I’d like to share my tale of woe with everyone in the prop community. This is in the spirit of friendship and in the hope that, by openly reporting the incident, it may save someone going through what I had to. If anyone has had a similar experience with Mr. Caslis, I’d like to hear from them. Also, please feel free to post this on any board you wish. The more people who see this, the less likely anyone else will be affected the same way I was.

I used to collect screen used Trek props. Tricorders in particular.
A few years ago, I contacted Caslis because I’d heard he may have some interesting props for sale. I had heard about him and understood he was an authenticator for Profiles In History. Naturally, I assumed he was above board and could be trusted.

He told me he had a screen used hero science Tricorder from First Contact, and duly emailed pictures of the prop. It looked fine so I agreed to buy the piece from him for two thousand dollars plus shipping to the UK. I sent the money and waited for the prop to arrive. When it did, I was immediately struck by the fresh paint smell of the piece. I was suspicious, so I contacted Mike Moore at HMS and asked him to authenticate the piece for me. He told me it was indeed made at his shop, but was a ‘Vegas’ model, or one from the Viacom store. Not a screen used piece at all.

I emailed Caslis and told him what Mike Moore had said. He said He’d be happy to take the piece back for a full refund. Being a trusting soul, I dutifully shipped the piece back to him…………….and that was the last time I heard from him.
He had taken my money and the returned prop and simply disappeared. I tried to contact him at the numbers I had but he’d moved house. His workplace told me he’d left and they didn’t know where he was. He didn’t respond to emails.

A couple of weeks ago, I managed to find his new email address and discovered he was trading on Ebay under the name ‘mistymfan’. I emailed him at his new email address, antimatterguy@yahoo.com, and asked for my money. I said that if he didn’t make some sort of gesture toward repaying me I’d post the story about him on the boards and let his potential customers make their own minds up. His response was simple. He said ’I’m sorry that you are not happy with the deal we did years ago. But be careful with the threats you make’.

That’s the last I heard from him. I’m still two grand down. He seems to show no remorse at all.


My message is simple; if you are dealing with Caslis please bear my story in mind.

Karl

Is there an echo in here?

Thanks for the tip. Would you like to introduce yourself and talk about Aliens stuff now, or have you already forgotten that you posted this exact same rant no more than FOUR DAYS AGO?

I kept my mouth shut after Harry endorsed Karl's initial post. However I now feel justified (and annoyed enough) to shoot from the hip-

Bottom line is that Karl is posting in our community for no other reason than to continue his smear campaign against Ken Caslis (hence my harsh "revenge" comment the first time around).

Polite as his story is put and benign his intentions may be (I'm not so sure now), his (two) posts are nothing more than mud slinging because he got burned in a deal. He has Ken's contact information, why not go through the proper authorities? Why bring this here? And if Ken was a member of this community, it wouldn't take long for this to turn into a full blown flame war (all we *don't* need now is for Ken to show up defending himself).

I don't really care if Karl is an Aliens fan- I am convinced he would not have joined this community had it not been for the bad deal with Ken Caslis.

At any rate this is spamming the board, no?

Kevin

[img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0TgDnAloXyJBkYBZV7s*Kj9!1Bc8b0FJ!WEmX8BpHJk8yRyABH697OsLy1Bm1knQrHcDDdHqDnRAmyoDB6vy6w!ASmCM57J8W6cyCxY8Y84TWwwCw7UVNAA/Burton%20004.JPG[/img]

"I know I'm human. And if you were all these things, then you'd just attack me right now, so some of you are still human. This thing doesn't want to show itself, it wants to hide inside an imitation. If it takes us over, then it has no more enemies, nobody left to kill it. And then it's won."

Kevin,

I apologise for the additional post. I've been very busy and it's a simple error. I've been doing long hours and one post was simply on auto-pilot. I'm sorry, But I think I posted the other thread under a different name, so that's where soem confusion on my part has arisen. It also explains why I was thought to be a new member.

I've been a member here for a long time. I've also supported many Aliens activities and events here in the UK. I most certainly did not join the board simply to post this.

This isn't mudslinging. I honestly doubt you would be quite so casual if the stolen two grand were your hard-earned money. This is an attempt to get the information about the theft to as many people on as many boards as possible, for the sole purpose of warning others who may come into contact with Caslis so that they don't suffer the same fate as me. Nothing more.

This is not a rant. It's a reasonable, undramatized, unembellished explanation of the events that took place. There is not profanity nor character judgement, simply the facts as they happened.

With regard to the 'proper authorties'; Have you tried to sue someone across the Atlantic recently? As I said in the original post, he moved house, jobs and email service providers to stay ahead of those he owes money to. I have his current email address, yes, but that only works when people reply.........

This was intended as a community service.

As for shooting from the hip, have you looked at my postings since I joined the board? Do you really think I joined the board simply to post this thread? Really?

Also, I would welcome Caslis coming forward to clear his name, as would many, many others who have been affected by his activities.

I sincerely hope, that if asked, any of the board in the UK members who know me would vouch for my good character.

Kevin, you have made a incorrect snap judgement about me, based on nothing more than your own assumptions.

My apologies to the other board members.


Karl






Edited by: [url=http://p220.ezboard.com/bthealienslegacy.showUserPublicProfile?gid=mosttoyz>mosttoyz[/url] at: 2/25/07 9:10 am

It's never an easy thing to lose 2 thousand dollars AND the prop you paid that much for, even if it was worth it. I'm sorry to hear it happened.

