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Florida man is sounding the alarm on work-from-home scams during the coronavirus pandemic after he recently succumbed to a fraudulent reshipping scheme.
Alan Walker, who lives in Miami Gardens, lost his job as a longshoreman at the Port of Miami at the start of the pandemic. The father-of-two said he spent months researching new opportunities online and submitted multiple applications until he received a callback for a work-from-home position in December.
“I was very excited and relieved because I was already a few months behind on my mortgage,” Walker told NBC News. He quickly accepted a position as a “quality control inspector” at a transportation and logistics company called Shea Post LLC.
Walker said the role required him to receive packages from the company’s distributors, replace the outer label on the box, and then ship the item to a customer. It received and reshipped around 19 packages, ranging from gold bars to power tools to vacuum cleaners.
“I felt like the job was fine for me, and at the same time – with the pandemic – I wouldn’t be around anyone, which was a plus for my family’s health,” Walker said.
However, after working for the company for 30 days, Walker said he grew suspicious when he didn’t receive his paycheck on time. During the virtual onboarding process, Walker provided his banking information for direct deposits as well as photos of his driver’s license and Social Security card for a background check.
He immediately contacted the human resources manager of Shea Post LLC, who said late payment was typical for new employees, according to Walker. But, when Walker followed up on his overdue paycheck again, the HR manager and his direct supervisor weren’t responding via email and phone.
Shortly thereafter, on January 19, Walker received a letter from the US Postal Inspection Service in Newark, New Jersey, stating that he “may be or have been involved in a work-from-home scam and the items you receive and / or the shipment may contain stolen merchandise. NBC News obtained a copy of the letter to Walker.
The US Postal Inspection Service did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“There weren’t any red flags with the company until the very end because everything went exactly as they said it would,” Walker said. “But it was fraudulent, and they took advantage of me.”
According to the Better Business Bureau, Shea Post LLC is not an accredited business and has been assigned an “F” rating. The Better Business Bureau also has an alert on the business stating that the address provided is not its location. The images and names on the “About Us” page on the companies’ website are also invalid.
Shea Post LLC did not respond to telephone and email requests for comment.
Complaints about businesses and scams related to job opportunities increased in 2020 as Covid-19 put millions of Americans out of work, according to the Federal Trade Commission.
“It was supposed to be a big step for me, and it turned out to be eight steps back, and I’m still in the same position,” said Walker, who called his bank and credit bureaus to avoid identity theft.
Walker remains unemployed and warns those who are also out of work to do their research before seizing new opportunities.
“They took my time, my effort and my energy, and it was a big slap in the face,” he said.
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