Sylvie -no offense intended.
I don't try to ridicule your case - it's all about money and this is serious matter no matter the size we're talking about. Every $1 is hard earned money...
What I'd like to point is this guys tries to do something to pay his customers.
At least this is what I read from this thread - please correct me immediately if I'm wrong.
IMO if he was just a thief he could just walk away… why not? Would anyone really pursue him in Malaysia?
He didn't, he even paid some… is it just a game or is it about someone caught between a rock and a hard-place? I don't say: easy, relax, he's just trying to get you paid.Calm down and wait. Not at all.
But I don't find enough evidence he's a real scam - the examples you quoted are just similar to bank adverts I get to my mailbox
"We are the best but... you agree to the full text of an agreement including all disclaimers known or not-yet-known no matter what character size printed..."
Maybe wrong. Anyway I'm never "pre-committed" ;-)
And the last but not least - I keep my fingers and toes crossed you get your money back
PS: remember Ebony and Ivory clip? Anyone called it a scam? I mean the underlying story... nope. They were just "smart" salesmen... everybody loved them for this smartness... everyone but their customers. That's what I'm about and I don't dare to laugh here... but you must admit this pattern repeats through centuries over and over again... it's not only about Marwan, it's about big names too. Remember Lehman Brothers?
"And so the story goes"...