Filed the dispute. The seller already emailed my mom trying to get her to close out the PayPal claim, lol.
My buddy who sells stuff on eBay complains that PayPal automatically sides with the buyer, so here's hoping that's true.
Years ago, when it and eBay were relatively new, they tended to side with the merchant. I had a bit of a dogfight with them, as the seller did technically send me an item, but it wasn't remotely what was listed or shown in photos. It was a violin, that I picked up as a gift for my wife, but when it came, it was clear it was really, really shoddy materials and construction, couldn't stay in tune through the end of a song, and you could easily get a fingernail in between the neck and where it attached to the body. I returned the violin reported it to eBay and PayPal. They sided with the seller and my PayPal account was frozen - I was unable to add funds or withdraw them. I went through every kind of ID verification hoop I could jump through to prove I was me. Finally, after several months of me sending regular emails wanting a status update on my case, refund, and ability to access my PayPal funds, they finally sent me a check for the balance of my wallet and reimbursement for the violin, under the condition that I would not be able to open another PayPal account in the future.
Makes me happy to hear they side with the buyer now and recognize that scams are a legit problem. I do feel bad for guys like your buddy who are honest getting the hassle of dealing with scammers, but they'll typically have a long track record of satisfied customers, which should make it easier for them to be cleared after an investigation.
