Paypal issue beware.

I remember years ago selling a video processor to a “gentleman” up in Canada. Of course the usps took a 10 days longer than their eta. Well, the buyer had filed a claim and since it hadn’t hit yet and their tracking system was and still is horrible they refunded him the money. Of course a few days later it shows up at his house. PayPal in an attempt to communicate with him discovered he closed his account and was no longer active with them. Of course he did. It was 2K! I still think to this day he had planned this all along. He even requested economy international shipping. People will always find a way to cheat. And PayPal makes it easy for them...

I had the exact thing happen to me 6 years ago, Paypal refunded his money ($1600).  To add insult to injury, UPS refused to cover the claim, even though the receipt was marked "well packed" by the agent.  I feel for you man.

Those who say he accepted it so you can’t file a damage claim are incorrect. I recently received some speakers that were not packed properly and got dinged up bouncing around in the box with no damage to the box. I picked them up at UPS and discovered the damage when I got home. The shipper filed a claim and UPS then required an inspection. They will either ask for pictures, come pick up the item to take it back for inspection, or you can request they come to you. If the buyer can’t produce the item for inspection or prove they shipped it back I would say it is on him. I’m not sure how you deal with PayPal though.

You may have a case for wire fraud involving interstate commerce. I would check with a lawyer. Call the FBI. They guy certainly broke some state or federal law if he cheated you out of $1500.

BTW UPS did pay my claim based on pictures I sent them. The trick is unless you have the original package, they will claim improperly packed unless you pay the UPS store to pack it, which I did. Then they can’t use that excuse and have to pay. It costs a little more but on an expensive item well worth it. They also didn't ask for the speakers back. They were dinged on the edges but I patched them up and you can't see any damage unless you go up close and look for it. 

In nearly 700 transactions buying and selling, I have been "robbed" 5 times. Either buyer claims item wasn't as described and sent back something different or did even communicate. Each time ebay / paypal ignored the evidence and I was out the money and they billed me for the sale. Most of the time these folks turned out to be apartment renters and reshipping to another country. When I contacted local PDs they were of no practical help. Just not a priority for under resource for their case levels. Being right and pursuing costs the victim more in legal, travel, time and aggravation. Crooks know it. And when you do as I did once, what will you do / achieve? You are out more money or if you confront them in person, someone goes to jail or hospital and it could be you. Not worth all that. In business accounting we had "bad debit" and "uncollected" factored. It's NOT right at all but it is gonna happen because there is more and more opportunity and fewer and fewer people are honest and ethical. There was the Ice Age, the stone age, the age of fire, the bronze age, the industrial age, the information age and increasingly so over the past several decades we have the age of the liar and cheat. I am much slower to upgrade audio gear via online platforms such as ebay and agon and audio marts because reselling on line once safe and pleasant is now dreaded and even to be avoided. Sorry for these developments and folks' losses. Sucks to be a victim but sucks more to dwell and not move on to more positive. Life is short. We can collectively make a difference when we realize and act knowing PayPal and the like will only respond to the economic imperative of a decline in revenues due to a decline in use and advertising. Adjust in ways that work best for your well-being and enjoy the music , your family and friends. Offered with the utmost respect and kind regards. Namaste  

@programmergeek , sorry for your problems but appreciate the thread, which is full of good information and reminders.
I would add two things after reading through the issues posters have described.
First, you cannot overestimate the value of packing something well and going the extra mile to double box, ship on a pallet (when necessary), and generally over-package everything.
Second, there is value in the Audiogon community and feedback system. It is not perfect, but it is something. Whether you are a buyer or seller, seeing the length of time your trading partner has been around here and reading testimonials written about that person by other folks on this site, provides at least a baseline as to whether you want to trade with them or not. Being able to set parameters for those you trade with is also helpful. For example, when buying or selling expensive and/or heavy hard-to-pack and ship items, there is value in dealing with folks who have done this before and are known for taking extra care in packing, shipping through a suitable carrier, insuring, and following-up. This stuff will not prevent occasional problems but it is something folks can look at to safeguard themselves.