A NUH EVERY SMALL BUSINESS UNU FI SUPPORT!

Here's why (a thread)...

I had an iPhone XS Max (locked to T-Mobile). In about April of this year I saw an ad on ig of this page that was unlocking all iPhones (via rsim) for $5000. So I screenshot it and sent a dm to the page expressing my interest in the product.

He told me he could come to me to do the unlocking. I sent him the US equivalent via Paypal ( cause I didn't have any cash and wasn't going to an atm anytime soon). He came to my community to unlock the device. He also told me that the payment never came to his account...

(even though I sent him the screenshot showing that the payment went through on my end). Anyhoo, we did the whole paypal refund thing so I could get back my money (which I did). I had cash on me the day he came so I just paid the $5000 in hard cash after he unlocked the phone and

I tested it to ensure everything was working. So all is well now. I'm working from home, calling customers on behalf of the company I was working with at the time. Everything is Gucci. I'm still filming my YT videos on my phone n editing using iMovie. All was well...

Until one evening in May. I had my phone on it's charger as usual. I never used it while it was being charged. I checked the phone and saw that it was at 100% so I take it off the charger and open up twitter. I'm scrolling as per usual and see a video that seemed interesting...

So I open up the video now, ready to watch. As soon as the video starts, my phone shuts off in my hands. At first I thought it was just auto lock (but that would've been weird seeing that I was actively using the phone). So I tap the power button now - no response...

I put the phone down and lift it up (raise to wake) - still no response. So by now I'm worried. I press and hold the power button in an effort to get it to come on - still no response. So I put it back on the charger (even though it was fully charged) - still no response...

By now I'm seriously stressing out. So I turn on my laptop, connect my phone via usb and open up iTunes. iTunes not picking up the device. I disconnect and reconnect multiple times - still nothing. So I turn to YouTube. I follow every step that the persons told me - I even...

downloaded specific software to try to get the phone to come back on or at least go in recovery mode or something. That software is not picking up the device either. By now I'm completely freaking out and ready to pull my hair out (cause my phone was my life...

I did EVERYTHING ON IT). So my bf suggests to stop stressing and to place the phone back on the charger and leave it there til the next day. I got up at basically the crack of dawn that morning to check on my phone - still no changes- I start stressing AGAIN.

idr when or how but at one point I remembered the guy who unlocked my phone so I get on my laptop and send him a DM. I explained everything to him and he came (as soon as he could) to come and assess the phone. He immediately starts doing the steps that the YouTubers advised so..

I tell him I did all of that already. He tries some other tricks but nothing happens. He made some guesses as to what could be the problem. He then decides to take it to his house in Portmore and work on it. I said okay and let him. The next workday now I couldn't work cause I...

forgot that the sim card was still in my phone. So I dm him again asking him to return the sim card so I could at least borrow a phone to continue to do my work. He comes with the sim card and tells me that upon opening up the phone he noticed that there's some moisture...

on the motherboard. I'm shocked now cause as much as the phone is water resistant, I've never brought the phone near water nor touch it with wet hands. I cherished this phone. So he said he's gonna try and remove the moisture and see if that works. It didn't. He then mentioned...

something about the Power IC and some other stuff that I didn't really understand. When I asked him to explain he didn't. (Like asking why the sky is blue and someone answering "because it is blue"). I still don't understand but I just want this phone fixed.

So I would give him time to do what he needs to do to fix my phone while attending to his other businesses (a pawn shop n a cook shop in Portmore) n customers. I would check in occasionally asking for updates and he would respond whenever telling me what he's trying in order ...

to fix the phone. All his "efforts" were futile so he stated that the motherboard needed to be changed. So I'm stressed even more now cause ik it's not gonna be cheap. But I ask about the cost n he tells me 22k

I forgot to say this earlier in the thread but my phone was 256GB. Keep that in mind for later

So I was like okay, let's do it (cause I just wanted my phone to be fixed). At the time, the company that I was working with paid on the 26th of each month as long as that day doesn't fall on a weekend n it's not a holiday. I explained this to him (so yk he could've said...

"okay well hmu when you've got the cash" n return my phone). He said okay and that he'll wait. At one point I remember saying to him that if could use his money and purchase it (cause apparently he would've had to order the board online) and then I'd reimburse him on payday.

He agreed to do it then a few days later he stated that he'll just wait until I give him the 22k (which I had no problems with btw).

looking back, I probably shouldn't have asked that of him in the first place.

So payday comes and as soon as the funds hit my acc I let him know and we arrange for him to come and pick up the 22k. A few days go by and he finally orders the item and tells me he'd send me the tracking info as soon as he gets it. I think a week or two goes by before I get...

the tracking num ( ik because of covid shipments were being delayed so I didn't even question). I track the package everyday via USPS website. It got stuck in transit for quite some time ( I even shared my frustration with usps to him and blah blah).

