Counterfeit Armani?
The other day, while on a break from work ( i was buying some donuts from Krispy Kreme ). As I walk out with my glazed creme filled, and apple filled cinnamon roll donuts, this Italian guy in a rental car calls me over. He shows me his passport, his id, his paperwork for national car rental. He says he’s got 6 coats. Right away, I realize, this guy wants to sell me some hot jackets.
Already skeptical, i’m enamored by his genuine italian accents and he tells that if he’s here for
“How you say, exhibition?”
and since he didn’t sell these coats, his company is giving them to him. He doesn’t want the coats, of course. He wants to do me a favor and sell them. What a great guy, right? Yeah…
So he proceeds to show me these GREAT “Armani” leather and suede coats. One thing bothers me though. They don’t say armani anywhere. It’s more like A Collezioni.. It also says ‘made in italy’ all over the lining. So he tries for 500. I say 200. He says he’ll give me 3 for 200. I say cool. I’m thinking that I might be able to sell it on Ebay and make a profit. We travel to Bank of America to get some cash. I get the cash but somethings telling me not to do it. So I ask to see them again. I say,
why don’t you just put the coats in a suitcase?
Of course! He’d have to pay extra for that. I look at the coat one more time. It’s such a nice coat. Sigh. I say
“Why doesn’t it say armani?” His reply: “There are 5 armani collections. Georgio Armani, Emperio Armani, Armani Exchange, [some other armani] and Armani Collezioni” I say “But I haven’t HEARD of Armani Collezioni” He huffs and says, “Fine, then…..”
So I finally get back to work and come to find there IS an Armani Collezioni. That’s even the name of their main website. I still think the stuff was counterfeit though. Why wouldn’t Armani put their name on the label? And shouldn’t I be able to find these coats on the web site? I don’t know. I guess there’s a price that comes with dressing nice to go to work. People want to sell you armani coats out of their Pontiac Torrents…
EDIT
This is the most popular page on my site, but unfortunately, I am not a private eye. I do not have anymore information about supposed armani counterfeiters besides what i’ve already written.
February 14th, 2006 at 2:41 pm
I’m humiliated to say I got bilked by this guy a couple of days ago… except I bought the damn coats (which are in fact fakes). The guy has a good rap and I fell $540 into the deep hole…
Don’t trust anyone who asks you for direction to Newark Airport with an italien accent.
February 15th, 2006 at 1:22 pm
Unbelievable. Same exact thing happened to me in Edgewater on the same day!!! Except he had 4 coats. I wasn’t as smart as you though. I bought 2 of the coats for the cash I had on me which was $240. Still don’t know if they are fakes. According to the website the stores are all in Europe.
February 20th, 2006 at 12:01 pm
I am in England-I just met an italian guy, claimed to have come from an exhibition, had excess baggage for flight, late for flight needed money for parking and petrol and he would “give” me 3 coats from the a.collezioni(he gets them free, obviously working for the company!?). Showed me passport, documents etc. Took £70 out of machine to help him on his way, thought I’d at least be able to get £70 back them-don’t know if real or not (was like 10 minutes ago), very doubtful though. Now, on my part, I didn’t want a coat-I wanted to help this man on his way but, as a student I can’t afford that-the coats were a gamble for humanity-If he robbed me, I think I can live with the fact that he’s that hopeless in life he needs steal from students. Shame. If genuine, the world keeps turning. If anyone has been caught out by him and doesn’t feel this same compasion-I’ve taken the liberty of taking his photo before I left-If you leave a msg here, I’ll gladly send it to you-it’s a good close shot of his face!
April 4th, 2006 at 6:44 pm
I had no idea this was happening to so many people. I did think the weirdest part was that he tried the “scam” on me as I was leaving a donut shop. A DONUT SHOP!!! Leather Coats and Donuts aren’t the most obvious mix, that’s for sure.
April 4th, 2006 at 8:15 pm
I too was taken by his smooth rap. I bought four leather jackets for $200. Originally he wanted $700 we said “no way”. I turned a bit skeptical when he asked for $500 we offered $200 and he immediately agreed. My guy as well had a italian accent, drove a rented Dodge Challenger with out of state plates. He told me he was coming from the Jacob Javits (on my way home later I started to ask myself “what the hell was he doing all the way on the upper east side). He said he had to get rid of the jackets because he wouldn’t have passed customs. He showed me other jackets that he purchased for his family. I would say he’s about 5′9, slim build, with black hair. Button Felloff I would appreciate if you can send me a photo….. thanks
April 6th, 2006 at 6:34 pm
ok so add me to the growing list of people, i spent 200 bucks on 4 coats, i’m assuming there fakes but are they seem to be good quality leather. But then again i fell for it so what do i know, anyone have any idea how good the jackets are despite the fake brand?
August 28th, 2006 at 8:16 pm
I just fell for the same scam. His pitch was identical to the one used on Rob Yazzi. I now have 6 jackets and didn’t want any! In some sick way, I wanted to help this guy solve his problem as I had no interest in making money by selling jackets. I should have listened to my intincts as I considered that the guy might be a conning me. After inspecting the coats (post-transaction) I realize that they are of little or no value. I also would like to get a picture of this guy if one is available.
August 28th, 2006 at 9:41 pm
Please let me have a look at the photo it may be the same guy who got me in the supermarket car park on his way back to Italy.
