Bicycle Asylum

[Strag]

Now when are they going to do this for the founders scam

Hopefully this is the first step that, if successful sets a precedent about holding people accountable for Kickstarters.

[cosmicsecret]

Just wanted to resurrect this thread with a major bit of news. The State of Washington attorney general has filed suit against Ed Nash!

http://atg.wa.gov/pressrelease.aspx?&id ... 2OgazdW5LM

FINALLY!!!
I had backed this Project and was very annoyed that this *insert curse words* was getting away with this scam.
Crossing fingers that we might get justice and other scam/fraud projects will get busted soon!

The coward Russel from Circle City Cards should be dragged to court as well....just to name this asshole!

[samurai007]

Now when are they going to do this for the founders scam

I wish they would, but he was politically connected to Obama so I'd be shocked if it happened.

[volantangel]

Now when are they going to do this for the founders scam

I wish they would, but he was politically connected to Obama so I'd be shocked if it happened.

Oh its precisely that case that id be shocked that it doesnt happen, but honestly hes not that related to Obama.

[vjose32]

YES!

[rousselle]

If this suit is successful, our "Hall of Shame" is about to become a very interesting place for those listed.

Exxxcellent.

[Mike Ratledge]

A friend of ours passed along an article about the Asylum deck KS project finally getting jerked into court by the state attorney general in Washington (state).

I was recently (1-May) posted on the PCworld.com website: http://www.pcworld.com/article/2150780/ ... s_business

[volantangel]

I really hope this sets a precedent. There have been several playing card scams out there including this and founders.

Hopefully this spills over to other aspects of KS as well, im involved in a fountain pen scam which funded at over 300k, the creator simply bought cheap pens from china and passed it off as his product, claiming to be on par with brands such as mont blanc. And no, i have not received any pens.

[sprouts1115]

And another article: http://www.geekwire.com/2014/attorney-g ... d-project/

[Sparkz]

I really hope this sets a precedent. There have been several playing card scams out there including this and founders.

Hopefully this spills over to other aspects of KS as well, im involved in a fountain pen scam which funded at over 300k, the creator simply bought cheap pens from china and passed it off as his product, claiming to be on par with brands such as mont blanc. And no, i have not received any pens.

Amen V, you would think that at some point even KS has to show a minimum of do diligence even after a projects completion. Just walking away after they get their cut doesn't really sit well.

[sinjin7]

Well well well, it was a long time coming, but I knew it would only be a matter of time before a KS scam artist would face the music. Everyone should read the following link:

http://www.geekwire.com/2014/attorney-g ... d-project/

The key here is to have enough people in a particular state contact their Attorney General's office with complaints of the KS fraud. If enough people submit complaints, the government will step in on their citizen's behalf and bring an action on their behalf. Of note, you can face up to $2,000.00 penalty per violation!

The problem with enforcement of most KS projects is that the individual backer has invested a relatively small amount of money in any given project, so they probably won't go through the time, effort, and cost to take any legal action. But the combined aggregate money a project creator makes from the combined pledges of 1000's of backers add up to a significant amount, and that can eventually catch the attention of the government if enough people bring it to their Attorney General's office.

I hope more states follow Washington's lead, and hopefully thins becomes a frequent enough trend to make scammers think twice about abandoning their projects. This is a word to the wise to DeckStarter, CardLauncher, and King's Wild as well, make sure you have your act together.

[badpete69]

Sinjin We already have a few threads on this Let me find the original one and i will merge the threads. I am part of that class action suit and I have a pending interview with a TV station on this

[badpete69]

Sinjin I have merged a few threads into the original Asylum thread and they all touch on this class action suit in my state. I was contacted by the attorney general office about possibly doing an interview and I am waiting to hear from them. I was also part of the discussion with the artist of Asylum when we were leading up to this suit. I have lots of extra info if you are interested

[sinjin7]

Good job in getting the authorities involved with the Bicycle Asylum case. I hope this sends KS and potential abusers of KS a message and warning that you can't get away with abandoning projects and ripping off backers. With the bad press and publicity this is causing KS, hopefully they will be more proactive in bringing scammers to justice. Definitely keep us in the loop on how this plays out.

[Sher]

I agree with sinjin. It's good that you're contributing to raising awareness about fraud in crowd funding by being an active participant in this class action.

