Room for Rent and other rental scams
by Michelle Wed Mar 10, 2010 3:48 pm
from Jose Manuel Medina Jimenez < [email protected] >
sender time Sent at 13:32 (GMT+02:00). Current time there: 21:44. ?
to Michelle
date 10 March 2010 13:32
subject Re: Reply to your ad: Two bedroom flat- nice area- parking-place- DSS welcome


Hello,
My name is Jose Miguel Jimenez Medina and I am from Spain and the flat is still available for rent. I had an aunt in UK and after her death she left me her apartment from UK a few years ago.
The flat was redecorated last year and the flat is looking very nice and clean. The property has a fully furnished kitchen,clean and well tidy sitting rooms,laundry room,and fully furnished with home utilities like: electric shower, Lounge,Vacuum Cleaner,Toaster, Owen and microwave, dryer, iron, washing machine , refridgerator , dishwasher, powershower, heater, cable ready,tv set and dvd player,internet connection, equiped kitchen and everything a house needs. I m interrested in finding someone clean who can take care of this house more then getting money from renting it if you know what I mean.
Till last month the apartment was rented by some students from Germany and now they left and the apartment is available again for rent. The price I want is £380 per month,bills and council tax included and I am intrested in a long term agreement!
If you have the money I could come in the next few days to show you the apartment and maybe sign the rental agreementif you like it but first I have to be sure you are honest you really do need a place to live because two weeks ago a person from Gloucester told me he is really interested and he asked me to go to Glucester to meet him and sign the rental agreement and when I arrived there no person showed up to rent my place and I lost time and money for nothing.
I will wait for your e-mail,Jose Medina


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.
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by lsprague49303 Fri Mar 19, 2010 12:37 pm
i am a victim of this scammer
and lost £1140
they seem so real
and sent me copys of his pastport
an reasured me every step
im not a stupid person but still fell for the trap
they new everything to say
an had gd resons an replys for every question i asked
please people be so so so careful
by Michelle Fri Mar 19, 2010 12:49 pm
Hello lsprague49303

I am sorry to learn that you have lost money to this scammer.

From what I remember, this scammer is very good at his job and can answer questions as if he were genuine.

Most Room for Rent' scammers use prepared scripts and find difficulty in answering specific questions.

Unfortunately there is virtually no chance of recovering your money. I am guessing that you sent a payment to the scammer by Western Union. These payments are impossible to trace once they have been collected, especially in Nigeria where the scammer was probably writing to you from.

The scammer has your details: You may receive further e-mails from people offering to recover your lost money. These are called 'Recovery Scams'. Eventually you will be asked to pay fees, and if you do pay, you will loose even more money.

Even though the Police will do little to help you, I would urge you to report the crime to them in order that it can, at least, be recorded as a statistic. Without like these reports from people like you, then the authorities will never begin to know the true level of this kind of Cyber-Crime.

If you are still searching for rooms on the internet and someone asks you, for whatever reason, to pay money upfront before viewing then it will be a scam.

Western Union payments should only ever be used for payments that you personally know and have met before.
by lsprague49303 Fri Mar 19, 2010 1:02 pm
Hello,
My name is Jose Miguel Jimenez Medina and I am from Spain and the flat is still available for rent. I had an aunt in UK and after her death she left me her apartment from UK a few years ago.
The flat was redecorated last year and the flat is looking very nice and clean. The property has a fully furnished kitchen,clean and well tidy sitting rooms,laundry room,and fully furnished with home utilities like: electric shower, Lounge,Vacuum Cleaner,Toaster, Owen and microwave, dryer, iron, washing machine , refridgerator , dishwasher, powershower, heater, cable ready,tv set and dvd player,internet connection, equiped kitchen and everything a house needs. I m interrested in finding someone clean who can take care of this house more then getting money from renting it if you know what I mean.
Till last month the apartment was rented by some students from Germany and now they left and the apartment is available again for rent. The price I want is £380 per month,bills and council tax included and I am intrested in a long term agreement!
If you have the money I could come in the next few days to show you the apartment and maybe sign the rental agreementif you like it but first I have to be sure you are honest you really do need a place to live because two weeks ago a person from Exeter told me he is really interested and he asked me to go to Exeter to meet him and sign the rental agreement and when I arrived there no person showed up to rent my place and I lost time and money for nothing.
I will wait for your e-mail,Jose Medina


Re: Reply to your ad: Two bedroom apartment, central, parking place, DSS welcome.?
From: Jose Manuel Medina Jimenez ([email protected])
Sent: 18 March 2010 20:20:21
To: XXXXXXXXXXXXX e-mail address removed
1 attachment
exeter,fl...zip (216.6 KB)


