All Adrianna Parsons wanted was a Lexus GX 570. They were Lexus’s luxurious take on the Land Cruiser, complete with a powerful V8, a gorgeous leather interior, undefeated four-wheel drive, and a quiet, comfortable ride. After some digging, she found her dream car 1,400 miles away from her hometown of Doylestown, Pennsylvania.

She found the Lexus listed on what she thought was CARFAX’s website for $46,000. CARFAX’s website said it was at a dealership called Specialty Auto. Adrianna’s husband did some digging and determined that Jim Woods owns the dealership. So, when she called the number on the listing and spoke with Jim Woods, she figured it was legitimate.

To complete the picture, she asked “Woods” for a video of the SUV to prove he had it. He sent one almost immediately, putting the couple at ease.

The CARFAX Lexus would soon haunt the couple

They wired Woods $45,000 and sent it to the dealership, promising that the SUV would be delivered once the payment was processed. Woods said it would take about a week. Parsons couldn’t shake the thought that something was wrong with the CARFAX listing.

“He played the role; he preyed on us. He knew that I was worried. My gut was telling me to stop. I didn’t listen to it well enough,” she told WPVI.

Of course, the Lexus was never delivered. The Parsons accepted that they were scammed and called investigators to make them aware. As it turns out, scammers cloned a very legitimate business.

So, how did they do it?

There is a Jim Woods who owns a Specialty Auto dealership in Lincoln, Nebraska. However, he doesn’t list his vehicles online. In fact, the 80-year-old business owner doesn’t have an online presence at all, making it incredibly easy for scammers to pose as him online.

As Woods, scammers would take information and photos from another dealership, post them on CARFAX, and wait for buyers to take the bait. Since the real Woods didn’t even have a website for his dealership, scammers made their own, using his information.

Parsons never got her Lexus or her $45,000 back. She said losing the money was “devastating” to her family. CARFAX noted in a statement that they were “sympathetic” to what happened to Parsons, and they encouraged people shopping online to see the vehicle in person and test drive it before committing to payment.

Another man came forward, saying the same fake listing cost him $18,000. Investigators were able to have the fake Specialty Auto site taken down, and police are after the scammers.