August 31st, 2006 at 10:21 pm
Message to David:
From Peter Elliott
Where were you scammed? I was in Tesco York on Saturday August 26th at 1PM.
September 19th, 2006 at 3:49 pm
Wow, same exact thing happened. Bought 5 coats (2 black leather and 3 suedes) from an Italian guy in suite in a Laguna Hills parking lot. Showed the passport, and flight ticket, thick accent, rental Lincon SUV. Said something about customs, a fashion show, Armani Collezioni’s…
Rule of thumb to live by: don’t by stuff from anyone from their car in a parking lot!
September 30th, 2006 at 2:34 pm
My boyfried has just encountered an Italian guy selling A. Collezioni jackets in Copenhagen, as everyone else the guy was italian, on his way to the airport. He had attented a fashion fair and had access bagage and wanted to buy someting for his family. did anyone have a picture of the guy.
I have desperately tried to find a web page which shows the brand, does anyone know where to look?
October 10th, 2006 at 8:23 am
It all happened again on October 7th in central Copenhagen. Feel pretty dumb right now, spend DKK 1700,- (pocketmoney) on a suit, a leatherjacket and a coat of a kind… Anyway, the guy was driving a large rented Audi this time, he said his name was Luca (from Milano, obviously), nicely dressed, sharp haircut and, well, full of crap.
October 18th, 2006 at 12:11 am
Hi, well my hubby also got scammed he tryes though hes always looks for ways to make extra money, i knew imeditly just by them saying a collezioni that they were fake..hes so silly and he still insists that they are real,so i will sell them on ebay and state that they are imatations, you should all can do the same but make sure you state that they are imatations so nothing legal gets involved they are infact real leather so you can make some of your money back but probebly not all of it i will definetly make my money back seeing as how he only paid $100 for 5 jackets.. goodluck to all
October 25th, 2006 at 8:53 pm
hey folks, hot off the press. i ran into this guy too. same jacob javits story. he was on the upper east side of manhattan. this was like a month ago. today my buddy calls me and tells me that the guy got his attention while on his beer route, and had the same story, 3 for 800. seems like he has A LOT of them. they are very nice jackets, and in my opinion worth a couple hundred bucks (compared to whats out there in the store). i think i know how to get in touch with him. i dont even need to see the picture to know its him. hes a little dude. ill put him in a headlock and throw him in a dog cage, then let everyone come “say hi” for a fee of $50. who’s down?
October 28th, 2006 at 1:20 am
i too, have purchased jackets. can’t say i got quite as good of a deal. i like the jackets and appear very high quality. they are most likely not authentic, but. often times designers use surplus matierals in knock offs, but its the same fabric or leather. could be. anyways, i thought i was so cool randomly meeting this person. my buddy tells me he ran into the same guy in manhattan (the one we’re all talking about). same jacob javits, lincoln tunnel bs.
October 28th, 2006 at 2:47 pm
believe it or not i was done the same as the others 26th oct in prescot liverpool england for 475 pounds would love to see the photo
October 31st, 2006 at 4:52 pm
I fell for it last night… 22 years in New York and was just involved in my first “scam”. 39th street near 7th avenue. Didnt like the jackets except one. Insticts were telling me to get away but one jacket looked nice… This guys name was Francesco.
November 2nd, 2006 at 7:47 pm
Same story!! I’m in North California. I was loading lumber from the store. Got 2 collections 6 jackets for $400. Guy was from Milano. Nice jackets.
November 2nd, 2006 at 11:46 pm
ADD ANOTHER… Scambag just got me too.. Funny part is I speak italian, so the whole deal was in italian.. I felt bad for the guy and he got me with the old do a fellow italian a favor ..help me out.. begging me.. 200 for 4 jackets and actually snuck one out at last minute.. so ended up with 3 jackets.. i didnt want them either only felt bad.. so much for being nice. I would love a picture too..
November 5th, 2006 at 4:02 pm
This is not armani!!!! Armani says Armani collezioni, this is an above the board knockoff calle A. collezioni
November 6th, 2006 at 6:41 pm
ha ha ha … i cant believe it! my husband came home with these so called armani jackets and says this italian man approached him in the parking lot of the farmers market and sold him 3 leather coats for $400! he said the guy was from italy and the same story that everyone else has. this guy gets around, huh? i live in upstate new york! who is this guy?! and where did these coats come from?
November 10th, 2006 at 5:47 pm
Yo, WTF! This guy got me today, about 20min ago. Same f’n story. Damn, he’s pretty smooth. So, after a ride to Bank Of America, I take out $260 for 4 jackets, later realize he only gave me 3, he must of taken 1 out while I was @ the ATM(my fault for not checking). So, the act was he’s in a rush to Newark airport, taxes this, his wife said that, so on & so on…
At the very last min he’s still asking for more money, like if I was getting such a great deal….