Hello,
I will attach some pictures of the flat,floor plan and also a model of the rental contract! The flat is located on
31, St. Leonards Road, EXETER, EX2 4LR but I can`t give you the exactly address because there`s no one living out there and I`m afraid of thief's and I do apologies for this but I hope you understand me because I`m in Spain right now! The property benefits from access to beautifully maintained communal gardens and comprises reception room, kitchen with washing machine/tumble dryer, master bedroom with fitted wardrobes and en suite bathroom, second bedroom with fitted wardrobe and bathroom.
In the kitchen there is a dishwasher and also a Big fridge freezer! Regarding the council tax I can tell you that it is included in the price of £380 per month and also Sky TV,internet broadband,gas and electricity are also included in this price! I am intrested in a minimum six month agreement and I request two months advance rent payment plus one month refundable deposit (£380) wich you will get it back at the end of the contract.
Regarding the plummets and all that kind of stuff I can tell you that the flat was recently renovated and all electrical part and plummets are new so that won`t be necessary any repairs anyway I have a person who can manage this starting from May.
We can sign the rental contract starting from next weekend but I need to be sure that you have serious intentions in renting the flat that`s why I attach here a model of the rental contract and also we can discuss the terms when we will meet!
If you are decided to view the flat let me know because there is another person interested in reserving it!
Kind regards,Jose Medina

Hello again,

I am a looking for a responsable couple of professional tenants or mature students, who could take care of the flat more than getting money from rent because I have had some students as tenants who damaged the furniture but you see these is due to previous predicament that I have gone through in the past trying to rent the property to some students,I have got to realize so many people are not really in need of an apartment all they do is secure a place in advance, My last experience in trying to rent the property to a particular lady had got me to predicate on these,she made me believe she was willing and ready to get the apartment she even went to the extend of showing me her statement of account,which made me took her for the viewing but after taking her for the viewing,she saw the apartment and got to love it and never wanted to loose it,so she kept pleading i retain it for her because she is not financially composed at the moment,which i did but end up disastrously.
So basically for me to be sure of you been willing and ready to get the apartment I will employ you walk into any Western Union outlet and send the total bill cash £1140(two months rent and one month refundable deposit) to your partener`s name(NOT to ME),or your partener should send it to you with location of Exeter,All I need is for you to get back to me with the receipt issued to you after making the transaction so I can confirm it! When we will meet in person to sign the papers we will go together to Western Union and you or your partner will withdraw the cash and pay me in hand or you can pay me on Monday by bank transfer! I just need to see that you do have the money available and you do have serious intentions in renting the flat! If the Western Union agent will ask you about the receiver you should tell him that is your cousin because the transfer fees will be cheaper! Anyway I will pay for it either you take the flat or not! I will book the flight for Saturday as soon as I have your positive answer because I can come only in weekends!
I do apologise for that but as I told you last time when I arrived to Exeter to show the flat to a person everything was a stupid joke and I hope you understand me because I don`t want to waste my time and money on plane tickets..
Regards,Jose Medina



Hello again,

I am a honest person and I can send you a copy of my passport if you want! Please note that I didn`t asked for any kind of advance payment! I can come to Exeter only in weekends and the banks are closed then! That`s why I suggested to withdraw the money cash from your bank account and send it to a person from your family or a closed friend of you using Western Union money transfer service-you just have to have your ID and cash with you! The Western Union money transfer service will take only 5 minutes to make the transaction and they are opened in weekends too when I arrive to Exeter! If you will be asked if you know the receiver, you should tell the Western Union agent that is a cousin of you because the transfer fees will be cheaper! As we agreed I am going to support the transfer fees either you take the flat or not! The money is still within your reach and nobody has access to it except you. I am asking you this to be sure that I do not come in UK for nothing.
Your partner doesen`t have to cash out the money after you sent it , you will do it after we sign the rental contract and pay me in hand when I will be in Exeter! After you send the money you will get a receipt from the Western Union agent which you have to send it to me so I can be sure that you have serious intentions in renting the flat and also to be sure that you do have the money available on your name! In the moment I will get the receipt I am going to buy the flight ticket and I will come to Exeter to sign the rental contract and give you the keys!
Hope you can understand my situation! I only need to see the Western Union money transfer copy of receipt given to you. This is what I will require to confirm available funds for your rent and to serve as surety that you are serious tenant. You can send as attachment the receipt by email.
For the next payment we will use my bank account and it won`t be necessary to pay me cash! I do apologies for all but two weeks ago I made a mistake and I need to be sure that I am dealing with serious people who really need a home and have serious intentions in renting!
Kind regards,
Jose Medina


