Room for Rent Scammer - Kelly Benson

I got this email today about my apartment in Raleigh, NC:

Mary dean [email protected]
7:37 PM (1 hour ago)

to me
Thanks for getting back to me..My name is Mary Dean(female),I am 24yrs
old,I am fun loving, personal, friendly,clean, caring,and respectful
of others.a non-smoker, don't do drugs, i drink occasionally,and drama
free.I graduated last year in France, I am single and have no
children...i do bible study, and sometimes we do karaoke night with my
roommate! i go to church every Sunday. I am coming for my Masters
degree. i am from USA,specifically Hawaii, I was born in Honolulu in
Hawaii,my dad is from there too but my mum is from Spain...I went to
Chaminade University of Honolulu in Hawaii.I speak both English and
Spanish fluently,am presently on research work at Hawaii, and almost
done with that because its part of my prerequisite for my masters in
Microbiology . I would have loved to call you but this is a remote
area calls is hard to go through from here and i don't want to waste
much time .Am really interested in renting from you or to be your
roomie and i do really love pets but i don't have any at the moment.I
would have loved to see it but am very far,but with pictures,I am
glad. I will also like you to tell me more about you and if you have
garage or parking space cos I will have my own car come over, please
let me know the total payment of the place and more over I will send
your email to my dad for him to email you later because he is the one
that will be paying the bills but nevertheless,I will like you to send
me your
First Name:
Last Name:
Full address: Not P.O.BOX
City:
State:
Postal Code:
Phone Number: That i can send text message so that my Dad will issue
out the payment (Cashier Check) for the place as soon as possible,with
that you can hold on the place for me till I come.

Thanks and have a nice day.
Best Regards

I'm glad I googled the email address.

renting a room in pdx oregon and its listed on craigslist... i found it odd that when i searched on fb the profile only had 7 friends. who has only 7 facebook friends?? thats when the red flags became red billboards.

she is using the name michelle nicolas. email addy: [email protected]
(https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100003520681101)
the picture she attached in the email matched the profile pic i found on fb. i wrote back once and she refused to chat online or on skype and kept insisting i send her my address etc. thats when i started researching her story and thru a google search of the college in korea, i found this thread! ~snflwrflds


Thanks for getting back to me.. My name is Michelle Nicolas ,I am
26yrs old ,I am fun loving, personal, friendly,clean, caring and
respectful of others. a non-smoker, don't do drugs but i drink
occasionally. I graduated last year in South Korea at Baewha Women's
College,I am single and have no children ..i do bible study, and
sometimes we do karaoke night with my roommate! i go to church every
Sunday

I am coming for my masters degree. I was born in Korea (Seoul), my dad
is from USA but my mum is from Korea...I went to Baewha Women's
College in Seoul i speak both language, am presently on research work
at Guam, am almost done with that because its part of my prerequisite
for my masters in Legal Research . I would have loved to call you but
this is a remote area calls is hard to go through from here and i
don't want to waste much time .

Am really interested in renting from you and i do really love pets but
i don't have any at the moment. I would have loved to see it but am
very far,but with pictures i am glad. I will also like you to tell me
more about you and if you have garage or parking space cos I will have
my own car, please let me know the total payment of the place and i
will like you to send me your full Name and the mailing address, your
phone number as well,so that my Dad will issue out the payment for the
place as soon as possible,with that you can hold on the place for me
till i come very soon. I have attached a picture of myself for you and
I will be looking forward to your email soonest. Thanks and have a
nice day.

His my name is heather and I recently was looking for a new boarder to rent a room to and I responded to ads that individuals were looking to rent out a room from private homes and I found a few and emailed them from their post and a few replied, but two of them turned out to try and scam me by saying they were from somewhere working or studying in Europe. The first one said she was mid 20's in France and just starting out as a fashion designer and had secured a job in Boston or near, I live about a hour drive from Boston and they would be needing a room to rent and didn't want to foot the bill on their own sorenting a room from someone would be best. My first tip this was fake was after they emailed me several times asking questions about the place and wanting a pic of the room they would be taking, they asked me to remove my ad off Craigslist. I never put up an ad! I had responded to their ad looking for a room to rent. Secondly, they said they were sending me a check with the first months rent and deposit so they didn't lose the place, but they never once had met me in person or wanted to see the place first?! Then I did get a check in the mail for over 2,500.00, and they wanted me to cash the check, not thru their bank it was written off, but mine, that was my last clue this was not legit and they were trying to scam me. They wanted me to also take out my fees for the room and send the rest western union to have their car and belongings shipped here to my address. Why if this was legit, why can they not send the payment to have their own stuff shipped?? I was not fooled and I really hope no one does go as far as to deposit these checks into their own banks. I went to bank it was written off and told them and they checked the account and it was a legit account but the check was fraudulent and it belonged to someone these people are trying to scam as well! I think it is just awful and pitifull that these people try to do this and am sorry for those out there that do fall for it and get scammed out of their hard earned money.

