My wife and I dished out $6800 to Roger Rind at Air Ticket Masters to move our family (with 2 young kids) to Botswana. We paid by check because Roger said it would be cheaper. Roger said he was located in New York, NY. As we got closer and closer to the departure data (11), no tickets arrived in the mail, and when I kept checking back with Roger he kept insisting everything was taken care of and that all we had to do was show up with our passports.
But when I called Continental to confirm our seats, they told me that no e-ticket had been issued. Our travel date came and passed. What a horrible experience... My wife and I had quit our jobs, pulled the kids out of school, sold our house, put our stuff in storage, and everything. We felt that we'd either just have to fork out $6800 more, or just throw in the towel and stay in the US.
Oddly enough, I was able to keep in touch with Roger... He kept answering his phone! He then came up with some silly story about there being a mistake on Continental's behalf and that he'd hook us up on British Airways.By this time I had lost my trust in Roger.
One of my wife's friends is a lawyer, and between herself, her dad (also a lawyer) and her law-school classmate, they were able to dig up a lot of interesting information on "Roger". First of all, Roger's real name is Arif Zaheer. He's not in New York, he's in Orlando, Florida where he runs a real estate agency.
They were able to find his social security number, home address, and a record of all his licensed businesses. I called Arif (he was surprised that I knew his real name), and told him he better send me my tickets or else I was going to sue the bejesus out of him, and that I knew all his personal information. Furthermore, I threatened to report him to the California Justice Department (I purchased my ticket based on an placed in the San Francisco Chronicle), and to the Department of Homeland Security! He cried uncle, told me to call off the dogs, and booked our tickets right then and there over the phone with British Airways while I was conferenced in. Got upgraded to business class too.
I've since traveled to Botswana and returned late and have recently discovered that Arif continued to rip people off at least through February. I would like to assist in anyway possible in helping others retrieve their money from this fraud. I have some damaging information that I could provide to assist you, or your lawyer, in tracking this fellow down. I regret not coming forward with this information much earlier, but at the time this happened I was so relieved to just have my tickets and then I left for Africa just a few days later. I don't know how you'll be able to contact me through this website, but trust that there is a way somehow. Cheers.
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