Hello,


Right! I will be there Saturday afternoon and I will call you as soon as I get there so we could set up our meeting! I am looking for a responsable tenant who can take care of the flat more than getting money from rent! I don`t want to let the flat to some iresponsable persons who could damage the furniture because its almost new! Regarding the Western Union transfer its very simple,you just have to go there with your ID and cash amount and send the money to your partner`s name filling on the paper his or her complete name! I will support the transfer fees and I will pay it when we will meet in person either you take the flat or not( I am 100% sure that you will love it)! After we will sign the tenancy agreement we will go together and you will withdraw the money and pay me in hand because the Western Union agents are open in weekend too! I will buy the flight ticket only after I will see the receipt so I could be sure that you have the money deposited in Western Union and you have seriouse intentions in renting the flat!
When you will go to the Western Union Office to wire the money sometimes they ask you why are you doing that and if you tell them you want make the payment for renting a flat,when the receiver picks up the money he must pay another fees and if you don't want to pay anything else you must tell the Western Union clerk that you will send the money to a relative who needs the money (i think you don`t want to pay more money for this and surely I don't want to pay anything more either). Please let me know if you will accept my terms otherwise I will tell the other person to make the rservation deposit tomorrow because its fair to let him know either I would preffer you as a tenant being a profesional!

Best regards,
Jose Medina

OK! I will look forward to receive your e mail including the picture or the scan of the Western Union receipt so I could buy the flight ticket in time!
Regards,Jose Medina


Hello,

You understood right! You just have to send the money to one of your parents,for example your father! You have to go to the Western Union agent with the cash and fill a paper :
Sender`s name-Your name-
Receiver`s name-your father complete name!

You will get a receipt from Western Union and that will prove that you do ahve the founds deposited in Western Union waiting for me! After I will show you the flat and we sign the tenancy agreement(I am sure that you will love it) we will go and you should cash out the money(you may do that or your father)-Don`t forget to haThe Western Union website don`t work! I don`t know! Have you called Western Union?

ve with you your ID! It`s simple! All the thing will take 5 minutes! Make me a picture of the receipt or scan it and attach it via e mail so I could buy the flight ticket in time!

Regards,Jose Medina


Hello,
I just received your e mail and saw the scan of the receipt! Like I said I will confirm once again that I will do refund you the transfer fees like we agreed when we will meet in person but I need to verify the funds avability online on the Western Union website here https://wumt.westernunion.com/asp/order ... try=global to see that you do have the money available like we agreed! As you can see from the link that I`ve sent you I need you to confirm me the money transfer control number and your complete name so I can verify the funds online! There`s no need for the receiver`s name as long they don`t ask me for but I need you to confirm what I asked you so I can buy the flight ticket for next Saturday! I hope you can do it today because its cheaper to buy it if I take it today!

Kind regards,Jose Medina


Hello,

I am a honest person! I am attaching here a copy of my passport to see that you don`t have any reason to be afraid! The money are safe! Only you and the receiver can cash out the founds,don`t worry about that! I have sent you the western union web link where you should see by yourself that the money are or not available-here it is-https://wumt.westernunion.com/asp/orderStatus.asp?country=global -Just click on it and you will see by yourself how will tells you that the money are available or not!
I will try to buy the flight ticket for tommorrow if I will see that you do have the money deposited as we agreed! Otherwise tell me because I still have a person who wants to make the reservation deposit and I need to give him an answer!


Regards,Jose Medina

Hello,

The westernunion problems might have problems! I will try again later because I will be in a meeting and let you know! Don`t worry because if the founds are available I will buy the flight ticket in this afternoon! Don`t worry about that! I am a honest person!

Regards,Jose


The Western Union website don`t work! I don`t know! Have you called Western Union?

Not yet darling! I will be in a meeting and will let you know asap when I nought the flight tickets! Please send me your telephone number so I could call you when I have the flight details to set up our meeting!
Regards,Jose


people i went all the way and lost out on so much money dont do the same dont let people get away with
stellin

Quotes added for clarity - e-mail address removed - Michelle
by Miss_Mim Mon May 17, 2010 9:37 am
Hi everyone!

I have just come into contact with this man also, but luckily I googled his name and found him on here before it got too far! IT all seemed a but too good to be true, so I thought I'd see if there was and info about him online. Thank goodness I used my head!

