In yet another example of why Americans should be wary of cheap foreign goods, a Georgia man was left stunned after he ordered a power drill from the Chinese e-commerce site AliExpress—only to receive nothing more than a *picture* of the tool and a single screw.
Sylvester Franklin, a 68-year-old retired mechanic from Savannah, thought he was getting a great deal when he purchased a drill and pressure washer from the budget online store in November 2024. For just $40, he expected to receive two useful tools to help him with home repairs and car maintenance.
Instead, when his long-awaited package arrived on December 9, Franklin was met with a jaw-dropping scam. Instead of an actual drill, he found a printed *photograph* of the tool and a screw—adding insult to injury.
“I paid around $40—all I got was a picture of the drill and a screw,” Franklin said in disbelief.
As if being duped wasn’t bad enough, Franklin has since been stonewalled by AliExpress. Despite reaching out immediately to request a refund, the China-based retailer has reportedly ignored him.
“I was very upset. I contacted them for a refund straight away,” Franklin said. “They have not got back to me.”
Now, Franklin is speaking out to warn others about the dangers of buying from unreliable foreign retailers that operate with little oversight.
“I am a mechanic and repair man. I use tools like that all the time to work on my car or around the house. This is bad,” he emphasized. “They have taken advantage of me—don’t scam nobody. When I pay for something, I expect to get what I paid for.”
Franklin’s case is just the latest in a growing trend of Americans being scammed by online retailers, many of them based in China, where consumer protections are weak to nonexistent. AliExpress, a subsidiary of Alibaba, has faced numerous accusations of shipping counterfeit goods, failing to deliver products, and engaging in deceptive sales practices.
But here’s the real question: Why are American consumers *still* being scammed by these companies? The answer lies in Washington’s failure to crack down on shady foreign marketplaces that undercut American businesses while leaving customers vulnerable to fraud.
While Democrats push policies that flood the U.S. market with cheap Chinese imports, hardworking Americans like Franklin are left to fend for themselves against dishonest foreign sellers.
With American manufacturing struggling to compete against overseas knockoffs, stories like Franklin’s serve as a stark reminder: *You get what you pay for*. While sites like AliExpress may offer tempting deals, they often come at a cost—whether it’s defective products, long shipping delays, or outright fraud.
For now, Franklin is still waiting for his refund. But his story is a wake-up call for American consumers: *Don’t trust cheap foreign retailers—stick with companies that respect their customers and stand behind their products.*