by Michelle
Sun Oct 24, 2010 4:01 pm
From: John Richards <[email protected]>
Date: Sat, Oct 23, 2010 at 6:44 PM
Subject: Re: Room
To: Michelle Banks
Thanks for your email .I'm John Richards , the owner of the apartment you are interested in renting. Actually I resided in the apartment with my family for some months and we moved away due to my transfer from my working place, my apartment is still available for rent for $450 per month including the utilities like hydro, washer and security, it is furnished. Right now I'm in the United States and I would like you to get in touch with my wife for more discussion as she is always at home , we live in Washington DC and she is with the keys and documents to the apartment. Please I want you to note that am a kind and honest man and also I spent a lot on my property, so i will solicit for your absolute maintenance of this apartment and I want you to treat it as your own. I want you to keep it tidy all the time so that I will be glad to see it neat when I come for a checkup, I do that once in a while. I want to have trust in you as I always stand by my words. Let us know how soon you are willing to move in. Email my wife Mary, on ( [email protected] ) and she will attend to you better.
ADDRESS TO THE APARTMENT : 554 Lansdowne Ave, Toronto, ON M6H 3Y9, Canada
Thanks for your interest.
John Richards
The thief will tell you that you can rent his accommodation only if you can prove that you have genuine interest. He will ask you send money by wire transfer (normally Western Union) to yourself or a member of the family to show that you have sufficient finances and that you are not a "time waster".
Another variation of this scam is that you need to send (by Western Union) money in order that the keys and other documents can be couriered to you
He will ask you to send him the transfer details.
Make no mistake ! Western Union Transfers can be picked up virtually anywhere in the world and with the minimum of identification. They are almost impossible to trace once the money has been collected. You will never get to see the accommodation or your money again.
If you are reading this because you are looking for property to rent, and you are in contact with this thief you are probably searching Gumtree or similar listing sites. If you receive any requests from 'Landlords' asking for some kind of payment by Western Union before viewing, then it will also be a scam. Please forward the mail to me at the address in my signature line and I will investigate and list them if necessary.