By the way, he used a different email to contact me, [email protected]

Just thought I'd add that, because I'm sure there are many variations he is using!

I can't believe there are idiots out there that do this!

Thank you ever so much for putting him on here, because if you hadn't, I more then likely would of gone along with the scam!

I feel really sorry for you being caught up in the whole thing and losing the amount of money you have lost! It's really unfair, and isn't funny in the slightest! I hope he gets what he deserves!

These are the 'typical emails' I got:

''Hello,
My name is Jose Miguel Jimenez Medina and I am from Spain and the flat is still available for rent. I had an aunt in UK and after her death she left me her apartment from UK a few years ago.
The flat was redecorated last year and the flat is looking very nice and clean. The property has a fully furnished kitchen,clean and well tidy sitting rooms,laundry room,and fully furnished with home utilities like: electric shower, Lounge,Vacuum Cleaner,Toaster, Owen and microwave, dryer, iron, washing machine , refridgerator , dishwasher, powershower, heater, cable ready,tv set and dvd player,internet connection, equiped kitchen and everything a house needs. I m interrested in finding someone clean who can take care of this house more then getting money from renting it if you know what I mean.
Till last month the apartment was rented by some students from Germany and now they left and the apartment is available again for rent. The price I want is £350 per month,bills and council tax included and I am intrested in a long term agreement!
If you have the money I could come in the next few days to show you the apartment and maybe sign the rental agreementif you like it but first I have to be sure you are honest you really do need a place to live because two weeks ago a person from Gloucester told me he is really interested and he asked me to go to Gloucester to meet him and sign the rental agreement and when I arrived there no person showed up to rent my place and I lost time and money for nothing.
I will wait for your e-mail,Miguel Jimenez'

and:

'Hello,
I will attach some pictures of the flat,floor plan and also a model of the rental contract! The flat is located on
11 New Street,GLOUCESTER,GL1 5AZ but I can`t give you the exactly address because there`s no one living out there and I`m afraid of thief's and I do apologies for this but I hope you understand me because I`m in Spain right now! The property benefits from access to beautifully maintained communal gardens and comprises reception room, kitchen with washing machine/tumble dryer, master bedroom with fitted wardrobes and en suite bathroom, second bedroom with fitted wardrobe and bathroom.
In the kitchen there is a dishwasher and also a Big fridge freezer! Regarding the council tax I can tell you that it is included in the price of £380 per month and also Sky TV,internet broadband,gas and electricity are also included in this price! I am intrested in a minimum six month agreement and I request two months advance rent payment plus one month refundable deposit (£380) wich you will get it back at the end of the contract.
Regarding the plummets and all that kind of stuff I can tell you that the flat was recently renovated and all electrical part and plummets are new so that won`t be necessary any repairs anyway I have a person who could manage any problem might appear starting from June.
We can sign the rental contract starting from next weekend but I need to be sure that you have serious intentions in renting the flat that`s why I attach here a model of the rental contract and also we can discuss the terms when we will meet!
If you are decided to view the flat let me know because there is another person interested in reserving it!
Kind regards,Miguel Jimenez'

I hope no one else falls for this!!

I found his ad on Viva street, and will be emailing them to inform them of his scams!

Thanks again :-)

Miriam
by Ralph Mon May 17, 2010 9:58 am
Hi Miss Min

Welcome to Scamwarners,

I am glad that we have been able to help you to avoid being scammed, that is exactly why we do what we do.

Thank you also for posting the additional information, who knows, the next one saved may be from the information you have provided.

Reporting the scammer's adds itsn't necessarily a bad thing but unfortunately they will be set up under a different name about 5 minutes after they are deleted.

You seem well sorted but if you have any questions, please ask
by devillete Tue May 18, 2010 12:44 pm
Hi all, I am currently in contact with these people! Thought there was something funny about it so googled the name and here I am. The email address is different and found them through vivastreet.
They told me to email a private address for more information and pictures of the property, however they havent asked for money yet ( i wouldnt of sent it wether i found this site or not) but I am waiting for a reply about a deposit etc.
This was their message:
Hello,