Anyway, best part of the whole thing is, I sold them all on my way back home, & made $200 out the whole thing… I hate to spread the bootleg jackets around to others, but I had to make my money back…
November 15th, 2006 at 5:19 am
Same story, same guy, same fake crap. This time on 20th and 1st in New York. Little guy in his way to the Newark airport asking for directions to teh lincoln tunnell. Showed me a passport, airline ticket, and business card which i now know is fake. 3 jackets, and a suit by A Collezioni for $450. Thick accent, even showed me pictures of his kids. very smooth. i feel like a dumb ass. do not try to sell them on ebay, they are all fake. to the next guy reading this…suck it up. shit happens when you are greedy
November 16th, 2006 at 3:05 am
I got this email from someone who ran into the same guy. Seems as if he may be apprehended:
November 16th, 2006 at 4:12 am
Hi guys ! I was scamed at parking lot at lower manhattan ! the same guy the same story .. airport, italy, georgio armani, and so on ! I want to join to press charges against this guy or if somebody knows where to find him let me know !
November 20th, 2006 at 2:09 am
Same story to me on 31st and broadway, Francesco guy from Milan, sold 4 for $400.
This guy is Good ! same old story, show over, can’t get thru customs. I can ID him if he gets arrested. He was fat, balding.
November 20th, 2006 at 10:19 am
NOV 20th, 06 around 2:30 am. Yes I was scammed as well. In fact just an hour ago. A guy, looking sharp with italian accent asked for direction to Newark Airport offered me the once in a life time opportunity…..blah blah blah just like he did it to everyone else… I drive NYC taxi to make a living and it was a very difficult night and I cannot believe this low life made such a fool out of me. If Anyone finds this s’rekcuf whereabout I would like to beat the shit out of this guy and send him to jail. ithunderny@yahoo.com
November 20th, 2006 at 2:14 pm
yeah. i just got this coat from my girl who got it from somewhere from her dad..lol whatever. it’s compy, not very warm, but compfy
November 21st, 2006 at 5:24 am
oh wow i am so surprised with all these stories because my boyfriend bought a few too. he gave him a catalog and everything please keep an update i need to ask my boyfriend where and who he got them from. he told me some italian guy. i;m so glad i ran into this website. please keep updates ill returned to the this website after i speak to him
November 21st, 2006 at 3:01 pm
Hi I am wondering if the guy who said he was arrested ever found out the outcome. I’m from North bergen and i Called the police station but they won’t release any info. over the phone. They said to come in my boyfriend spend 1000 and i want our money back.
November 22nd, 2006 at 3:41 am
HI, IM WRITTING FROM TIJUANA, AS YOU KNOW, TIJUANA IS IN MEXICO, IS THE BORDER NEAR SAN DIEGO, WELL, IM SURE THIS ITALIAN GUY BAILED OUT VERY QICK CAUSE TODAY THIS ITALIAN GUY SCAMMED MY HUSBAND, HE FELL FOR A $600 DLLS DEAL ON 5 JACKETS AND A SUIT, THIS HAPPENED AT NOON TODAY, MI HUSBAND WAS OUTSIDE OF HIS OFFICE WHEN THIS SHORT ITALIAN APROACH HIM, AS YOU ALL SAY, IS THE SAME STORY, CUSTOMS, AIRPORT, MILANO ITALY, FASHION SHOW, RENTAL CAR, HE ALSO GAVE HIM HIS BLACK BUSSINESS CARD,ETC, ETC., HIS NAME IS ANDREA VIANELLI (IT MUST BE FAKE ALSO) I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT HE ALREADY CROSS THE BORDER TO MEXICO AND NOW HES DOING HIS FRAUD IN MEXICO. ALL THE CLOTHING SAYS: A COLLEZIONI AND SAYS MADE IN ITALY IN THE LINING, BUT IT DOESNT HAVE ANY TAGS INSIDE THE JACKETS OR THE SUIT. HE WAS RIDING ON A RENTAL CAR ALSO AND SAID SOMETHING ABOUT NEEDING TO PAY THIS RENTAL CAR. IM VERY SAD CAUSE MY HUSBAND WAS VERY HAPPY WHEN HE CAME HOME, HE THOUGHT HE WAS GETTING A VERY GOOD DEAL THAT HE LET GO THE $600.00 SO EASILY, WHEN WE ARE NEDDING THIS MONEY FOR OUR NEW BORN. I FEEL VERY VERY SAD. THE JACKETS LOOKED NICE, THE LEATHER LOOKS OF GOOD QUALITY AND ALL THE STICHINGS ARE FINE MADE. DO SOMEONE KNOWS WHAT A REALLY WORTH??? I THINK THAT HE STOLE THIS GOOD MERCHANDISE FROM SOMEWHERE IN ITALY AND DEALING WITH IT HERE.
November 26th, 2006 at 8:34 pm
well i have to ad mine to the list a week ago today (11-19-06) at a hess gas station on long island new york not far from the long island expressway i got hit by the TWO italian guys in the rental car with NJ plates looking for JFK airport to go back where else but italy i ended up with 4 coats 2 black leather and 2 lighter colored suade for $165.00 so a little over $40.00 a coat be on the look out they are slick. they wanted $550 but after lots of talking and a broken ATM the price ended up at 165 and even at the last minute they were trying to make it only 3 not 4 of the coats! beware!!!!
