FBI hunts £1.8m eBay car fraudster

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the USA has issued a wanted poster for Nicolae Popescu, a Romanian man they suspect of leading a “sophisticated internet fraud scheme where criminal conspirators, posted advertisements on internet auction sites for merchandise for sale”. The scam – predominantly carried out using eBay Motors – convinced would-be buyers to part with money for cars that didn’t exist. On Bing: see pictures of car fraud 15 car-selling scams every car buyer should know about The conspirators posed as eBay sellers and then sent fraudulent invoices, that appeared to be from legitimate online payment services, with instructions for payment to bank accounts held in the United States.

Ah, to be in Paris . . .

Well, I'm bummed. The Paris motor show press days are next week, and I'm not going. That's right; while my colleagues are cavorting in one of the world's great cities, I'll be here in the Paris of the Midwest, holding down the proverbial fort.

2013 Mazda3 MPS & revised Mazda 3 range prices

Mazda has revealed the 2013 Mazda3 MPS hot hatch and announced it is adding the Tamura and Venture to the standard range. The 2013 Mazda3 MPS gets some small titivations (although you do need to look quite hard – there’s even fewer changes than the regular 2012 Mazda3) with some new tail light graphics, a new gunmetal finish for the 18″ alloys and a black Mica finish for the trim at the bottom of the back bumper, door mirrors and inner roof spoiler. Fortunately, Mazda has kept the peppy 2.3 litre turbo petrol that offers 256bhp and can scuttle the little Mazda to 62mph in 6.1 seconds.