Introducing the Apple iPlank

A fool and his money are soon parted, said poet Thomas Tusser in 1557.

iHope she got a receipt.

Thanks to those who shop for electronics in McDonald’s parking lots, that idiom holds true today.

The Smoking Gun provides the details: Ashley McDowell, from Spartanburg, S.C., was at the fast food restaurant when two men asked her if she wanted to buy an iPad. They showed her a brand new iPad and told her they’d give her one just like it for $300.

She talked them down to $180 and they gave her a FedEx box from the trunk of their Impala.

Lo and behold, when she opened the box, she found out she was an iDiot.

Instead of a much-beloved tablet computer, she was the proud owner of a piece of wood painted black and adorned with Apple and Best Buy stickers.

Police say the scam is unusual only in that the crooks took the time to create a crude facsimile of the sold item.

Note: The original version of this story incorrectly said the men offered to sell a stolen iPad.