Removal of escrow.ms? Update: Recommend users for DT 2, as escrow.ms is removed

[Lauda]

I know what happened with him, however I do not see the relevance between him and removing escrow.ms from DT1.

Maybe they meant the removal from DT and the 'drama' that usually comes after. Question like:Who will take their place; "Do we really need a replacement; Why isn't person X more suitable than person Y?", and similar.

As he is arrested, it's clear that any further deals from the account will be from a hacker, or maybe the cops for all we know.

In these cases it is remove first and ask questions later. Only two members have tagged him so far on my list.

[1715062081]

1715062081

[1715062081]

1715062081

[1715062081]

1715062081

[koshgel]

Crazy that so many "reputable" members turn out to be huge scammers. Can't even trust the escrows here.  I keep my trust list pretty trim and had escrow.ms on it.

Card fraud is a big deal too. He could be going away for awhile...

[The Sceptical Chymist]

none of escrow are true here 

I don't think he scammed anyone here while he was the escrow. If this is truly the case, then he was a good escrow regardless of this news.

Yeah, there's no evidence that he did, but Jesus...can anyone be trusted here?  You just never know.  That really sucks.

Wasn't he going to use the proceeds of a sig campaign to reimburse Master-P's victims or something like that?  Seems like he was mixing honesty with extreme dishonesty.  Perplexing.

[cooldgamer]

This is why I'm such a strong advocate for multisig escrow.  We really need to make it the norm and get tools for it make it easier to use so even the most 'trusted' escrows can't run off with money.  With first master-p and now this it's showing impossible to trust anybody in the bitcoin world as something besides an arbitrator.  Granted that they could still work with one user to scam, but at least that would be a bit harder to pull off.

Wasn't he going to use the proceeds of a sig campaign to reimburse Master-P's victims or something like that?  Seems like he was mixing honesty with extreme dishonesty.  Perplexing.

I think we fell into his trap by thinking that he had good intentions.  By having such a large amount of trust and being one of the 'best' members in the Bitcoin community, he was probably able to make large trades with ease and not have people question him.  We don't know how much he moved online and IRL, but most people probably wouldn't have batted an eye if he popped up with a ton of money to turn into BTC.

Neither providing escrow nor using a sig campaign costed him anything, so he was making free reputation that could be cashed out with his illegitimate funds.  Smart as fuck.

[Heutenamos]

Guys stop trolling,I hope you all get DT1 and 5000 trust score but for fuck's sake be a logical grown up person when you post.

The article says he is doing this since 4-5 months and have sent X amount of money to Y persons and if we go back 5 months we see him

• Doing several trades with grtthegreat and not scamming him.
  
• Neg-Tagging a newbie for scam ads ioobileszon
  
• Trade with zazarb
  
• Neg-Tagging another scammer rickday
  
• Neg-Tagging hacked account torepia
  
• Neg-Tagging another scammer Morchid
  
  The above ratings are given only by .MS and none other DT guy so it was his own opinion and was not influenced.Of,course he could have pulled much coins but he didn't.
  
  IMO he might have thought that the card fraud's are going to do this either with him or without him and no-one can get the victim's money back to their original cards or banks and in that case if he uses his trading back-up and knowledge to increase the stash in his wallet then it might be crime of course but i don't think it would make him a bad or dishonest or a scammer either.
  
  Considering the above trades on forum while he was doing the cloning thing it seems like he wouldn't have scammed people directly or hurt them or run away with their money when he is trusted and which is a sign of good/reliable character and also taking a cut from the criminals doesn't makes him a dishonest person.
  
  What i think is that the fraud's knew that they are not in INDIA and the police cannot get to them by any means and they pulled .MS into this most risky position(trader) while cashing their bitcoins coins internationally.More or less I think he was SET UP.
  
  

  cashed out with his illegitimate funds.
  

  There are Bank Officials involved in this and also international criminals ,it was not his own money....lolll

[cooldgamer]

There are Bank Officials involved in this and also international criminals ,it was not his own money....lolll

It's irreverent if he was the highest-up in the operation, he was getting a cut and in exchange he helped to move the money.  There's no denying that his insane reputation on here must have made his trades much easier to make. 

[Jeremias]

This is what happens with bitcoin. A bitcoin user, highly trusted can be an illegal carder. Ty anonymity.


Wait... Does that mean bitcoin is illegal in India?

