John Atkinson — Citroënvie Scammer Extraordinaire!

By George Dyke….

Our Citroënvie Cars for Sale Marketplace section was targeted in September by scammer who tried to make bogus purchases of at least 4 vehicles we had listed there.

John Atkinson’s scams (if that is even his real name) tried to con John Peterson selling a 1985 2CV Charleston in Reno, NV. He also made an offer to purchase a 1971 D-Special Break from Sheela Devocht in Boca Raton, FL. And I just leaned that he tried to cheat Andre Pol on the 1972 US version SM he listed on Citroënvie.

I was not aware of the extent of his scams on Citroënvie until I started hearing back from, John, Sheela. However, in the meantime, he had managed to drag me into his scheme by responding to the ad I placed for a 1961 DS19. (A beautiful original example that once belonged Carter Willey. I am handling its sale as the owner does not have the time or desire to deal with buyers.) I received an email that was suspicious and decided to see where that would lead.

I have written about Citroën scams before, like the site that was trying to sell a SM I once owned. I wanted to play this latest one out to see the tactics now being used to entice unsuspecting folks to part with their cars, money, and most likely both.

As I was in the process of baiting John Atkinson, Sheela Patel-Devocht alerted me about her encounter with him saying that she was suspicious because of a couple of red flags:

• Asking for pictures but not pursuing after she asked if he could be more specific about what he wants to see in detail and pointing out there are pictures and video on the Citroënvie site. 
• Not asking more details about the car or taking her up on her offer to have a call with a Citroën specialist mechanic who knows and has worked with this specific car and had agreed to provide the technical details of its condition. 
• Sending an email stating a certified check had been sent with additional funds for the transport fee, without first discussing or getting an agreement from her to pay the transport fee on his behalf. (No check has arrived so far, he said it would arrive that day.) 
• Asking for her address and phone number but then not providing his address or the address of the transport company saying he would provide it after she cashed the check!! He did finally send a phone number but she never called it as she was too suspicious by then. (The phone number he provided was 954-696-6524 — a cell phone that shows as a Taxi Service in Ft Lauderdale, FL.)

Sheela decided to send an email refusing to accept the money due to over payment. She did not want to be in any position of sending any money out. This did not sound like a normal business transaction and at this point she was not willing to trust any check — certified or not.  It seemed like a ruse to perhaps get her to send money to a fake transportation company.

As I was in the process of playing out John’s scam, I thanked Sheela for the information she provided and said that I would pursue him on the 1961 DS19 he contacted me about. I actually had John Atkinson send a check to me. Here is how the scam played out (in chronological order):

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On Wed, Sep 17, 2025 at 5:14 AM John Atkinson johnatkinson099@gmail.com wrote:
Is it still up for sale? would like you to get back to me if its available with your last asking price present condition  pictures if you have.hope to hearing from you.  

John

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On Wed, Sep 17, 2025 at 5:59 PM George Dyke citroprez@gmail.com wrote:
Hi John,

The 1961 DS19 is still available.  The car is mechanically perfect.  As the ad says, the car is rust free and the paint has held up very well with only one very minor dent on the left front fender.
The interior is all original with the Helvetica Blue seats showing some wear that the present owner felt best not to alter as it validates the car’s authenticity and preserved originality.  

The asking price is $28K USD, which I think is quite fair given the condition and rarity of early DS not only in the USA, but Europe where a nice condition DS19 (if you can find one) would probably have an asking price double that.

Here are high resolution photos of the car.  https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1eA-IlhWrCWC7Fgx1QwmWVwYkOuHCGaUx?usp=drive_link
Regards,


George Dyke
647.896.3202
citroprez@gmail.com

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On Fri, Sep 19, 2025 at 9:31 AM John Atkinson johnatkinson099@gmail.com wrote:
Hi Dyke,

I got all the information you sent to me and will like to own the car,it caught my interest where is it located at so i can calculate the shipping cost.you didn’t mention anything about the miles and papers.

John

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On Fri, Sep 19, 2025 at 6:09 PM George Dyke citroprez@gmail.com wrote:
Hi John,

The DS19 is in Valatie, NY.  The mileage is 60,063 (96,662 kms on the odometer).  It has valid plates and has current registration in New York state.

