I have been screwed out of a 20% percent deal myself and it sucks. Not taking one side or another but it does hurt.
And, I used to do business with a couple of different women. They both had husbands that never posted or talked on icq. When I ran into them at a show, neither woman knew what I was talking about when I discussed business. Of course their husbands knew everything
Having the fact that I was lied to about who I was talking to ended all business relationships.
If you can't trust who you are talking to, what about them can you trust?