Online Columbia auctions attract big spenders, pranksters

By RACHEL KONRAD
AP Business Writer

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) Chris Lucas was inconsolable after the deaths of Columbia's astronauts until she learned about the Space Shuttle Children's Trust Fund and decided to turn her grief into a charitable cause.

A veteran seller on the online auction site eBay, she offered up a $4.95 Columbia patch from the Cape Canaveral gift shop, saying all profits would go to the NASA-supported nonprofit fund for the children.

But her auction has become a cautionary tale for the 36-year-old fund-raiser, who is such a space enthusiast that she decorated her 3-year-old daughter's bedroom with space shuttles and a poster of Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. EBay says that it's yet another case of buyer and seller beware, warning online auction buffs to do their homework before participating in any auction.

Lucas, a self-described ``sci-fi geek'' who collects Star Wars and Star Trek memorabilia in her Tallahassee, Fla., home, watched the bidding quickly soar above $1 million within 24 hours of commencing the auction then learned that the bid was a hoax after contacting the would-be big spender.

She fired off e-mails to other bidders and estimated that as many as 10 percent were pranksters.

Lucas said she would ask that the check for the winning bid be made out directly to the children's fund in Washington, and said she would mail the patch to the fund for delivery to the winning bidder.

It's unclear how much legitimate bidders are willing to pay for the patch. By midday Tuesday, the top bid was more than $10 million, but Lucas was dubious and overwhelmed. She left work early to respond to more than 500 e-mails, but few of the top bidders replied or confirmed their intention to donate.

Lucas, who decided after consulting with eBay on Wednesday to end the auction early, was trying to get in touch with the highest bidders, confident she would find one sincere person willing to pay a large sum for charity.

``I'm exhausted,'' an exasperated Lucas said after only a few hours sleep. ``Seeing it through to the end would have been really difficult. ... I just keep reminding myself that, even if there are bad people out there, it's important to do good things. I am still praying for those children.''

EBay spokesman Kevin Pursglove warned that tragedy often brings out con artists and pranksters. Several shuttle-related charity auctions listed Monday had top bids exceeding $1,000, but by Wednesday nearly all of the high-stakes auctions had disappeared.

The San Jose-based company urges sellers to provide ample details about the intended charity and refrain from posting auctions before setting up a means of money transfer to a specific relief group.

EBay also set up a separate site for charitable auctions of various kinds after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Sellers who list items there must send eBay an IRS nonprofit statement, along with details about the relief organization, including names of executives.

``We don't want to do anything to dissuade an eBay user from making a contribution to a charitable organization,'' Pursglove said, but ``you have to do your homework, find out all you can about the seller and make sure you have a manner in which you can document the contribution.''

Space program memorabilia is always popular at online auction sites, and eBay listings for such items have soared since the Columbia disaster. The site listed more than 700 mission patches Wednesday, and shuttle-related charitable listings have taken off in other online auctions.

One mission patch seller in a Yahoo Auction billed himself as a space program photographer and promised to donate some proceeds to a memorial fund. ``Do not get suckered into paying $300 to $500 for this patch elsewhere,'' the seller admonished, saying that he would sell his for no more than $100.

Daniel Krupnik of New York City also is selling shuttle memorabilia for charity including a Columbia patch whose bidding starts at $5,000.

Krupnik, who was raised in Tel Aviv, said the disaster had touched him deeply particularly the death of Ilan Ramon, Israel's first man in space. Krupnik, who helps small businesses post auctions online, plans to have auctions for 10 patches.

``I was looking for something symbolic to put up to generate money as my own way to cope with what happened,'' he said.

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On the Net:

http://cgi6.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewBids&item=3205184629

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)