December 1st, 2006 at 12:49 am
How the heck did this guy end up in Apple Valley, CA? I can’t believe I found this thread. I actually just googled “a. collezioni real leather?”. The same thing happened to my husband 2 days ago. A short italian guy in a rental car approached him in front of a grocery store. Said he was coming back from an “exhibition” or show from Vegas and had to get rid of these jackets and suit. He showed his passport and plane ticket and didn’t want to deal with customs. At first he offered them at $1200. My husband even brought this guy to my mom’s house. There he paid this guy $600 for 7 leather jackets and a suit. The suede is faux. I just hope that the other jackets really are leather. I still think we got an awesome deal. We knew they weren’t real Armani’s that was obvious. My question is who is this guy and where is he getting these jackets from? He said his name was Francesco. He even left his address with my husband.
December 7th, 2006 at 7:10 pm
I have a somewhat different story. My friend was around New Rochelle getting off work when a sharply dressed, good looking young Italian man asked him for directions to JFK airport. He could not speak english. My friend speaks spanish so he tried his best to give directions. The man was so grateful that he was willing to help him that he gave him 3 of those collezioni jackets without asking for any money. He also gave him his card (which was in Italian). Do you think it could have been that Francesco guy actually really trying to go back to Italy? Maybe he is quitting the business? It is just so weird…
December 17th, 2006 at 8:31 pm
Add me to the list of suckers…very smooth con man, exact same m.o. and result…he got me for $200 for 3 leather jackets…corner of Lexington and 69th, he was pulled over at Lex and asking direction to Newark airport, with a very fancy SUV rental. I’m pretty sure the jackets are vinyl….is there a way check?
December 26th, 2006 at 4:11 am
There’s an item in the Metropolitan Diary of today’s New York Times (12/25) suggesting that this guy may be back in town. Apparently Mr. Johnson-Laird was lucky–he got a free bolt of cloth for his directions. I encountered this Italian guy in the East 40s in Manhattan back in February (which aligns with some of the earlier sightings posted here). He offered me three leather Armani jackets in exchange for directions to the airport. Said they were samples he couldn’t carry back to Milan with him. When he found out I was a writer, he asked me if he could hire me to edit his catalog in English and even gave me his business card. He was ready to hand over the three jackets for “free” when he suddenly asked for money (I think it was $200 or so) to pay for the car rental and petrol. When I refused, he swiped the business card back, threw the coats back in the SUV, and drove off. I’m sorry I didn’t take his plate–it all happened so fast.
December 29th, 2006 at 2:33 am
This happened today 12/28/06 my dad was in the parking lot of Lowes in North Carolina same thing directions to the airport the guy said he needed money for a PS3 for his kids since they were expensive in Italy that they were $1500 so the guy sold my dad 7 jackets for $500 and he said his name was “pepe martini” and he looked about 35-40 years old and was italian. and my dad gave him his buisness card and my dad got an adress from him in Italy. And said that he’ll be back in end of Janurary and will give my dad a call and if he gets in touch with him i’ll let u know !
January 4th, 2007 at 5:04 pm
I am confused as to what everyone is complaining about. My brother purchased the jackets through the same scenario - three jackets, $200 or something like that. He gave one to me for watching his dog over a weekend. If it is fake leather, it is nice fake leather. If it is not fake leather, I doubt you could purchase a similiar jacket for $66 (the approximate cost). I wear mine regularly and only receive compliments - and my buddys are pricks. Plainly, they seem to be nice jackets. Those that paid up to $500-$700 for a set of jackets only have their own greed to blame.
January 7th, 2007 at 11:58 am
Just suspiciously googled A Collezioni and found this thread. Very interesting. Thanks
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2-x-Mens-A-Collezioni-Black-Leather-Jacket-X-Large_W0QQitemZ230072227955QQihZ013QQcategoryZ52758QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem#ebayphotohosting
January 24th, 2007 at 1:57 pm
Well, add me to the list. At Clifton Commons off Route 3, he asker for directions to Newark Airport, lots of broken english, just finished a show at Javits, engaged me like a real pro. Couldn’t take them thru customs without paying a tax. The went from $700 to $300 to the $200 in my pocket. Asked how much was left in my wallet before he hurried away (in a different direction from my supplied). Dark hair, also spoke spanish, two dark marks on his right hand, NJ plates VJD-18J. I’d love to help catch him.
January 25th, 2007 at 2:34 am
SAME THING HAPPENED TO ME TODAY BEEN 1/24/07. I WAS ACTUALLY IN THE CITY OF FONTANA BUYING A CELL PHONE AND WHEN I WENT OUTSIDE THERE HE WAS. AN ITALIAN GUY THAT ALSO NEW SPANISH. DRIVING A WHITE S.U.V. HE ENDED UP GIVING ME 6 JACKETS FOR ONLY $100 DOLLARS. TO START WITH HE WAS CHARGING ME 1,400 AND WENT ALL THE WAY DOWN TO 300.00. THAN WHEN I WAS GIVING HIM THE MONEY I KIND OF MADE A REMARK THAT I WAS A COP. THE GUY ENDED UP RUNNING. HE LEFT ME 6 JACKETS FOR $200.00. I WANT TO GIVE HIS CHANGE SO IF YOU GUYS CAN HELP ME FIND HIM. THANKS..
look:http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2-x-Mens-A-Collezioni-Black-Leather-Jacket-X-Large_W0QQitemZ230072227955QQihZ013QQcategoryZ52758QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem#ebayphotohosting
January 25th, 2007 at 2:36 am
SAME THING HAPPENED TO ME IN FONTANA. THIS, I HAD SEEN THIS GUY IN A MALL ALREADY. IF I HAPPENED TO FIND HIM I WILL LET YOU GUYS NOW. DON’T BUY ANYMOERE. LOOK AT THIS WEBSIDET..
