Truly sad, but don't assume PayPal will cover you. I got ripped off by someone a few years back and used PayPal. When I contacted them they said the payee had already removed the money from the account so they couldn't do anything. I don't know if the policy has changed but I don't trust PayPal that much!
Beware How I was ripped off
A while back I saw an add posted for some Tannoy drivers that I was interested in. I opened some dialogue and ended up purchasing them. The seller was "audiosource", Paul Berger, and did have a few transctions with positive feedback. On the phone he said he was opening a store in Poland for hifi. He said he could not do paypal and I had to do bank transfer. Due to the positive feedbacks I decided to go through with it. Lo and behold a few months go by and I have not recieved my speakers. He is very reassuring stating that they are going by boat and it takes a long time. Finally we get to the point were he promises to refund. Unfortunately he never does and doesn't respond to any more emails. Lesson learnt I will never send bank transfer again. Do not purchase anything form this scammer!