I almost got robbed pretty bad. I used to buy opiate pills (oxy IR mainly) of this dude that sold a variety of drugs. I've known this dude for a couple years and chilled with him a lot of times. He used to sell "soft" drugs like weed/shrooms/acid.
However, he starting selling coke recently, and as expected, he steadily started getting more selfish, egotistical, and shady. One time he told me he knew someone getting rid of a bunch of oxys for $400 total. I said yea. He told me to meet him in this local store parking lot, which is weird cuz he usually just scoops me up around my street and does the deal while driving around the block.
So I get there, he's not in his car, but his friend's (weird). I hop in the back seat. He is with this dude I've seen before, but there's this sketchy fiend-looking dude in the back seat with me that hands me the pills, which are in a flame-sealed cellophane packet (another red flag). Before giving the money, I used my phone as a light to inspect the pills. They don't look like the normal mallinckrodt oxys that I always got from him, nor do they resemble any other brands of oxy (color, lack of score line, imprint). I ask the sketchy dude in a surprised voice, "What's the big 'G' stand for?" He nervously goes, "Uhh, uhh, generic? I don't know." [BULLSHIT!!!]
At that bulk, I didn't want to risk it, so I handed it back, said no good, and left. Went back did a pill ID on google with the imprint I saw, turns out they were a bunch of antihistamine pills. Was so relieved I didn't lose $400.
After thoughts: I think he didn't pick me up and drive that time so I wouldn't automatically have time to inspect the pills (quick in & out was what he wanted). Also, I think he had some stranger hand me the pills so he could blame it on that guy if I called him on the BS. Made me laugh that the piece of shit dealer I had called me up a couple days later saying in a non-chalant way, "I got these pills, they're from me, not that dude you saw a couple days ago." LOL What a jackass, further confirmed it for me.
Moral: For high-price deals, never give up your money until you are holding the drugs. Follow your instincts: if something seems odd, the dude seems nervous/different, or the usual routine has been changed drastically, most likely something shady's going down. And most of all, don't be afraid to say NO (unless you are certain doing so will get you fucked up bad/killed).