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2-x-Mens-A-Collezioni-Black-Leather-Jacket-X-Large_W0QQitemZ230072227955QQihZ013QQcategoryZ52758QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem#ebayphotohosting
February 13th, 2007 at 11:48 am
so yesterday i went to the bank to deposit my pay check. i come out and get into my car and this guy behind me in a silver pt cruiser is talking to me outside his passenger window…i thought he was mad at me at first but he was asking me if i spoke spanish. i told him i spoke a little, figuring he was looking for directions. he then starts talking to me in a combination of broken english and a mixture of spanish and italian that he works for armani in south coast plaza and they flew him out here for something. he is staying with a friend or something and is going back to lax that day. then he goes into this story how he has these three leather jackets but he isnt trying to sell them…the thing is that his bank back in italy has closed so he cant pay for his rental car. he shows me his passport and his rental car bill…trying to tell me that he doesnt want to sell me the jackets, that they are a gift for me to help him out. so being young, stupid and too nice for my own good i help the guy out…173 for 3 jackets…they look nice so i figure y not…so i give the guy the cash, and even another 5 because he is hungry and doesnt have money to eat. he said he would give me a call today in fact to let me know money has been wired by western union to repay me. he gave me a very big and affectionate hug and was on his way…just to be sure i followed him down the block enough to get a license plate number from him. hopefully i can help get this guy now.
February 13th, 2007 at 7:24 pm
What the hell, I just got scammed by this guy today a few hours ago… I was going to eat lunch at the Egg&I in Las Vegas, NV on sahara, and this Italian guy named Bruno Manzi, even gave me his card, It says hes a desiger in Milano Italy.. Anyways same story as everyone else, He rolls up in a rental car Pontiac SUV, doesnt speak good english, only Italian & spanish.. He needs to get to the airport and sells me 3 A.Collezioni leather jackets, 2 black, 1 brown.. Good quality though but not the real thing I guess.. damn this guy is good, if anyone has a picture of him post it on here… Did anyone else get a bussines card from him?
February 19th, 2007 at 1:38 pm
I fell for it today in Nutley NJ at 2:00PM outside of Sports Unlimited. I got 5 jackets for $500. The Italian I met, It says VincenzoA on the card, was driving a Pacifica from Enterprise. He had a buddy calling him and saying he had to hurry to the airport to catch the Alitalia flight to Milano. His friend was asking for his passport number. He gave him some numbers I understand that much Italian. All of course was fake. The issue I have is that the jackets were marked as XL and XXL when they infact were L. I will have to give mine away to charity, maybe to Goodwill, and get a tax deduction next year. I would like to see thee photo as well.
Life is a trial and error experience.
February 24th, 2007 at 8:28 am
I can’t believe I’m reading this. I just got screwed by the same guy. I’m reading through this thread and can’t believe that just about everyone else’s story is similar to mine. Just this morning walking down Anderson Avenue in Cliffside Park, a short Italian guy in a rented Pontiac pulls over trying to sell me 4 coats for $500. I tell him that I won’t pay that much for a coat. But it’s Armani and he’s in a rush to get to Newark Airport for his flight back he says while showing me his plane ticket and passport. I ended up buying 3 coats for $200. I’m looking at them now and honestly, I don’t think they look that bad. For about $66 each, I don’t feel like I was taken to the cleaners since that’s about as much as I’d pay for a regular coat.
February 24th, 2007 at 9:14 am
Well, the only thing that kind of leaves me feeling like I got scammed is that I should’ve stuck with the $100 I was originally going to pay him.
February 28th, 2007 at 3:57 pm
Count me in. $500 for six “replica” jackets. Los Altos California.
March 6th, 2007 at 3:01 pm
Well, it happened to me today. I was at the Home Depot in San Mateo CA. It’s about 5 miles south of SF Airport.An Italian dude drives up to me and says that he was at a show in Santa Clara selling leather coats. He had these extra coats and didn’t want to pay for bringing them back to Italy. He had to catch a plane and wanted to give me a deal. So he would sell me 5 leather jackets for 600.00. I said no thanks, but he kept going down on the price. He then asked me what I would give him, and I said 200.00. He ended up getting 300.00 from me. They are nice jackets. These days one could spend that kind of money for 1 lousy jacket. I’m not going to loose any sleep over it, but I could see how someone would. Watch out people!!
March 21st, 2007 at 7:10 pm
OMG! The same thing happend to my brother. On March 17,2007, in Fontana, CA my brother was approched by an italian guy as he was coming out of the bank. Originally the italian wanted $700.00 dollars for 6 leather jackets. Same story, he had a passport and was ready to leave for Italy and he had to get rid of the jackets. He even went as far as telling my mother he was not kidding and he had 2 handicaped kids. He even showed pictures to prove it. Well he bought the six jackets for $400.00 and the italian even told my mom he will be back next year to sell her more jackets.
