The con artist's credo: The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing; if you can fake that, you've got it made This is closely adhered to in escrow scams. It makes the perfect vehicle.

A time back a St. Louis man, operating out of Europe, juggled four balls in a con man escrow scam that reads like it was taken directly from the pages of a legal thriller novel. In a perfect timing maneuver he pocketed some $630,000 in one week, by steering four large escrow scams into coming to a head in this timely fashion. Included in his loot were the proceeds from the sales of such non-existent items as a BMW car, a rare coin collection, uncut diamonds, and a European real estate development participation. All contacts were originally made through Internet bulletin boards and chat rooms.

He followed the ancient Con Artists' Axiom: The Gods of war allow the aggressor early victory, setting him up for a worse defeat later on Otherwise, his operation was typical, His "pitch"--which included all of the usual moves--was indeed inviting. Prices were mouth-watering, terms attractive, and ease of transfer--both money and goods--made dealing with him seem like a simpleton's delight. They included: on-paper-only escrow company image, phony references and credentials, and adroit, step-by-step steerage of the "marks" into dealing with him.

Only difference from the norm was the simultaneous perfection of his scam--which made it better than the average scam--bringing all four deals to climax within days of each other. This made it easy for him to get up and go, fold the tent quickly, walk away, and put good distance between himself and the law before his marks "wised up."

To fall off a turnip truck you must first get on. Here are a few hints to help you steer clear of such form of offered transportation when dealing with any kind of escrow: the con artists involved.

1. On the internet, and elsewhere, never deal with anybody who does not list their full address and phone number. Check it out. You'd be surprised at how many do not. It all starts here with an absence of full identification.

2. Does either the buyer or seller (whichever you're dealing with) refer you to a specific escrow service? If so, this is not a yellow light situation, it is a big, flashing red light. Drop this person like the proverbial "hot potato" and search elsewhere.

3. If, when attempting to contact the escrow company's customer service department by phone, you find it impossible to get past the robot brigade--to talk to a real live human being--hang up and and walk off into the sunset, in search of a different service.

4. When Western Union or Money-Gram money transfers are suggested, the shock should be something similar to what it would be seeing the SWAT team pull up in front of your house. No person-to-person transfers of any kind, if you are treating you wallet with respect. Only bank transfers--you to corporate entity--and have your bank report to you as to where the funds were transferred. And, use this method only in rare, thoroughly-investigated instances.

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