Computer Systems Repair

Now operating in West Scranton. We had several computers fixed by him beginning about six years ago. Everything went great– his prices were extremely reasonable, the work was thorough, and he seemed to be a knowledgeable guy. The only problem was that we were pretty sure he was using cracked software and/​or illegally distributing software on our machines that he fixed. For my birthday almost three years ago, I planned to order the parts for a custom computer and to have the system assembled and booted by the guy who runs the place. He couldn’t have been nicer and printed out the details of several high-​end custom builds for me to choose from. We selected one and he told us he would cover everything from the ordering to the assembly to the software installation.
He proceeded to ask for a check for ~$ 2000 upfront (What type of legitimate business does’t have a line of credit that can cover this amount of money?). We were prepared to pay this much, and since my family as well as some of our family friends had done business with him in the past, we figured we could trust him with this large sum of money. We were wrong.
When the time came for the computer parts to be in, we (surprise) visited him at his shop (then in Dunmore), still a little uneasy that we handed the guy $ 2000. He informed us that he had indeed received all of the parts– and was holding them at his house! His smooth talking during the process made us believe his excuses and allowed him more time to spend/​recover our money (who knows what he did with it). He never provided any proof that he actually purchased the parts.
He then set deadlines that he failed to adhere to and came up with more ridiculous excuses every time we called/​visited him asking for the status of the build (he never contacted us). First, a major client of his lost a recovery disk, then one of his workers was giving him problems or he had some type of problem with another business venture, then a relative was sick, then he had to tend to business in New Jersey. He used every excuse in the book. He explained each incident in such vivid detail that it was hard not to believe him. The excuses kept coming– the video card was defective, the replacement video card was defective, the power supply wasn’t functioning correctly. Days and days added up. We began threatening to ask for a refund if he didn’t start meeting the deadlines he was setting and he suddenly become nearly impossible to contact, he didn’t maintain reliable store hours, and after a certain length of time, we realized we had been scammed majorly and would never see the computer.
Weeks passed, my birthday passed; before I knew it, the entire summer had gone by and I was left without my computer and my family was out $ 2000. We filed a complaint (with some organization) hoping to get our money back. Time passed and one day the owner of CSR called us and plainly stated that he had a check for the full amount. My family was so disgusted with him by that point (~4 months after we first contacted him) that we couldn’t stand to see him in person. We asked him to mail the check to us. A few days later, it showed up. No apology, no explanation, no admittance of guilt.
The owner of this business lied to my family and I for the span of several months. He showed no remorse for ruining what he knew was my only birthday present that year and gave us the run-​around for months. While this was probably the biggest scam he ever carried out, there is no possible way that this was an isolated incident of his dishonesty towards and disregard for customers. I have no idea how he is still in business. Please stay away.
PS– If the owner would like to dispute any of these claims, I kindly encourage him to respond with his side of the story. We never heard it.