So the package finally arrives in JA in the early parts of July. He proceeds to tell me that the shipping company charged him $6500 too collect it (keep that $6500 in mind for later). He takes his to collect it, he also takes his time to get to work on installing ...

this new board. I'm still not being unreasonable cause everybody busy. But after a while his stories aren't adding up. Still nah pay it nuh mind cause I'm focused on the end goal - getting my phone fixed.

many lies n fabricated stories later... he finally installs the motherboard. Now the screen isn't coming on. iTunes picks up the phone and it vibrates (as iphones do when they're powering up) - but nothing on the screen.

paused the thread for a while to post the trivia questions on my business page

after multiple unanswered DMs n ig video calls (cause I forgot I had his number at the time) he finally replied days later with another story as to why he hadn't been in touch. He then proceeds to tell me that the screen still isn't coming on and he's gonna put...

another xs max (that he had in his possession)'s screen on my phone and vice versa. He does that and the screen comes on and everything is working fine. I still haven't even gotten a pic of the phone up to now

So he tells me that I'll need to purchase a new screen. at this point i'm like "seriously, when a nuh one ting a di odda" (to myself). So ask about the cost he gave me an estimate (which I don't remember). Sooner or later he finds out about an iCloud locked xs max...

that someone is willing to sell to a phone tech for 25k. When he was saying it to me he wasn't clear and I wasn't understanding so he came to my community to explain it to me.

I went out to his car with my bf and he explained it to me. Now, at this time I had already quit my job and only had that last pay for what I worked in June to get on July 26th. So ofc I was kinda hesitant abt it n my bf was too.

So I tell him I'll think about it. One day I get a random thought to ask him what size motherboard he got. He got a 64gb motherboard. So I'm like that won't do cause my phone was a 256gb. He had the audacity to ask me if I really need that much space.

He literally asked if I was almost at capacity before - I said no but I used WAAAYY more than 64GB of space. (if you know me you know my phone always has a lot of apps - especially games). So I'm drained atp but we come to the decision to sell the 64gb and buy the correct one...

So we'd use the money from the sale of the 64gb and I'd put up the difference to get it to the cost of the 256gb board PLUS the cost of the new screen. This time I made sure to tell him to factor ALL costs associated with getting the items in JA.

Everything came up to 25k. So I said okay, not bad (I was expecting more). Once again, I told him about the payday on the 26th n I wouldn't have any money til then - I used the last pay to pay for my lash training n buy the bed I'm tryna sell now n all that stuff so I was BROKE.

July's payday comes around now and the pay was late. NOBODY got paid on time that day. I checked my acc religiously and as soon as I refreshed the page and saw the change in acc balance I told my mom n we hopped in the car headed to twin gates plaza for the cibc atm

Meanwhile I'm sending him DMs to let him know that I got the funds and I'm about to withdraw. As soon as I withdrew the money I let him know. He took his time to answer. When he finally did I was in Brooklyn supermarket (beside/behind clocktower) getting some snacks for my...

niece. He then tells me to meet in inside clocktower. Now, this was a Friday so yk how clocktower traffic guh, plus it started to rain. I finally spotted his car (new took down the license plate number at all - smh), got out and gave him the money. He said that he would come...

by my community later on and drop off the receipt. LATER NEVER CAME. (Counting red flags yet??) All I got was stories n excuses. I would dm and try to call him for days afterwards (with no reply), trying to find out if he ordered the stuff already n if he got a...

tracking num. When he finally replied he claimed he had ordered but I never got a tracking num. Anyhoo the item finally arrives in JA one Thursday/Friday afternoon (or so he claims). So ik that he wouldn't have been able to collect the item same day so I gave it until Monday.

No update from him so I ask about it. His reply seems as though he's annoyed with me (I didn't care). I explained to him that I was just checking cause I want to be in the know. He collects the item when he felt like it n claims to start fixing it.

By now I'm kinda relieved cause the new board n screen are here. All is well. All is not well. He says he's installing n stuff. I asked when can I get my phone. He told me by aug 22. By this time I'm trying out basically for a studio space on red hills rd so I...

let him know where I'll be. He then tells me to meet him at a shop he sublets on the arcade beside PICA (passport office). He originally said 4pm but something happened (idr exactly) n I couldn't be free by then so I call him to let him know. He "pretends" as if this is an...

inconvenience to him (i'll say y the quotes later)n we agree on 5pm. So i'm done now n walking from red hills rd to pica all the while I'm calling him to let him know I'm omw. Surprise : he doesn't answer.

I'm now at the arcade n my phone is dying but I'm still trying to get in contact with him. Still no answer. So I decide to walk in the arcade n stop at a phone shop I see there n ask for him.