There are few things to it........ the same way it happened with Ross Ulbricht, he confessed under duress, in India there is no 5th amendment or in short no protection against self incrimination. If we all take everything that has been reported as true, then why are we ignoring the trivias. For instance The Joint Commissioner of Police (source http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/tech-news/Card-fraud-Cybercriminals-using-bitcoins-to-trade-money/articleshow/50927536.cms?)categorically says that Bitcoin as a form of payment is illegal in India as decreed by Reserve bank of India - which is utter rubbish. Police arrested Pankaj as they do not have any other scape goat. He is arrested because he has dealt in bitcoins and failed to ascertain the motive of the people involved in the trade. The same way Charlie Shrem got indicted - allegedly supplying bitcoin to drug dealers. They arrested him because he failed to ascertain the motive of the people who bought bitcoins. So, the case is, if I sell knives and some one buys one to commit murder, then I am a party to the crime - is this fair.

The point which everyone alludes to is - Police in India has deemed Bitcoin buying and selling illegal (in cash or through bank channels) sooner or later you will find users getting rounded up for using bitcoins. Pankaj received money and sent Bitcoins in return that is his only crime. His honesty in deals and on localbitcoins is above reproach. He is not a guy to get involved in card fraud. He was used and dumped.

It is easy to label someone as a scammer, there are many who have dealt with pankaj on this forum as well as on localbitcoins. He dealt with someone in cash and that someone turned out to be a carder. He is not a carder neither a scammer. Wait for the outcome of the trial - if he is allowed one.

[BAGOBO]

Well this mean that I can't easily believe escrow even they have enermous trust value from now.
So sad this can happen and Fell glad that he did not scam anyone here on this forum ....

[Quickseller]

I don't think it matters if he was stealing from members of the forum or scamming "the big bad banks" of India (BTW it is possible that he had stolen from people on here and they didn't know about it). Stealing is still stealing, period. 

According to the story he was laundering the money over several months. He also likely used his strong reputation to make trades that allowed him to carry out his scheme. If he were to scam one of his trading partners then he would no longer be able to carry out his scheme.

I believe there was also an allegation that he left trust for someone that was attempting to influence the outcome of a LBC dispute. I don't know if this allegation has any merit though.

[Blazed]

Just yank him from default trust and move a long. He is obviously guilty so not much else needs said or done in my opinion.

[Heutenamos]

I would agree to remove him from DT and all that because it's just officials now and there is nothing that can prove .MS is back,not even signed message lol.But calling him a scammer and blaming his reputation is just childish.He is on forum since years and why didn't he scammed anyone ? or he had a vision when he joined BCT that he is going to get an offer like this in future and he was then building trust for that.Master-P was a coward/loser and a dishonest person cause he actually ran away with the money and tried to justify it saying hack stories.

So, the case is, if I sell knives and some one buys one to commit murder, then I am a party to the crime - is this fair.

This is not the case,.MS was not selling anything of his own but he was taking the money from fraud cloners and sending/transferring coins internationally,probably for his cut.

There is also a possibility of him being forced to do this etc...

There's no denying that his insane reputation on here must have made his trades much easier to make. 

Yes but he didn't made the fake reputation in order to card fraud in future.So stop Demeaning.

[mexxer-2]

There is also a possibility of him being forced to do this etc...

Bhardwaj revealed to us that Sheikh would procure data related to debit/credit cards through his sources," said DCP (crime) Bhisham Singh. "His associates would clone the cards and withdraw the money and send it to Delhi. Sheikh instructed Bhardwaj to transmit the money to Dubai through the bitcoin route

Seems he pretty much knew what he was doing, the consequences of his actions and the risk he was taking.

I know what happened with him, however I do not see the relevance between him and removing escrow.ms from DT1.

Maybe they meant the removal from DT and the 'drama' that usually comes after. Question like:Who will take their place; "Do we really need a replacement; Why isn't person X more suitable than person Y?", and similar.

Yup thats what I meant.

[erikalui]

This is not the case,.MS was not selling anything of his own but he was taking the money from fraud cloners and sending/transferring coins internationally,probably for his cut.

There is also a possibility of him being forced to do this etc...

Forced to do so? How? They blackmailed him? I don't know why are you defending him so much. He himself confessed his crime and he did it for 4-5 months which means he was aware of his wrong doings.

Do you mean to say money laundering doesn't make a person dishonest? Can't believe people support him after doing something that's against the law. About honestly, yes he honestly did transfer money via bitcoins to Dubai for the amount he was paid. He was involved in cloning debit cards which is a serious offense (no matter how honest he was on this forum but he was arrested for transferring fraudulent money to Dubai) which was obviously for terrorist or other illegal activities.  TOI wouldn't be so wrong about his confession. No matter what position you hold on an ONLINE FORUM, it doesn't give you the right to launder money. PERIOD.


Edit: To answer the below quote:

"Bhardwaj revealed to us that Sheikh would procure data related to debit/credit cards through his sources," --- This means he knew where the cash is coming from and was the receiver of the funds means he was involved in the complete scam but played a small part. "Bhardwaj was identified as the receiver. "

After whatever happened, I don't want him to own a position in DT1 again. This wasn't a mistake that he did but it was a crime irrespective of his earlier reputation here which he earned, he lost everything by sending funds to criminals.

