots on several San Diego area Clear Channel radio stations with rubber checks.
In Rancho Bernardo, Dyer's office landlord described him as "a nice young man."
The woman, who asked not to be identified, said Dyer seemed to be sincere and honest. He wrote her $7,000 worth of bad checks for three offices on Rancho Bernardo Road for his nine employees, she said.
"I've been in this business for 30 years and nothing about him raised red flags," she said, shaking her head. "I really believed him when he said there was a mistake with the bank and that he just had to transfer funds from another account. He fooled me, for a while."
Kenneth La Chapelle, a 25-year-old computer technician from El Cajon, said he paid $120 in January for DSL service he never received.
"I heard the ads on the radio, so I figured they were legit," he said. "It sounded like a great deal, but not too good to be true because other companies offer free e-mail and Internet service, too."
La Chapelle said he began to have doubts when his installation date was delayed several times. "Then the next thing I heard was that the boss had skipped out of town," he said.
David Herbelin, a 27-year-old Orange County teacher and actor, said he was burned for $228.
"I ordered the service in December, and the installation date kept getting pushed back," he said. "My roommate heard about it on the radio, but I was the one who signed up for it. I just hope there is some way I can get my money back. So far, my credit card company hasn't been very cooperative."
For Sean Sullivan, who said he worked in DSLMonster.com's customer service department for about two weeks in February, the loss was even greater.
"I was never paid, and then I gave Dyer $434 to get his car fixed," he said. "Of course, the checks he wrote me to cover the loan bounced. My roommate even loaned him money. Boy, were we dumb."
Shelton said Dyer left behind paperwork that could produce fingerprints he hopes can be matched through a national database within the next few months.
"Right now we don't really know who we are going after," said Shelton, adding that he thinks Dyer may now be in Seattle. "We ran the license plate from his car through the DMV, and you know what? He bounced that check, too."
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Brian Clark: (760) 752-6761; brian.clark@uniontrib.com
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