I was almost a victim of one of these KS scams but thankfully I got refunded after many backers were persistent enough to contact the creator (she was very difficult to find and get a hold of). Several filed fraud and theft reports to the creator's home state which eventually pushed her to give out refunds (after eight months past estimated delivery date and nearly three months without updates or any communication at all).

CardLauncher is taking several steps to ensure production and delivery of any successfully funded campaign. CardLauncher will actually refund backers if the complete design for decks aren't submitted within a specific length of time (currently artwork has to be submitted for manufacturer approval within 15 days since the campaign has funded).

[rousselle]

Can those of us who live in WA and were not included in the discussion of this suit join in and be covered by it?

--Scammed in Seattle

[badpete69]

Rouselle I had asked the question but never heard anything. Let me email that rep again

[jerichoholic]

So any updates on the lawsuit?

[badpete69]

I haven't heard from the Attorney general in months... I do have some news from the basecamp.. Let me go through my notes and will post an update. I know the artist is trying to revive the project

[jerichoholic]

So with all of us being scammed by this and putting money into it, how does everyone feel about Roman Kotiv planning to launch a new project for this deck? Personally I think it's crap, we've already paid for this deck of cards, why should we do it again?

[Eoghann]

Roman Kotiv the Demon Deck guy? Did he get the artwork or something? Thought that dude was under a rock dodging the spotlight?

[jerichoholic]

Sorry for the double post but here is a link to a preview of the project. There is a deal for original backers at $25 for 2 decks and a couple other things. Yet I can get the same two decks for a couple bucks less. Even less on the early bird. Not much of a deal if you ask me. Not even being printed by USPC which is a step down. I don't even know what their quality is like, I haven't heard good things about their stock and finish on previous decks.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/89 ... n=c3da64eb

Oh and as for the last comment, apparently Roma is working with the original designer of the deck Milan.

[Bikefanatic]

If people are concerned about the tuck, it looks just as good/as the same without the Bicycle logo. They can become ex-bike fanatics.

[jerichoholic]

If people are concerned about the tuck, it looks just as good/as the same without the Bicycle logo. They can become ex-bike fanatics.

Not even being printed by USPC, i'm more concerned about the quality. I guess i'll find out once the Defunctorums arrive.

My main concern is how he expects this to fund when 810 people have been screwed over already in the original project.

[Tscharger]

I did a little reading and Ed Nash is not involved in this second offering. The original project featured art work by Milan Colovic who apparently never received any payment from the first project. Roma Kotiv has teamed up with Milan Colovic to do the artwork for this second project which is in no way affiliated with Ed Nash nor his Company Altius Management. Further more Roma and Milan have decided to offer a special tier for the original backers not to "make-up" for what Nash did, but as a goodwill gesture. Keep in mind Milan Colovic was screwed over by Nash along with the backers.

[bryan007]

Sorry for the double post but here is a link to a preview of the project. There is a deal for original backers at $25 for 2 decks and a couple other things. Yet I can get the same two decks for a couple bucks less. Even less on the early bird. Not much of a deal if you ask me. Not even being printed by USPC which is a step down.

Nope, you're wrong. This $25 deal includes original asylum deck, and asylum inmate deck (which I cannot find in any other pledge level). Looks like this deck is exclusive for original project backers, only in bundle.

And regarding quality - will check on their Defunctorum cards. If it is good - then it is not step down. USPC is not the only company in the world, capable to print quality cards. There also are other, like Legends and so on. So there is a possibility that we will add NPCC to the white-list too Will see

[jerichoholic]

Don't know if you want to start a new thread or not, but this deck is being relaunched tomorrow May 1st!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/89 ... n=c3da64eb

[rousselle]

Yesterday, I received an e-mail from the Assistant Attorney General in Washington State's Consumer Protection Division. They are asking for my information related to my pledge for the original Asylum project.

This lawsuit is moving forward. And that pleases me greatly.

[rousselle]

Well, lookie here. Arrived via the mail today (did have to sign for it....)

[jerichoholic]

Wait, what?

So some of us spent money on this new project for sub-par decks and now the actual deck is being shipped out? Bit of a waste, for me anyway.

Is this just for American backers though, or for everyone?