George Dyke
647.896.3202
citroprez@gmail.com

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On Sat, Sep 20, 2025 at 12:10 PM John Atkinson johnatkinson099@gmail.com wrote:
Hi Dyke,

Thanks for the information,i will have payment sent next week via USPS so kindly let me know the details to have a certified bank check sent so i can put in the post first thing on monday.i look forward to hearing from you.

John

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On Sun, Sep 21, 2025 at 7:31 AM George Dyke citroprez@gmail.com wrote:
Hi John,

I am handling the sale of the 1961 Citroën DS19 so please send the certified bank check in the amount of $28,000 USD to me, George Dyke, at the following address:

George Dyke
36 Lisburn Cr.
Toronto, ON
Canada  M2J 2Z5

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On September 21, 2025 11:10:45 a.m. John Atkinson johnatkinson099@gmail.com wrote:
Hi Dyke,

Will you be able to cash a check drawn in US bank?

John

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On Sun, Sep 21, 2025 at 7:50 PM George Dyke citroprez@gmail.com wrote:
Yes, I can cash a US check.

Regards,

George Dyke
CITROËNVIE ! http://Citroënvie.com/
647.896.3202
citroprez@gmail.com

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On Sun, Sep 21, 2025 at 11:36 PM John Atkinson johnatkinson099@gmail.com wrote:
Ok

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On September 21, 2025 7:52:32 p.m. John Atkinson johnatkinson099@gmail.com wrote:
Hello Dyke,

Got an information now that the check will be mailed out there tomorrow morning and additional fee for shipping was added to it which you will deduct your actual amount of money and the rest be sent to the carrier that will make all necessary arrangements for shipping and pickup from your location. my associate owing me made it known to me that the amount issued is $33,000 which covers the cost and the shipping and the balance of $5,000 be sent to the shipper after deducting your $28,000 hope that’s clear? kindly keep an eye on it in the post this new week and let me know when you receive it. 

Thanks
John

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On Mon, Sep 22, 2025 at 1:55 AM George Dyke citroprez@gmail.com wrote:
Ok. I will let you know when the check arrives.

George Dyke
CITROËNVIE ! http://Citroënvie.com/
647.896.3202
citroprez@gmail.com

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On Tue, Sep 23, 2025 at 11:55 AM John Atkinson johnatkinson099@gmail.com wrote:
OK. Sounds Good, what bank do you operate with ? ————

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On Tue, Sep 23, 2025 at 5:16 PM George Dyke citroprez@gmail.com wrote:
TD Bank

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On Tue, Sep 23, 2025 at 12:19 PM John Atkinson johnatkinson099@gmail.com wrote:
OK. Good! Please be very vigilant for the check in mail and get back upon arrival 

Best Regards
John

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On Tue, Sep 23, 2025 at 5:27 PM George Dyke citroprez@gmail.co wrote:
Will do. 

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On Tuesday, September 23, 2025, John Atkinson johnatkinson099@gmail.com wrote:
Great! I will keep you posted as it goes.
Cheers

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On October 5, 2025 10:27:24 a.m. John Atkinson johnatkinson099@gmail.com wrote:
Hi George,

How are you doing today,I hope my mail finds you well. Sorry have just been busy lately however I just got a notification from FedEx that the check was delivered to your address yesterday October 4,please clarify. If it’s confirmed then get back to me asap so we can proceed with this transaction. Thanks and anticipate your response 

Best Regards 
John

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On Sun, Oct 5, 2025 11:42 AM. George Dyke citroprez@gmail.com wrote:

Hi John,

When I got home last night, I noticed the FedEx delivery.  Yes, there was a check inside.  It is from Grafica Promotion & Print Ltd. in Stouffville, ON Canada and it is for $33,545,80 Canadian dollars. ($24,059.07 USD.)  Also, it is not certified, as was stated in previous email.

The check should have been for $33,000 USD.  Please advise how you will be paying to conclude the sale.

Regards,

George Dyke
CITROËNVIE ! http://Citroënvie.com/
647.896.3202
citroprez@gmail.com

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This was a extremely suspicious as the the FedEx envelope came from a Loretta Chatleain at Midwest Electric Products, 58155 240th St. Mankato, MN 56001 USA.. (Though it seemed to be a valid address on Google Maps). The cost for the Express overnight shipment must have been over $100 US and was billed to a 3rd party. Somebody was out of pocket!