These are the names and email addresses I got
1. Marie Elliot and the email address I got her email from was. [email protected]
2. Mary Forest and the email address I got her email from was. [email protected]

I am almost positive these are scammers trying to get me to just put this check into my account and send them money and I will be held responsible! For which I will not and they can go to hell! It just sucks because I am really trying to find a couple of real people to rent out a couple of rooms in my home. I am disabled and the mortgage is getting hard on me to take care of now that I am on social security disability, I had boarders before but they were local kids, but they were not responsible and I thought this time I need to find someone more responsible and I looked on Craigslist. So I just wanted to put on here, your website my story and a little info about these people who they say they are contacted me so as to warn others if they use these same names they used with me, that these are scammers and not legit people trying to find a nice place to live, they just want your money.
So sad,
Heather B.

Becareful, she told me I would be geting paid to post adds on craigslist under two accounts, then craigslist w

I got the same thing, but the name is Ruth Anderson.. here are the 2 different email addresses that it came with: [email protected] and [email protected].. robertdd was the original response email, but when I replied, it then used donklex200.. below is the first response I got:

Thanks for getting back to me and i am Ruth Anderson,(F) I am 25 yrs
old, I am fun loving person, friendly, clean, caring, and respectful
of others. a non-smoker, don't do drugs, I drink occasionally. I
graduated last year from South Korea at Baewha Women's College in
Seoul, I am single and have no children, I do bible study and
sometimes we do karaoke night with my roommates then. I need to secure
this room for myself before i leave here as I'll be moving in with my
luggage. You seem to be a very interesting person to be with and I
must confess to you that you will enjoy staying with me in the house
because i am an easy going person and i make people happy. I will be
in the state before the end of this Month for the next one year and
during my stay, I will be doing my masters degree.

I was born in Soeul Korea, my dad is from the states but my mum is
from Korea,am presently on research work in Puerto Rico but i am
almost done with that because its part of my perquisite for my masters
in Microbiology. I would have loved to call you but this is a remote
area and calls are kind of hard to go through from here and i don't
want to waste much time. I am really interested in renting from you
and i do really love pets but i don't have any at the moment. I would
have loved to see it but since i am far away then pictures will do
just fine. I will also like you to tell me more about you and if you
have garage or parking space cos I will have my own car to make use of
there as well, pls let me know the total payment of the place and more
over I will send your email to my dad for him to email you later bcos
he will be the one paying the bills but nevertheless, I will like you
to send me your full Name and the mailing address, your phone number
as well, so my Dad will issue out the payment for the place as soon
as possible, with that you can hold on the place for me till my
arrival down there.

I will be looking forward to your email soonest.


Ruth

Why do people feel it necessary to scam you on renting your room out!! I just want a decent roommate!! I think I just gor another scammer mail!! WTF!!.. :-\

She is using a different name and email addy:

Mary Vincent [email protected]
12:40 PM (1 hour ago)

Thanks for getting back to me ... I am Mary Vincent, 25yrs old, I
am fun loving person, friendly, clean, caring, and respectful of
others. a non-smoker, don't do drugs, I drink occasionally. I
graduated last year from South Korea at Baewha Women's College in
Seoul, I am single and have no children, I do bible study and
sometimes we do karaoke night with my roommates then. I need to secure
this room for myself before i leave here as I'll be moving in with my
luggage's .