April 1st, 2007 at 12:12 pm
well guess what? same thing happen to me today. as i walked out of my project building in harlem manhattan NY, i was walking to the bank and he called me over to his car. he gave me the same sad story he gave all of you. he was going to the airport blah blah. well i bought two jackets for 200$. im so stupid i can’t believe i fell for this. as i took money out the atm i changed my mind but he then convinced me. i changed my mind because his flight info was in intalian but i know spanish so i could tell the flight was not today. also why would he have problems taking something that was made in italy back to italy? arg
April 3rd, 2007 at 2:37 am
Right lol, My uncle visited me yesterday (england), he said i got a present for you and started to go through the story, about how whilst out doing his garden some italian dude said hed got lost leaving someones house that he used to have as a contact.
Apperently the contact had moved to glasgow (so the neighbour had told him), anyway he went through the same sort of speail, Fashion exhibition in london, stock he didnt want to take back blah blah, showed my uncle 4 coats and said if my uncle paid his rental car fee(£149) he could have the coats.
My uncle was already suspicious and went indoors to get some money, he came out with £10 and said it was all he had as my aunt was out with other money, cheque book etc.
Apperently the italian bloke got a bit unhappy, picked up his coats and left (without the £10) lol, however he left one of the coats in the back of my uncles car lmao.
Which i was given……which is pretty cack really lol, probably seel it on ebay now but at least i know what to explain it as lol.
April 7th, 2007 at 3:05 pm
im about 20 min outside of philadelphia this guy got me outside a home depot. ?Same scam as everyone else. I was pretty sure they were fake but 400 for 8 jackets was a pretty good deal either way. Im gonna feel bad pushing these off on people i dont know what to sell them for. Does anyone know real value
June 15th, 2007 at 5:48 pm
i personally hustled car speakers and amps before.. same sales pitch and all.. and in south orange county.. it happned to me….. SAME thing… italian guy w/ harsh accent… actually gave me ride to bank where i got out 300$ and gave the wop 250$ for two leather and three suade ones, after we agreed upon 800$…. i sold one leather one to a buddy of mine for 200$ that hour…. im still pretty pissed off that i got hustled, but they are alright looking and the gf likes them on me…. so w/e.. i teach kickboxing and have my ccw w/ a .40 cal handgun always on me, so if i see him again….
June 20th, 2007 at 8:38 am
Same story here… Marin county oustide sf. I now see the same scam going on Craigs List. The guy accidently emailed me photos of himself by mistake and then photos of the jackets — perhaps he got burned too and is just trying to recoupe his cash.
It’s got to stop!
September 15th, 2007 at 8:11 pm
It has happen to me 4 times. Same story as everyone else also. The most recent case i called the cops and stated chasing the guy around. I got his liscence plate and it was a rental car but by the time they checked he was already gone. Don’t fall for the scam.
September 16th, 2007 at 1:38 am
So, now the guy is back in Copenhagen, Denmark. Some story - rental car - on his way to the airport. I am just wondering if it is the same guy as you all describe in the US. Could you please send me a photo then I will bring it to the police. Nice jacket though
September 22nd, 2007 at 1:42 pm
Well well well…this dude has made it to Canada! My husband was fished in today! It was a sob story of losing all his money at the casino and needed cash to pay the rental van before flying back home to Italy through Toronto Pearson Airport. Same line, directions to airport, Airline ticket, passport, etc. Long story short, bank account is lighter by $750 and we now own 5 fake Armani jackets. But, their quality doesn’t look too bad and they actually are quite nice on, so whatever!!!!
October 9th, 2007 at 6:24 am
I was targeted here in New York 3 times within a year. The same MO. A single or two well dressed man stop and as for directions to the Lincoln tunnel. They are here for a convention and want rid themselves of Armani suits and jackets.
They may be guilty of selling fraudulent items. However it should be noted that if one purchases a leather jacket for $50, it may not exactly be a ripoff.
I personally have not purchased any items from the men who approached me.
AS A SPECIAL NOTE: I OBJECT TO THE USE OF “WOP” BY “BeN Player”. Shame on you.
October 9th, 2007 at 6:49 am
I was targeted here in New York 3 times within a year. The same MO. A single or two well dressed man stop and ask for directions to the Lincoln tunnel. They are here for a convention and want rid themselves of Armani suits and jackets.
They may be guilty of selling fraudulent items. However it should be noted that if one purchases a leather jacket for $50, it may not exactly be a ripoff.
I personally have not purchased any items from the men who approached me.
AS A SPECIAL NOTE: I OBJECT TO THE USE OF “WOP” BY “BeN Player”. Shame on you.
October 20th, 2007 at 9:35 pm
just got an a collzioni leather jacket for 100$ in canada nearby a krispy kreme shot - dis italian guy , who had to leave to italy that same day, was tryina sell 6 jacket for 900 dollars said it was legit and was trying to sell one for 150-200 dollars each
neway i liked 1 jacket n bought it for 100 later i cheked online n turns out dat a collzioni is not armani — it has nothin to do with armani - fake.
November 20th, 2007 at 12:43 pm
Same story, different day. I was outside of Home Depot today and was approached by the Italian Actor!! The same thing about a fashion show, LAX, and not wanting to incur any taxes for taking them with him on his flight back to Italy. I ended up buying 6 leather and suede jackets for $300. He wanted $400 but I only had $300. I was torn with my decision but he was such a nice guy and I wanted to help him out. I was excited yet still felt strange about my purchase. I went back to work and had someone check it out online. That’s when I found out that this was all a scam. Oh well. The jackets look good on me and I still think I got a deal even though these were fake and not real Armani. C’est la vie! I won’t make this mistake again!