What was even more surprising was that the check inside was apparently from a local graphics company, Grafica Promotions & Print Ltd. — 25 miles away from me!

I made the point of driving to that address only to find the company name on a 2nd floor office door that was locked at 11 am on Monday morning. Looking up their local phone number, 905-591-6555, and calling only resulted in a notice that it was disconnected. I also found a number 1-855-492-4447, that did have voice mail and I asked that my call be returned. I have heard nothing…

Further queries about Grafica in Stouffville indicated it was owned by a Mouain Alassal, but phoning either of the numbers listed (877-588-3230 or 877-855-4492) although active, proved to be futile in getting through.

So, I was faced with a check in hand that had some very odd characteristics:

• It was drawn on RBC (Royal Bank of Canada) but the printing of the bank’s logo was offset at lower left corner.
• Although it had a metallic sticker (who knows if that was valid), there was a “key” watermark on the check in heat sensitive ink that when touched should turn transparent. It did not.
• And most telling — the address of Grafica Promotion & Print Ltd. on the check is also the same address as RBC Royal Bank branch. A quick check searching for RBC branches in Stouffville showed no branch on Ringwood Dr. In the haste of preparing the check the person copied and pasted address of Grafica for the bank’s address.

I wanted to see how John would react to the fact I received the check, and without pointing out the printing deficiencies, just a mention the payment shortcoming. To which he responded:

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On October 5, 2025 2:14:33 p.m. John Atkinson johnatkinson099@gmail.com wrote:
Hi George,

Yes the amount sent was $33,545,80 CAD however our agreement was for $33,000 usd included with the shipping which am totally aware of..i will balance up the remainder in a couple of days so you should proceed to deposit the current check. Kindly withdraw $5,000CAD for shipping arrangement this new week while balance for Citroën will be sent via mail or FedEx in coming days.hope that’s clear? 

John

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On Sun, Oct 5, 2025 3:19 PM. George Dyke citroprez@gmail.com wrote:

Ok.  

George Dyke
CITROËNVIE ! http://Citroënvie.com/
647.896.3202
citroprez@gmail.com

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So, the ball was back in my court and it was time to act with the check in-hand.

I went to a RBC branch near me and showed them the check. I thought they might be interested in seeing a fake example and would want to pursue the matter on their end. The teller and local branch manager examined it but merely gave it back to me without further interest, advising me not to deposit it into my TD Bank account.

My intent had always been to try and deposit the check with TD Bank but make them aware that it was likely fraudulent. I was hoping, if I explained that I was doing an expose article on the scam, that they would agree to let me deposit the check and give me a notice of NSF, probably in the few weeks time-frame they would typically need to verify funds were irrevocably in my account. In the meantime I could string John further along. If the bank allowed me to deposit the check, I was hoping to tell John that I was delaying any further action on my part until I had verification that the funds were in my account as at the outset I had requested that a certified bank check be sent to me. I wanted to see how he would react to my stalling his scheme.

Unfortunately the TD Bank expressed zero interest in trying to work with me on the matter. I was told that if I deposited the check and it was fraudulent, that my account would be flagged as such and that my credit rating and status with the bank would be severely affected. In fact, knowingly giving the bank a check suspected as fraudulent could very well result in criminal charges for me! So much for trying to fight fraud with them.

That left me little choice but to call John out on the scam. I composed the following message and sent it:

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On Mon, Oct 6, 2025 5:20 PM George Dyke citroprez@gmail.com wrote:

From: George Dyke citroprez@gmail.com
Subject: Re: 1961 Citroën DS 19
To: John Atkinson johnatkinson099@gmail.com

Hi John, 

I just got back from my bank where I tried to deposit the check.  Upon presentation they examined it and have determined it is fraudulent.  They advised me not to deposit it and I have not.  Given this outcome and the circumstances by which the check was delivered, it is pretty clear that you are operating a scam and therefore I will have no further dealings with you regarding the sale. 

George Dyke

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After that email — crickets from John.

So that is how my experience played out. I have subsequently contacted the Ontario Provincial Police and sent all the info to them. Here’s wishing they will be able track him and his accomplices down and give them their just rewards.

I hope this detailed account of how the scam played out serves to educate anyone listing their vehicle for sale online on the technique that scammers are using these days.