I was born in Soeul Korea, my Dad is from United states but my mum is
from Korea, am presently on research work in Puerto Rico but i am
almost done with that because its part of my perquisite for my masters
in Microbiology. I would have loved to call you but this is a remote
area so calling is kinda hard to go through from here but you can text
me to my cell phone which is 1 (202) 505-7915. I am really interested
in renting from you and i do really love pets but i don't have any at
the moment. I will also
like you to tell me more about you and if you have garage or parking
space cos I have my own car , pls let me know the total payment of the
place but nevertheless, I will like you to send me an email with your
full Name and the mailing address, your phone number as well, so my
Dad will issue out the payment for the place as soon as possible,
with that you can hold on the place for me till my arrival down there.

I will be looking forward to your email soonest.

She doesn't even change the format and wording in the emails.

Oh, and the other email is [email protected]

I just got hit... I sent them my information which was my address and a fake name because I just felt iffy about it. I hope hey don't find me and come after me but I placed an ad on craigslist about a room for rent and received numerous emails all reading similar things. Here's the one i sent my info too.



temy [email protected]

[email protected] Show details

Hello, Hope the room still available ?...

Then she replied back saying her name was Vivian Donald.

Am I okay??? Im getting a new number tomorrow and Im never posting on Craigslist again.

I just got hit... I sent them my information which was my address and a fake name because I just felt iffy about it. I hope hey don't find me and come after me but I placed an ad on craigslist about a room for rent and received numerous emails all reading similar things. Here's the one i sent my info too.



temy [email protected]

[email protected] Show details

Hello, Hope the room still available ?...

Then she replied back saying her name was Vivian Donald.

Am I okay??? Im getting a new number tomorrow and Im never posting on Craigslist again.

Here's another one

ROOM NEEDED

Spam

Sep 21 7:18pm To: [email protected] Show details

--

Hi,

My name is Michael Simmons and I am originally from England. I am 30 years old. I was opportuned to read through your posting concerning the advert you posted on craigslist.com. I am expressing my sheer interest in taking up the room. Firstly, what are the modalities in taking up the place? Kindly reply the following questions below:

* Description of the room, size and if it's furnished or not * Total rent required before moving in * Utility Bills * How long you wish to rent it out, All these information are very important so that i can submit my proposal to my supervisor.

I am a Pathologist by profession, presently working for European Public Health Alliance under the inspection of W.H.O/UNICEF as a microbiologist/Researcher, I do more of humanitarian work which is out of my real profession. Moreover, I just finished a project in Netherlands about treatment of water and to educate communities on intensive health-care.The project was initiated by UNICEF in conjunction with EPHA; I led the troop to actualize the conclusion of the project.

My next appointment is in the United States. This is a great opportunity for me to visit the US for the first time. The duration of my stay is for 12 months. Precisely, I might be working in Schools, Laboratories and Hospitals. I am looking forward to move in by the 2nd week in October. Due to this reason, I need to know when the room will be ready so I can make necessary arragements prior to my arrival.

I get lot of acknowledgment about me been friendly, I love kids, I'm laid back, I don't keep late night, love reading novels and watching to the news because I'm very conservative about politics & entertainment. I am pretty quiet and neat, but not obsessively so. I'm responsible and will pull my weight around the apartment and pay bills on time. I like to cook, and it would be great to have people to cook with or eat with, but it's definitely not a requirement in a roommate. I don't smoke, no pets, but I am a social drinker. Most importantly I am respectful of others privacy, time, and personal items.

I am writing to confirm if you still have the room available for rent. If yes, kindly reply back to me so we can proceed and finalize arrangements and have it secured before I arrive. Let me know if I can give you any more info that would be helpful in making your decision. I would appreciate if you can tell me about yourself too.

I received an email from this scammer [email protected] as well.

(1) The reply goes to : [email protected]
FROM: kathy hawk <[email protected]>
TO: @hous.craigslist.org
Monday, October 22, 2012

I will like to know if the room still available for rent?
Kathy Hawk

(2) The reply goes to : "kathy hawk" <[email protected]>
Friday, November 2, 2012
From: "kathy hawk" <[email protected]>
To: @hous.craigslist.org
Get back to me if the room still available fo rent?

This "Kathy Hawk" scammer is still in the business of scamming.

The reply goes to : [email protected]
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
From: "kathy hawk" <[email protected]>
To: xxx

is the room still available for rent..Kindly get back to me as soon as possible now Thanks
Looking forward to hear from you soon

katty

<Fake> check scammer.