November 23rd, 2007 at 3:17 pm
Same thing happened to me two days ago in Hamilton, NJ. I stopped to buy food at the supermarket and this Italian guy approached me. I was sure these were a whatever brand, but it’s true he was convincing and the quality looked good. I really was unable to help him for the sake of it, so I bargained for one jacket for $100. I ended up with 3 for $200. I hope that they are leather, if they are it’s not a bad deal. If they are not he got me.
December 16th, 2007 at 9:21 pm
Same thing, Oakton, Virginia at a gas station. Man approached my husband with same airline story. He was on his way to Dulles airport. This was in late 2006.
January 1st, 2008 at 6:31 am
hmm….. same thing happened to me in taiwan kaohsiung (might be in 2005 Oct or something)..
He called me in a car and told me that he had trouble speaking chinese to anything at that area. It seem he had driving around that area for a while. And that place is around 15 mins driving from an international airport in Kaohsiung as well. I was told that i am the only guy who can speak english at that time for that afternoon..
He showed me his passport,flight ticket, etc and about 5 jackts . and saying he is leaving to his home country and want to sell these jackets cheap to avoid paying the tax..
In the end, i bought one jacket for around 90USD( 2700 NT dollars)..
I am wondering if that is the same guy doing this con thing. He must be travlling around the world for this..
If anyone has the photo of him.. i wish to have a look if that is the same guy….
my email is joneslin29@gmail.com
please put the email title as A.Collezioni guy photo so i wont miss the email … thank you so much
January 30th, 2008 at 8:30 pm
Hi,this guy scammed me too! It was the exact same story, he asked for directions to the airport to fly off, than told me he had jackets that he had to get rid of because he would get taxed. He said the jackets were worth $700 each, and gave me a great deal for $150 a jacket, so I bought it. This happend in Toronto, Ontario at Spadina and Bloor. He too was with another younger fellow (whome was quiet through the whole incident).
After reading all the posts, it seems like this man is travelling the globe conducting this scam.
“Button Felloff” or anyone else with his photo;
I would love to see the picture, to confirm if its the same fellow.
Thanks
January 30th, 2008 at 8:31 pm
If anyone has a photo of this scam artist, can you please send it to me. I can be reached at igotscammed2@hotmail.com.
THANK YOU
February 9th, 2008 at 6:35 pm
Same thing, 700$ for 6 jackets.. I was so fooled. Only worth 10$ a piece?… bummer.
February 9th, 2008 at 6:37 pm
Same thing, 700$ for 6 jackets.. I was so fooled. Only worth 10$ a piece?… bummer. this was in Langley, BC at the liquor store.
March 3rd, 2008 at 10:49 am
New sucker in Denmark! How foolish can you be..? Today in Dyssegaard near Copenhagen, exactly same story as you all tell this rascal tells. Little man in little rental car. I paid DKK 2.000 / USD 400 for three leather and suede coats. I thought I needed a break from above LOL.
March 12th, 2008 at 8:36 pm
you guys are right this guy is slick i didnt even know this site was around sorry to post so late during a summer 2007 this guy tries the same story with me italy ,customs airport,yadda yadda yadda a i was walking to my cousins house (former con artist)(hopefully) when i was approached tried to talk me into it well i didnt have the cash and he asked if my cousin would be interested i told him to ask him since he was only down the block when we got there My cuz recognized the scam which he says originated in L.A. , and we went to beat the living piss outta him but he got away in his rental with jersey plates oh by the way this happened in Brooklyn NY
March 14th, 2008 at 9:29 am
Same thing. Wednesday March 12, 2008. NYC, Upper East Side. I was feeling good Karma that day, and decided to help with directions. After giving same story: SUV, Jacob Javitz center, jackets etc…
I didn’t think there was a show at Javitz, but there was a small chance so I listened. I speak some Italian, and he gave me his pitch in Italian.
I thought at first this was one of my many bizzaro New York experiences, but clearly this is an old con.
2 other people I know also were approached by this guy in NYC this week.
I got away without being scammed and got to practice my Italian.
The old adage holds up: If its too good to be true, it probably is.
March 14th, 2008 at 10:52 am
The TV program “The Real Hustle” had an episode on this scan. I gotta say they guy that approached me was much smoother than the guy in the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYJnR01oApE
April 1st, 2008 at 10:10 am
3-31-08 @7PM in San Jose, CA — between high end shopping center Santana Row and Valley Fair.
A man in a car rental (SUV), about 5′7″, 150lbs receding hair line (sort of looks like Bruno - the younger judge in Dancing with the Stars), heavy Italian accent in blue pin stripe suit - who just “…afinished a business ameeting in aSantana Row…” had a few jackets he has no need of. Wants to get rid of them prior to flying back to Italy: 2 men’s jackets and a ladies suede coat for ($1300, $1400 & $1600). He’ll give it all to me for half that price. I said I can’t - I couldn’t even afford half of the half. Anyway, ignorant me, I ended up giving him $200 for the 3 and drove off thinking I helped out a stranger in distress. Now I read the stories in this web page and feel so low. Sigh, it was a $200 lesson not to be gullible…next time.
