Same here in Germany. A friend bought a MacBook off ebay and wire-transferred some money to his bank account. He never shipped. So she contacted first his bank

Same here in Germany. A friend bought a MacBook off ebay and wire-transferred some money to his bank account. He never shipped. So she contacted first his bank (which coincidentally was the same as hers) and then the local police. Both were very understanding and said that they could not do much officially, but sent a police car to his location to "interview" him while the bank also contacted him. He quickly sent all the money back. Doubt he'll try something like that again. The guy in the OP commited fraud, the iphone was sent to a US address - why is it so hard to get in contact with local police, even if just an additional step?