Carson City business scammed by Canadians

Staff report

A fake Canadian business has scammed a Carson City computer parts company out of more than $20,000, according to the company.

The Cubix Corporation, 2800 Lockheed Way, shipped 44 computers and computer stands to a Quebec business in February, but Cubix was never paid the $23,150 charge.

Vente Electronique Plus, which describes itself as electronics distributor, has been accused of scams before, according to a police report.

Cubix thinks it found some of the monitors on eBay Canada, the report said, but it isn't sure.

Phone and fax numbers for Vente Electronique Plus were disconnected.

Cubix did some checks on Vente before it sold to them, said co-owner Don Lehr, but it wasn't careful enough.

He said his company was scammed by another Canadian business about 10 years ago, and he should have got the transaction backed by a U.S. bank.

"We've learned our lessons," he said. "I don't know why we forget."

U.S. businesses need to be careful with international deals. Lehr said, because many other countries don't have guarantees for businesses.

The loss, however, is "not a killer" for his company, according to Lehr. Lehr is a partner in the redevelopment of the Ormsby House casino-hotel project.

"Hey we're big boys," he said, "so we'll lick our wounds."