Ayampe Beach Scam Exposed

The objective of this Blog is to STOP these people and to make everyone considering a move to Ecuador aware of the greed and deception of these people.

Let me start by giving you this scenario.

Picture this. Like everyone, you work hard your whole life and save your money so that you can have the opportunity to get out of the rat race, live the life you have dreamed about, in the place you want to live in. An opportunity comes along to help you live your dream, so you take that opportunity. Then, just as you are starting to live your dream – it turns into a nightmare. Someone comes along and steals your money, your hopes, and your dreams. They make you the victim of their scam and do not even think twice about the damage they have done. A bad situation, huh?

Here are the Facts:

There is an Australian couple named Dixie Davey Walker (aka Dixie Davey) and Robert John Walker (Australian Passport Number: M1026729) who operate a website called retire-in-ecuador.com. Their last known address is Plaza del Rio, #2-B, 1-20 Los Nogales y Tres Noviembre, Cuenca, Ecuador. These predators conned me and my wife out of our life savings and destroyed our dreams.

Here’s the deal. The Walkers ran a scam offering free beachfront houses to investors in a proposed development on the beautiful, western Ecuador beach of Ayampe. (I KNOW what you are thinking here, “FREE” houses, yeah, first clue of a scam, I know, we should have known better … but more on that later).

But, of course, none of this was even close to the truth. Unbelievable, I know, but we and other investors fell for it. My wife and I weren’t interested in the FREE house, only a hefty guaranteed return on our money for helping to get the project started.

I met Dixie Davey Walker and John Walker, on an import/export tour in Ecuador in October 2008. After I returned to the USA, I continued to correspond with them. Through these correspondences, they learned of my desire to live, invest in and contribute to the people of Ecuador. So, they started promoting to me (and others) what they called their “Ayampe Project”.

Throughout this promotion process the Walkers assured us that our investment in their “so-called” project would be placed in a Trust fund using the firm of Morgan & Morgan as the Trustee. Here is EXACTLY what they wrote to me on December 01, 2008, two full months before I invested with them:

“Let us know when you are ready to send your money, and we will make sure we have a trust account established for you. For your comfort, we will not draw on your funds until we have at least $200,000. If that objective is not met, we will return your investment, or show you something else.

Kinds regards

John and Dixie”

Now, let’s be very clear. Prior to us investing any money, the Walkers wrote similar statements like the one above several times between December 2008 and February 2009. Each time providing what has turned out to be phony reassurances and false promises.  Each time they would state:

·         The funds will be placed in a TRUST account, and

·         The funds would not be used by the Walkers until at least so much money was raised (usually $200,000).

Here is another example of their misrepresentation. After I agreed to invest with the Walkers, John Walker sent me this statement in an email dated on February 06, 2009:

“PS. By the way, I am taking this obligation on with your brother personally. I have not discussed it with Ruy. That is why I suggested extending the deal out to 18 months, even though I will be doing my best to still make it happen in 12 months – just like you will. We will find another deal even if it’s not this one, just to make sure it happens.

PPS. The reality Cedric (keep this confidential please) is that this has been 100% my deal but I think it is wise to have Ruy with 50% because he is a well connected local who can help a lot – for this deal and also for lots more in the future. So if I think you should get a bit more now to make things “tick” more quickly, then that is what will happen.”

Yet just recently, on November 06, 2010, in referring to me, Dixie Davey Walker wrote this on an ExpatExchange.com forum page:

“There was no investor from Oregon, and the only investor who invested more than $40,000 (with a promised gain of three times his investment within 18 months) did so with an agreement with the landowner to get land titles to the value of more than the promised return as security. It was the Ecuadorian landowner who reneged on all his agreements with everyone, including us.”

These predators now have amnesia about the facts! How did it go from being “100%” John Walker’s “deal”, to 2 weeks ago becoming an agreement with the Ecuadorian landowner. There was NEVER, and I mean NEVER, any sole agreement with the Ecuadorian landowner. I NEVER spoke to the man. I NEVER even had direct email contact with the Ecuadorian.

I dealt DIRECTLY with Dixie Davey Walker and John Walker via telephone conversations and emails. My agreement was signed by the two partners, John Walker and Ruy Quevedo, and I quote, “for the sole purpose of developing Ruy Quevedo’s 12 hectare property at Ayampe, Ecuador.”  It was not suppose to be used for any other purpose. And it was not to be used until $200,000 in total investments had been received, which never happened. Well, somehow my money got diverted from the “sole purpose” and it vanished and there are no records of where it went.

What the Walkers conveniently leave out are these facts:

• ·         ALL monies were paid directly to John Walker in his personal Banco Pinchincha Account in Cuenca (Account Number: 5046211300) 

• ·         All monies were to be placed in A TRUST! Plain and simple. No gray area, no misunderstanding!

One of Dixie Davey Walker’s favorite phrases is, “Get your facts right”. Well, that’s what we are going to do. We are going to “get the facts right” and document them with evidence and make them known and expose the Walkers for what they are – crooks, liars and scam artists.

The Walkers continue to spread lies on their website and other blogs and forums about what actually happened with investors’ funds. Lies like:

• ·         How they never stole the funds;
• ·         How they mysteriously “lost” all of the investors’ monies (over $100k);
• ·         How there is no paper trail or banking records to account for money received or spent or transferred.

I am using, and will continue to use, this forum to present the true “facts” and evidence about how the Walkers Ayampe scam really went down. They are continuing to actively look for new victims that they can prey on.

In the next BLOG, I will breakdown, in my opinion, how these predators were able to pull off this scam. Stay tuned!!! In future blogs, I will delve deeper into the details of this crime that they have committed.

Dixie and John Walker are criminals!  No matter how much they protest their innocence, and claim their honest belief in their representations, they are still guilty.

THEY CANNOT PAINT THEMSELVES INNOCENT!

Finally, and most importantly, if you (the reader) or anyone you know has been harmed by the Walkers please comment and spread the word so we can stop them from continuing to prey on other innocent people.