April 18th, 2008 at 10:41 am
Last fall a friend gave me a nice “leather” jacket. He had purchased it from a guy he met and helped out. It sounds similar to many of the other stories here. My friend travels a lot so I’m not sure where he purchased the jackets.
My nice A Collezioni jacket is beginning to fall apart, and it is very obvious that it is not even real leather, just some sort of vinyl. The real value of the jacket is probably less than $20. Oh well, I enjoyed wearing it for the last 6 months, now I’ll probably just throw it away.
May 15th, 2008 at 8:23 am
May 1, 2008 Clairemont mesa, san diego, california.
My brother just got scammed by this italian guy also in a rental car with airplane tickets to go back home. He bought 3 jackets one suede brown jacket and 2 black leather jackets with the same story. These italians are just scamming people moving from county to county.
May 15th, 2008 at 8:01 pm
OMG it just happened to my husband today. My husband was talking to me on phone while he was having conversation and I told my husband its looking like scam to me. I even ask him to describe me the logo and what he explained to me I said to him its not real, but my husband said does not really matter to me as I am helping someone who is in need and want to go back home and he said that guy is looking so real and that guy had heavy italian accent and he cant speak english he wanted $275 as he want to go back to italy as his mother is sick and he even showed my husband his ticket and passport. I cant beleive. I am shocked when I checked that it happened with so many people.
May 15th, 2008 at 9:23 pm
This happened in Calgary, AB, Cananda
May 15th, 2008 at 9:24 pm
I mean Calgary, Alberta, Canada
June 12th, 2008 at 8:07 pm
I too was scammed on A collezioni in calgary. I was talking a walk during my lunch break from the Shaw building on barlow when a guy in a rental car pulled up and asked where the airport was. So I gave him directions and was about to leave when he jumped up and asked if I would take some coats off of him. I had a lot of trouble understanding his italian accent and said whatever and next thing i knew he was trying to sell me 5 coats for $1000. He said that he recieved these from his company and didn’t want to pay taxes. He also said that they were worth $1000 each, and claimed he was rich so he didn’t need them. I immediatly thought of it as a huge scam, but figured they were probably some cheap leather or immitation leather coats. They looked quite nice though, but I told him I didn’t need them. He then told me to give him an offer so I told him $250 for all 5. We ended up settling on $300 for all 5, and I went to the bank to get him the money. While there he drove under some security cameras (on purpose), but he was in a rental (at least it had rental plates, no rental company sticker I could see, and the plate may have been a fake from the quick glance I took to make sure the car wasn’t a regular vehicle). At the bank he suddenly asked for more and I started to walk away, but then decided to go for it anyhow, and gave him $ 380 for 5 coats. Thing was he tried to give me only 4 (didn’t realize this until I got them in my car and he was several block away already). Either way they look nice, and i’ve been trying to regain as much money as possible by selling them honesty as immitation leather coats (Vynyl with a fabric backing to make it rough behind like real leather is (this is what fooled me)) for what I paid for them.
June 12th, 2008 at 8:07 pm
This was somewhere around may 15 as well.
June 21st, 2008 at 4:54 pm
Hi, I too was scammed. It happened today in Hillerød, North of Copenhagen, same story. I paid 700 for 3 jackets and a suit. The suit says Reporter R.D.G. The guy was at short guy with at tatoo on his right arm. I seems like he is expanding his repertoire with a new brand. The suit finishing details seem alright, but I am not able to judge the quality. I gave away the jackets for at good cause.
August 31st, 2008 at 2:10 pm
I knew it was too good to be true, it happened to me in Philly, four blocks from south st. about three weeks ago.
Is there anything that can be done to get this guy?
August 31st, 2008 at 3:12 pm
This exact scam happened to my dad in the Waitrose car park in Harrogate, UK, over a year ago. Luckily he only forked out £30. I’ve just opened the lining of the jacket - and yes, it’s plastic. Button Felloff - I’d love to see the picture!
September 19th, 2008 at 7:29 am
i was on 29th and madison and this smooth italian guy pulled up in a rented jeep with florida plates. asked for directions for the lincoln tunnel (from madison ave???) and proceeded to small talk and went into how he was at a show at the javits center for a convention working with armani and had a lot of extra jackets for sale. he said i had to get into the car to see them so i did, it was rush hour on madison and he gave me his car keys, then whipped out 2 leathers and a suede, saying give me half for one and get 2 for free. he had a plane ticket, italian license, pictures of his kids and a business card. he said he couldnt bring the jackets back to italy because each collection would be taxed %20. i declined and he asked me what i could do so i tell him 120, he said he would give me 2 leathers for that. as a way out i said i would go to atm at the deli, luckily i have internet on my phone so i went online and found this exact site explaining everything. he then came inside and i said no, he tried to get me to do it but finally he left. the suede jacket felt terrible and the leathers did feel good, but were probably vinyl. none of the jackets said armani but A. Callezoni (sp?) instead. i must say the guy was the smoothest hustler i have ever seen and he had a superb presentation, but it was all too perfect. if its too good, it probably is. he was about 5′8″, slim build dressed well with heavy accent and acted extremely nice. i threw out the business card but his name was luca d something and he was driving a rented jeep with florida plates.
thanks everyone who posted their stories on this site. scam avoided.