[email protected]

From: [email protected]
To: Michelle Banks
Subject: RE: Reply to your ad: 1 bedroom flat to rent BS1
Date: Mon, 7 Feb 2011 13:19:48 +0000

Hi,

The following are the basic breakdown you need to know about the rent and deposit.
Rent : £ 100.00 per week
Security Deposit: £ 400.00(Refundable after 1 month stay in my flat) Utility bills inclusive ( water, gas, council tax, TV license and wireless Internet )
Utility Cost : £ 0.00 per month with exception of electricity bill ,the flat has separate electricity meter.
Moreover, the flat is one bedroom fully furnished in and out with all necessary house use with secure parking place. At this stage that you want to rent my flat, i need to ask some few questions . Can you take good care of my flat as it is? How many month do you intend to rent and pay for? Do you have any reference in Bristol?
Kindly reply for further information and also i would like to know where you are coming from to stay in my flat.

Regards

From: [email protected]
To: Michelle Banks
Subject: RE: Reply to your ad: 1 bedroom flat to rent BS1
Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2011 14:04:55 +0000

Hi,

Thanks for the reply and the sincere interest you have in my flat. My lawyer and i have concluded on conditions for intending tenant to be met and we have agreed to rent the flat to you as you have promised to take care of the flat. However,it is unfortunate that my past bitter experiences of inviting people to come and view or reserve my flat without any form of confirmation of their financial ability and seriousness and most cases not keeping to agreed time as scheduled for viewing,which had brought a great lost to me. I have to travel all the way from Ireland to take the so called interested candidates round my flat because i work and live there.
Some outside tenants do not have the money to pay the rent and yet they disturbs the landlord to arrange a viewing with their friend or relative who are in Bristol, likewise some do not meet up with the appointments which has led to the dismissal of some landlords in office by their employers.

Henceforth, my lawyer and i have decided to carry out a simple test on seriousness and financial ability to pay for my rent before coming for viewing. I would not ask you to send your bank statements or pay slip . But the 1 month rent £400 plus the security deposit £400 which is refundable after your 1 month stay in my flat, would be required from you to transfer through Western union money transfer agent to your trusted friend or relative in U K premises.
Once you have done this, scan the receipt to me and if you do not have scanner, you may write out the details on the receipt which i will send to my lawyer to verify if it's truly genuine and available in your relative or friend's custody, after the verification by my lawyer, then we can proceed for the viewing and thereafter you can as well tell your friend or partner to pick up the money and I promise to refund you the cost of transfer if unfortunately you dont like my flat when we shall meet. I look forward to read from you soon.

Regards

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 to 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.