The reply goes to : [email protected]
FROM: Kathy Hawk <[email protected]>
TO: xxx
Thursday, October 25, 2012

Thanks for getting back to me ... My name is [Kathy Hawk]
(Female),I am 24yrs
old,I am fun loving, personal, friendly,clean, caring,and respectful
of others.a non-smoker, don't do drugs, i drink occasionally,and drama
free.I graduated last year in France, I am single and have no
children ...i do bible study, and sometimes we do karaoke night with
my roommate! i go to church every Sunday. I am coming for my Masters
degree. i am from USA,specifically Hawaii, I was born in Honolulu in
Hawaii,my dad is from there too but my mum is from Spain...I went to
Chaminade University of Honolulu in Hawaii.I speak both English and
Spanish fluently ,am presently on research work at Hawaii, and almost
done with that bcos its part of my prerequisite for my masters in
Microbiology . I would have loved to call you but this is a remote
area calls is hard to go through from here and i don't want to waste
much time .Am really interested in renting from you or to be your
roomie and i do really love pets but i don't have any at the moment.I
would have loved to see it but am very far,but with pictures,I am
glad. I will also like you to tell me more about you and if you have
garage or parking space cos I will have my own car come over, pls let
me know the total payment of the place and more over I will send your
email to my dad for him to email you later bcos he is the one that
will be paying the bills but nevertheless,I will like you to send me
your

1.....Full Name to write on the check
2.....Full Physical address to post the check(P.O box never accepted)
3.....City, State and Zip Code
4.....Home Phone to contact you
5.....Cell Phone to contact you


so that my Dad will issue out the payment for the place as soon as
possible,with that you can hold on the place for me till i come. I
will be looking forward to your email soonest.

It appears that this individual is still at it. I just got hit tonight posting on Craigslist. The email address didn't show up in Google, but some of the contents of the message did, such as research in Guam. It started not to add up when I did a search on the username portion of the email address and the only results were a Flixter acct with 5 friends. The age in the email didn't match the age this person provided in the email...so I probed deeper. I'm glad I did. Thanks folks.

Here's the latest "identity" this person is assuming:

[email protected] <[email protected]> Wed, Oct 31, 2012 at 7:46 PM

Thanks for getting back to me... My name is monifa (F),I am 26yrs old,I am fun loving, personal, friendly,clean and respectful of others.A non-smoker, don't do drugs, i drink occasionally,and drama free. I graduated last year in France. I am single and have no children... I do bible study, and sometimes we do karaoke night with my roommate! i go to church every Sunday.

Am coming for my masters degree. I was born in France (Bordeaux), my dad is from USA but my mum is from Paris...I went to University of Bordeaux in France i speak both French and English ,am presently on research work at Guam (USA), am almost done with the research. Am doing it because its part of prerequisite for my masters in Microbiology. I would have loved to call you but this
is a remote area calls is hard to go through from here and i don't want to waste much time.

Am really interested in renting from you and i don't really love pets but i don't care if there is any in the house. I would have loved to see it but am very far,but with pictures,I am glad. I will also like you to tell me more about you and if you have garage or parking space because I will have my own car come over, please let me know the total payment of the place and more over I will send your email to my Dad for him to email you later because he is the one that will be paying the bills but nevertheless,I will like you to send me your{ FULL NAME and the MAILING ADDRESS, AGE,YOUR PHONE NUMBER} as well,so that my Dad
will issue out the payment for the place as soon as possible,with that you can hold on the place for me till i come. I will be looking forward to your email soonest. Thanks and have a nice
day.
Monifa

I just got a hit by this person posing as Kathy Hawk. Does anyone know how she could scam you? What information will she need to be able to take money. My dad gave her his name, phone number, and obviously email address. Is there anything she could do with this information?

Thanks

Welcome to ScamWarners chouse3250. There isn't a lot they can do with the information you furnished. The rental scam is an "overpayment" scam. They will send a check which is a forgery. The check would be over the amount agreed and they would ask for a refund because their plans changed or something similar.

It is possible the scammer would use your dad's name in a scam, but as long as "vital" information wasn't given, like bank account number, or social security number, there isn't much that they can do.