I don't consider this spamming, it sounds like he's trying to put the word out to anyone who may be interested in buying props, and lots of us here have that interest.

I'm not a trek fan enough to buy trek props, and paying 2 thousand bucks for anything isn't something I'm in a financial position to do. If I were, I think I'd have to go through an auction house or a legit website . Even if the person worked for PIH, which is well repsected but not bulletproof, probably because of guys like Ken.

Kevin, your post makes me think you've seen this information on other boards, no? I know you're a trek fan and costumer, so I'm assuming this is posted on some trek boards besides being posted here twice? Did it erupt into flaming elsewhere?

All that said, you can hire a lawyer in the US to deal with Ken and probably get your money back. It doesn't need to go to court, some times a simple call from a lawyer is enough to scare people into paying you back. Fraud is fraud, whether it's on ebay, or in emails. You were a victim of fraud and theft. If you can afford 2 grand for a tricorder, buddy, you can afford a US lawyer!

Karl- I recognize your original screenname and do understand you've been here awhile, what I didn't understand is the need for a new user name for your post if you already have an account here.

I'm not saying you did that on purpose, but for whatever reason when an established member posts under a different name (without an explanation for the change) it falls under them term "sock puppet" (a derogatory term). I most certainly believed that "ukbadger" joined for the sole purpose of that single post- unbeknownst to me that it was really you mosttoyz. This is where all the confusion began. I can only surmise that you have created multiple accounts to several boards, and lost track of where you already posted. An honest mistake.

I also would not have been so brutally frank if you had posted under your original name to begin with (or if you had at least explained the name change). I've been on other boards where someone joins for no other reason than to bring with him, his fight with someone else. That is why my guard went up right away.

One of the problems I have with posts like this in general is that they can be construed as slander- regardless of whether the information is valid or not. Again I am not questioning your honesty- I do believe what you say. But as hard as it might be for Ken to sue you for slander (as it is for you to sue him), you don't want to provide him with fodder do you? (This might be what Ken meant by his veiled threat to you about watching what you say about him).

Listen- now that I recognize who you are- I am on your side, and truly apologize for flying off the handle. Everyone knows me well enough that I normally do not post with such ferocity.

Kevin

[img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0TgDnAloXyJBkYBZV7s*Kj9!1Bc8b0FJ!WEmX8BpHJk8yRyABH697OsLy1Bm1knQrHcDDdHqDnRAmyoDB6vy6w!ASmCM57J8W6cyCxY8Y84TWwwCw7UVNAA/Burton%20004.JPG[/img]

"I know I'm human. And if you were all these things, then you'd just attack me right now, so some of you are still human. This thing doesn't want to show itself, it wants to hide inside an imitation. If it takes us over, then it has no more enemies, nobody left to kill it. And then it's won."

Edited by: [url=http://p220.ezboard.com/bthealienslegacy.showUserPublicProfile?gid=ssgtburton>SSgt Burton[/url]  at: 2/25/07 11:01 am

Kevin,

Thank you very much for your reply. I respect you for it.

The source of the mistake is certainly me. I was registered at ASAP and was suddenly unable to access the board, so I registered a new account name and tried again. I don't post there much so I didn't have much to lose.

I was unaware that I'd logged onto this board under my new account name until today. I wholeheartedly apologise for any concern I may have caused. As I said, long hours and the odd synaptic misfire are to blame.

I'm fully aware of the sockpuppet thing and now realise how it must have looked to you.

No hard feelings at all on my part Kevin.

I love this board and many of my friends are members here.

Please join me in a virtual beer, and we'll put this behind us.

Cheers,

Karl

Indeed! I love this board too Karl- It is the main reason for my over-reaction.

Cheers my friend!

[img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0SgDODhMX2nFQaK!J5CiHuUrYJTRCKJm5LVXt8vj9E74pglkktKMvvPCECd9yEJYNCbV0dju2x8QTj!NGoflCd9SBXA6cf**YiIebgVFfN6mOsGzcverscg/uscmbeer.BMP[/img]

Kevin

[img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0TgDnAloXyJBkYBZV7s*Kj9!1Bc8b0FJ!WEmX8BpHJk8yRyABH697OsLy1Bm1knQrHcDDdHqDnRAmyoDB6vy6w!ASmCM57J8W6cyCxY8Y84TWwwCw7UVNAA/Burton%20004.JPG[/img]

"I know I'm human. And if you were all these things, then you'd just attack me right now, so some of you are still human. This thing doesn't want to show itself, it wants to hide inside an imitation. If it takes us over, then it has no more enemies, nobody left to kill it. And then it's won."

Noeland,

I appreciate the input.
I fear some might feel I'm a poor-little-rich-boy, as I paid that price for the prop. It's not the case, I'm a working guy like you.
The money for the screen usd props came from trading up and making props, models and displays for other people. It's a hobby.

Hiring a lawyer in the USA isn't a simple arrangement from the UK. Also, I'd only get the money back if he has it. All this being if we could find him in the first place.

I'd really need to be there to keep an eye on things. Being self-employed I can't spend the time, unpaid, to do it.

I hold out no real hope of ever getting the money back.

I told Caslis in my last (unanswered) email to him that I would go onto all the boards I could and tell the story to as many people as possible. Since he didn't reply I assumed he had no objection


Karl
Edited by: [url=http://p220.ezboard.com/bthealienslegacy.showUserPublicProfile?gid=mosttoyz>mosttoyz[/url] at: 2/26/07 5:20 am