[Joel_Jantsen]

Do you mean to say money laundering doesn't make a person dishonest? Can't believe people support him after doing something that's against the law.

No one's supporting him dude,they're just trying to figure out what could have possibly went wrong for him to take this step.

He was involved in cloning debit cards which is a serious offense (no matter how honest he was on this forum but he was arrested for transferring fraudulent money to Dubai) which was obviously for terrorist or other illegal activities. 

Did you read the article ? Read it again.

Sumair Sheikh, who is believed to be based in Dubai. Since the accused had access to crucial information related to the ATM cards, the cops also suspect a bank official's role in the racket.

The arrest of Nasir Ansari while withdrawing money from a Dadar ATM led to Mumbai Police recovering more than 20 cloned ATM cards. During interrogation, Ansari disclosed that he sent the illegally withdrawn cash to Sheikh in Delhi through a hawala operator.

Bhardwaj was identified as the receiver.

TOI wouldn't be so wrong about his confession. No matter what position you hold on an ONLINE FORUM, it doesn't give you the right to launder money. PERIOD.

Maybe he loved doing it ? Its his life choices and he totally served his position in the forum a trusted and reputed escrow and a trader (in online community).Though he was doing his off shore scam business he never ripped a penny with his escrow services or trades on localbitcoins.What he did off this forum was totally his choices ,as far as rep on this forum is considered I'd say he deserved it.

[zazarb]

you have to blame the man, merely some sort of basis of Article?!
only the court will determine whether he is guilty or not.
or at least, is the official confirmation of the arrest the same person?

[notlist3d]

you have to blame the man, merely some sort of basis of Article?!
only the court will determine whether he is guilty or not.
or at least, is the official confirmation of the arrest the same person?

The article would have to be wrong for him to not be blamed it states "Bhardwaj has confessed to having sent Sheikh bitcoins equivalent to more than Rs 30 lakh in the past four-five months. The police also recovered cash totalling Rs 8 lakh from Bhardwaj's house.""

If he confessed he is not innocent.   So article would have to have a massive mistake for him to be innocent.   You don't confess normally if innocent.

[minifrij]

...and also taking a cut from the criminals doesn't makes him a dishonest person.

Really? So if I ran a service working with someone like master-P, I would not be dishonest if I were to take a cut of any coins he scammed in exchange for changing them to another currency? Do you seriously believe this?

What he did off this forum was totally his choices ,as far as rep on this forum is considered I'd say he deserved it.

So because he had lots of points on a forum he deserves the $40k that he stole? Am I misunderstanding?

[Heutenamos]

Seems he pretty much knew what he was doing, the consequences of his actions and the risk he was taking.

That's probably it.However,there is still no first hand information but only a bunch of articles.

I don't know why are you defending him so much.

alt accounts ?

He himself confessed his crime and he did it for 4-5 months which means he was aware of his wrong doings.

Yes he did but i just pointed out a possibility.

Do you mean to say money laundering doesn't make a person dishonest? Can't believe people support him after doing something that's against the law.

Get rid of the mom's basement.

Really? So if I ran a service working with someone like master-P, I would not be dishonest if I were to take a cut of any coins he scammed in exchange for changing them to another currency?

Am I misunderstanding?

Of course you are,read again and if you couldn't come up pointing out the difference then i will make it more clear for you.

Do you seriously believe this?

No.

[dogie]

Well this mean that I can't easily believe escrow even they have enermous trust value from now.
So sad this can happen and Fell glad that he did not scam anyone here on this forum ....

I don't think escrow has been trustworthy pretty much since John K left. Also feels like buyers have lost interest in requiring escrow as its the lesser of two evils to trust a seller.

[Indianacoin]

Omg! This is unbelievable!
I knew Pankaj after I got to know about bitcoins on June 2015. This is because I had several small trades with him via Localbitcoins when I first wanted to buy some btc and know about its mechanisms.

I had contact with him on Whatsapp and there he explained me everything starting from how a transaction works and all other technical details.
He seemed to be a humble guy to me. One day he mentioned about this forum and asked me to join here so that I can get to know the community better.

From that time onward I used to trade with him on Localbitcoins and he had 2 profiles there:
1. https://localbitcoins.com/accounts/profile/escrowmsa
2. https://localbitcoins.com/accounts/profile/bitcoinsbazaar

Just now I noticed this article before I tried to pm him asking for reasons of his absence on LBC.

And this crime is absolutely unforgivable (specially in India) if he had knowingly done this.

Bharadwaj used to convert the money he received from Ansari into bitcoins and then transfer them to Sheikh in Dubai. Sheikh then encashed the virtual money there.

http://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/card-cloning-racket-using-bitcoins-busted-1-held-116020901233_1.html