It was kinda hard to ask for him cause I didn't know his name (whenever I'd ask he'd change the subject). I only knew his ig page, phone num, the fact that he lives in portmore and his son's name.

I ended up showing the guy in the store his ig page n phone num n that's when he realized who I was talking abt. I explained that he asked me to meet him there to collect my stuff so he too tries to call the guy n no answer. So he directs me to where the shop is.

When I get to the shop he isn't there. The men their know him. They're his technicians (apparently). But they know NOTHING about me nor my phone. By this time the phone I'm using is dead so I can't contact him. My bf comes to pick me up, I tried calling on his phone - no answer.

I finally leave and get home. The phone is charged n on now - no missed calls nor DMs from this man. The next day I'm at a clients house doing her lashes and he calls me with some bs excuse n lies as per usual n I wasn't having it.

he tells me how after installing the new board and screen it comes on but the front cam isn't working nor face recognition n upon opening up n inspecting the new board "thoroughly" he realized that there's water damage on this new board...

n that he was gonna take pics n send to the seller so he can get a refund. I'm pissed atp but I'm like do what you gotta do. Hours go by n I hear nothing from him so I try to call him cause I wanna know what's up with the refund n stuff. He doesn't answer.

I've had enough of him and the lies atp so I tell him to give me back my phone EXACTLY how I gave it to him along with my full 47k (22k+25k=47k) so I can take my phone elsewhere to be fixed. He doesn't answer til the next day telling me how he's getting the refund...

on the board along with an xs max, xr n an 11 (all 64gb). He even had the audacity to ask which i'd like to buy from him. I was confused af so I asked for clarity. He called me explaining how he'd sell the xr (I think) to me so 80k+ so i'm like nah, just gimme back my money n my

phone. We even agree (or so I thought) on a day, time n place for to meet him to get my stuff back. Guess who stopped answering calls when it's almost the time to give me my stuff back?? LMFAOOOO

he doesn't reply until the next week n proceeds to send me a tracking num. just the num. he doesn't say what it's for, who's the carrier; ntn. (It's now sept btw) So I call n ask what that has to do with me. He says it's the return tracking num cause he returned...

the board to the seller. So I'm like what that got to do with me, he says he doesn't have the funds to give me back rn (mind u he never said that earlier).Then he proceeds to tell me abt a customer who he provided a service for but the customer hasn't paid n kept giving...

him the runaround (life funny eh?). So I told him once again, that has ntn to do w me and mine. He even sent me a screenshot of his "conversation" with said "customer" the screenshot that the cx (customer) - from Westmoreland I might add- of him trying to send the fund via...

scotia but he encountered an error. That still had nothing to do with me. We "agree" on another date, time n place for hi to return my stuff (this time I took my mom with me) - no surprise here; he didn't show up.

still more runarounds n lies. I realized quickly that this man has no intentions of giving back my stuff (n he's fully ignoring me) so I decided to have friends reach out to him at different times via different media with problems like they need a phone to be fixed...

unlocked or they one to purchase one etc, etc. I even texted him on my late sister's WhatsApp number and he told me (on September 18 on my sister's WhatsApp num) that he's overseas n he missed his flight back home (which

should've been on sept 18th). Same thing he told my friend.

It's now October 22, 2020 and I still have yet to get back my phone and my money. This man has stopped answering my calls n texts COMPLETELY since over a month ago

I know this thread is LONG (I'm really sorry) but I had to tell the story. Me know mah yamhead n a chop me chop but hopefully someone can read my story n learn from my mistakes. All this happened all because I was just tryna support a small business.

Don't get me wrong, small business fi get support but be careful at the same time. You don't wanna end up losing as much as or even more than I did.

What's really getting to me is the fact that I'm a lashtician that's not well known n taking n posting clear pics of my work on my business page is a HUGE part of attracting more clients n increasing my clientele. The phone I'm using now is trash. It doesn't have a back cam...

(see pics below of the kind of quality the back cam is in) and the screen is so fucked that it's hella jumpy. I cam barely see anything on it. Any clear pics you see on my page @lashedbycoys or @lashedbycoys.islayer on ig is as a result of borrowing other persons phones

Now, I didn't say all of this for pity or as a desperate attempt to try to seek a handout, but just to share my story.

Here are the some pics to show how the back camera quality is. All those spots are the camera. Not the people. Also it’s very blurry.

when he called me the Saturday (while I was at client's house) he told me that he was busy working. When he never showed up the day I took my mom with me to meet up with him (for my refund), he told my mom (on the phone) that 47k is no money to him (chump change)...

and he makes way more than that on any given day when he's working but he hasn't been working for the past 2 weeks. That meet up day in question was not even one week after the 2nd meet up day.