Common practice, sellers run these penny auctions to pump up their feedback scores. They've been doing it since the start of eBay.
I almost put a dollar up on a BIN for 50 cents just to get a sale. I buy but have never sold on ebay and I get messages about a $25 certificate on my first sale. I'll spend 50 cents to make $25. I'm guessing that may be his motivation and probably sold it to a buddy. I looked and didn't see a clause about how much I had to sell to make my $25.
