Rental Scammer - [email protected]

Oh my goodness!!!

I am SOOOOOOOOOOOO glad I came across this little thread.

I recently found an apartment that was way too good to be true. I've been doing my hardest to try to find out more information of this person. I too got the exact same set of emails and right now I'm a single mom, and desperately trying to find a place for me and my 5 month old son. I'm soooooooooo glad I saw these!

His email address is [email protected] and I was so devastated when I saw all these posts with the same email that I received. But thank you soooo much for posting this otherwise I never would have known.

These are the correspondence that happened between us:

Good Morning,

I'm writing in regards to the add that I saw on Craigs list. http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/rds/a ... 54235.html.

Just had a few questions about the unit. Do I have to be a student attending SFU? I have a small child(5months) is that still ok?
Is it a smoking building? Is this place owned and being subletted type thing? When is it available??

I'll tell you a bit about myself. I'm a 21 yr old single mother. I'm from Powell River and I'll be moving in the next few months so that my son is closer to his father. I'm on materinty leave, and I'll be applying for income assistance until I find a job in the city. Is that still ok? I have references, and stuff like that readily available. I'm honest and reliable .

If you wouldnt mind calling me at . Or if you don't want to call long distance, I don't mind calling you.
You could also email me at this email:

I look forward to talking with you soon,

Thanks,

Des

His response:

Troy Muccen [email protected]

Feb 4 (1 day ago)

to me
Hello,

Thank you for your interest in my apartment located in 13789 107A Ave, Surrey, BC, Canada. The apartment is in excellent condition and it's just like in the pictures, very clean and very well taken. Honestly from point of view I'm sure that you will rent it on spot. I'm not looking to make a business or a profit with the apartment, I'm just trying to find a good and trust person to take good care of the place. The apartment has 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. It is furnished but if you want you can use your furniture and deposit mine in the storage unit that is located near the building not far away. The rent is 650CAD/month with everything included (heat, hydro, water, electricity, cable and internet, 2 parking spots, laundry in-suite, washer and dryer). You will have full access to all the amenities of the building. Pets are allowed. I stayed in the apartment with my wife for 3 months. I'm a civil engineer and I work for a company that has an auction for a project in construction in London, United Kingdom, so my accommodation period in England will be about 4 years. Everything in the apartment is new so there will be no need for repairs. The only problem is that I need to send you the keys and papers because it is a private property and I'm sure we can make this happen.

Thank you and look forward hearing from you!


Feb 4 (1 day ago)

Me:

to troy.muccen
Troy,

So this sounds just perfect! I am seriously interested in this place as it looks like a good place to live and I dont feel comfortable living in a place where lots of smoke is in and around my child. I feel as if this will be great for the both of us. I'm not sure if I mentioned this before but I need it for April? As that's when I'll be moving. Could I put the damage deposit down to hold the place? Did you want me to send you my references and my landlord information??? Are you in London right now? Or still in Canada?

Thank you for being so understanding and I appreciate you replying so promptly.

Anything else you'd like for me to do, let me know.

Thanks,

Desaraigh

Feb 4 (1 day ago)

to troy.muccen
Oh and is it ok if you leave it furnished? If so, may put the little furniture I have in the storage unit you previously talked about?

Thank you again, this is just great.
Troy Muccen [email protected]

2:18 AM (17 hours ago)

From him:

to me

Hello,

Thank you for your reply. As I told you before the rent for 1 month will be 650CAD with no extra fees and you will have full access to all the amenities of the building. The price will not increase for the whole period that you will stay there. I would also like to know how many people will live in the apartment and also which rental contract do you prefer- 6 months rental contract with option of renewal or 1 year rental contract with option of renewal. The monthly payments can be wired to my Canadian Bank Account (TD Bank) or we can setup a payment method that is suitable for both of us. The apartment is in excellent condition, you only need to receive the keys and the contract so you could check it out, and see if you like it. Since at this moment I'm in London, United Kingdom and obviously we need a safe way to complete this deal.The solution is a worldwide third party company called CLICKANDBUY (http://www.clickandbuy.com) ,they will provide assistance in handling the payment and delivery of the rental package. With this procedure you will be able to check the apartment before I receive the payment. Please be aware that is NOT necessary for you to register with ClickandBuy given that I'm a registered user for 4 years and I've made over 30 transactions with them so far. They are really professional and they have great services.
My phone number is +442032868341 (if you are calling from Canada you need to dial 011-44-20-32868341). You can call me or e-mail anytime you wish.
Let me know if you are interested so I can provide with all the steps of this transaction, everything that you need to know about this process before we get this started. I think is right for both of us.


Thank you and hope to hear from you soon!
Troy Muccen [email protected]

7:04 PM (36 minutes ago)

Me:

to Troy
Hey

Yes, I'd like to proceed and get this transaction under way. Just let me know what I need to do. There will only be two people living in the apartment. Myself and my son. He's just a baby. No pets, and I don't smoke and I drink only socially but no parties.

Thanks

Also, I probably won't call as I dont think my phone is good with international calls and I don't want a huge phone bill. Sorry.

Thanks again soo much! I will no longer be replying to these emails, any advice as to what I should do? Report it to police????

<Split Topic - Michelle>

Welcome to ScamWarners DxRay1991, it is great you checked to see if you were dealing with a scammer.

Sadly, reporting to the police will not do anything. Scammers hide behind anonymous email accounts and fake names. The police do not have the resources to chase down these scammers.

Best of luck in your search for a place to live. Do be careful and feel free to check with us if you are suspicious.

I am so glad I googled the number that the guy provided and found this site!! I can't believe it. The apartment sounded perfect. I'm so disappointed. But rather find out now before it was too late.

Same emails except for mine it was an address in cape town south Africa and his name was serge Noel.