My name is Jose Miguel Jimenez Medina and I am from Spain and the flat is still available for rent. I had an aunt in UK and after her death she left me her apartment from UK a few years ago.
The flat was redecorated last year and the flat is looking very nice and clean. The property has a fully furnished kitchen,clean and well tidy sitting rooms,laundry room,and fully furnished with home utilities like: electric shower, Lounge,Vacuum Cleaner,Toaster, Owen and microwave, dryer, iron, washing machine , refridgerator , dishwasher, powershower, heater, cable ready,tv set and dvd player,internet connection, equiped kitchen and everything a house needs. I m interrested in finding someone clean who can take care of this house more then getting money from renting it if you know what I mean.
Till last month the apartment was rented by some students from Germany and now they left and the apartment is available again for rent. The price I want is £380 per month,bills and council tax included and I am intrested in a long term agreement!
If you have the money I could come in the next few days to show you the apartment and maybe sign the rental agreementif you like it but first I have to be sure you are honest you really do need a place to live because two weeks ago a person from Ipswich told me he is really interested and he asked me to go to Ipswich to meet him and sign the rental agreement and when I arrived there no person showed up to rent my place and I lost time and money for nothing.
I will wait for your e-mail,Miguel Jimenez

Also the email address they are using is:
[email protected]

I dont know if this will help others but I hope it does :)
good luck out there people, not all are so honest!!!
kate x
by yummymummy Wed May 19, 2010 7:07 am
this man is a bloody awful person!
i couldnt believe it when i found out, luckily for me i applied for a loan for help with the money he wanted, and funnily enough it was that company that phoned me the next day to say it was all a scam!
i look at the messages on this site that he has sent to people and they are word for word! he is definatly a proffesional, it makes me sick! this man was trying to get 2mnths rent and a deposit from me and my partner, and everything he was saying seemed so genuine, even though the offer was too good to be true!
i watched a programme yesterday called the real hustle, and funnily enough it showed people pretending to have a property to rent, the young lads went and put 700 pounds into a western union acc, faxed over the reciept as "proof" they had money in acc, but the fakes used the reference number on the reciept to withdraw the money.. i would have never guessed! thank christ for sites like this, thats all i can say. everybody needs to be careful of this man, because he keeps changing e-mail addresses too!
by missmagoo Wed May 19, 2010 6:07 pm
Thank you so much for your site.
You have saved me from making a huge mistake, something I really couldn't afford to do.
This criminal is advertising on Craigslist exactly as shown here. I replied to the ad and got back the email shown. I was really hoping that there was a chance of renting the advertised property as I have to find somewhere inexpensive yet pleasant to live.
How people can treat others in this way is just beyond me.
Thanks once to you and Google for saving my bacon.
by Dotti Wed May 19, 2010 8:21 pm
Welcome yummymummy and missmagoo,

I am glad to hear that this information has helped to prevent you from being scammed. Feel free to stop back here any time if you have doubts or questions about future offers.

Need to post photos? http://scamwarners.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=3219
Are you a victim of a romance scam? Read here for advice and FAQ's.
by kimity Mon May 24, 2010 12:46 pm
Very nearly got me using this address - [email protected]

Thankfully, I goggled his name and found this site. I already had the money in the western union and was about to send him my info. when a few google spots later (he had a different name appear in my email feed than he used in the actual emails) I came across this site and immediately cancelled the transaction.
Thank you so much. How do we get this person prosecuted?
Kim
by Dotti Mon May 24, 2010 6:22 pm
Welcome Kimity,

I'm glad to hear you managed to avoid being scammed.

Unfortunately, the scammer behind these emails is nowhere near the so-called flat or your country. He is sitting in Africa, out of the reach of UK law enforcement. We also don't know his real name, as it certainly is not Jose Miguel Jimenez Medina. We are forced to accept the fact that we really don't have a chance to get him arrested--but by posting the information, we can help prevent others being scammed and keep him from making money at the same time.

Need to post photos? http://scamwarners.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=3219
Are you a victim of a romance scam? Read here for advice and FAQ's.
by littlelilly Wed May 26, 2010 6:55 pm
Hey

Been looking for a flat to rent and came across this advert, unbelievably cheap and very nice flat

http://property.vivastreet.co.uk/rent+e ... dium=email


I decided to email him asking for the location of the flat and if I could view it and got this back...

Hello,

Thank you for your interest in renting my flat! Please e mail me at [email protected] for more pictures and details of the flat!

Regards


Anyone reconise the email address?
by Ralph Thu May 27, 2010 1:39 am
Hi Littlelilly, i didn't recognise the email address but google sure did, it has been mentioned in relation to scammers several times, in particular here by one of our moderators viewtopic.php?f=6&t=7199&p=24298

There is no doubt that this is a scammer, please cease all contact immediately, if you have sent money, try to have it cancelled immediately.

If you would like to post the emails you received we should be able to gather further proof and if you have any questions, please ask

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