Rental Scammer - [email protected]

My fiancé and I were looking for an appartment for September. We replied to an ad in June on Kijiji and the poster of the ad replied 3 weeks later by e-mail with this:

From: Christopher Hansen < [email protected] >
Subject: Re : $ CAD 750 - 1 bedroom luxury condo, 701 sq. ft. in downtown Ottawa !
To: Christopher Hansen <[email protected]>


Hey,

Thank you for your interest in my apartment located in 234 Rideau St Ottawa, ON K1N 5Y1. 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 1 bedroom and 1 bathroom. 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 750 CAD/month with everything included (heat, hydro, water, electricity, cable and internet-full package from Rogers, 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.

Thank you and look forward hearing from you!
Chris

PS : I attached you all the pictures that I have with the apartment ( as you can see everything is in absolutely perfect condition ) .

Obviously we thought this was too good to be true, especially since all other condos in that building are 1000$ and up. However, the story seemed plausible and the fact that he mentionned "i am not looking to make a profit". We then replied by asking when is the apartment available as we were looking for September, how big is the storage and when can we meet. He then replied :

Hello ,

Thank you for your reply. As I told you before the rent for 1 month will be 750CAD and damage deposit 750CAD ( last month) 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 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 VerticalRent ,they will provide assistance in handling the payment and delivery of the rental package

We use this company to see that you are an trusting and serious person. 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 VerticalRent 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 +44 20 8144 3882 (if you are calling from Canada you may need to dial 011-44 20 8144 3882). 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 . You need to know everything 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!

Chris

As you can see, he did not answer our questions (availability of the apt and size of storage) and included first and last months rent. This got us even more skeptical. I then decided to google the first sentence of the first email and found this thread.

Nice try "Chris".

Welcome to Scamwarners mrskaydee,

Thank you for the update on the email address and emails sent to you. This will surely help others.

My son was looking for a rental suite in Vancouver, found a CraigsList ad, and followed up on it. Immediately afterwards, the CraigsList ad was pulled, but we didn't know why. After 2 days of review, we determined that this was a scam. Here is the last e-mail he received:

From: Chris Hansen < [email protected] >
Date: 15 Jul 2014 16:22
Subject: Re: 880$CAD/1BR Downtown Vancouver 1br Condo with water view
To: "xxxxx xxxx" <[email protected]>
Hello ,

Thank you for your reply. As I told you before the rent for 1 month will be 88CAD and damage deposit 880CAD ( last month) 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 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 VerticalRent ,they will provide assistance in handling the payment and delivery of the rental package

We use this company to see that you are an trusting and serious person. 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 VerticalRent 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 +44 20 8144 3882 (if you are calling from Canada you may need to dial 011-44 20 8144 3882). 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 . You need to know everything 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!

Chris

On Mon, Jul 14, 2014 at 10:15 PM, "xxxxx xxxx" <[email protected]>wrote:
I would love to come see the apartment in person, I work until 7 every day so weekends are probably best if that works for you

On Sun, Jul 13, 2014 at 6:12 PM, Christopher Hansen <[email protected]> wrote:
Hey,

Thank you for your interest in my apartment located in 438 Seymour St, V6B 6H4. 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 1 bedroom and 1 bathroom. 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 880 CAD/month with everything included (heat, hydro, water, electricity, cable and internet-full package, 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 United Kingdom, London, 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.

Thank you and look forward hearing from you!
Chris

PS : I attached you all the pictures that I have with the apartment ( as you can see everything is in absolutely perfect condition ) .

----------------------------------------------------

Using Google Image search, we identified that all of the pictures came from the website http://www.ownerdirect.com/the-residenc ... als/206468. When approached about this, the scammer replied that they had been using the rental company previously (in spite of saying above that he and his wife had been living there for the last 3 months). The rental site indicated that pets are NOT allowed, but we figured this could be at the discretion of the owner.

Also, looked up VertialRent (http://www.VerticalRent.com), and they have now caught wind that people have been using them as a scamming tool (https://verticalrent.com/entry/importan ... n-visitors).

Owner said that they've been using VerticalRent for 4 years, but the company was founded in 2011. VerticalRent does NOT do any business in Canada.

If you do your homework, these scammers will trip themselves up.

Personally, if it was legal in Canada to do so, I'd like to this particular scammer!

Also, if you use rental agencies, it's wise to check occasionally to see if your pictures are being used to promote scams. It's easy! Go to (https://www.google.ca/imghp), click on the camera icon, and then "Upload an image". Browse for your picture, and then Google will search for that picture used in other places. It won't stop scammers from scraping your images and using them in personal e-mails, as this scum did, but it may help make you aware of bad exposure!

This Guy is all the over the west of Canada and still need to know where other places he is doing this. I also got the mail for the reply on the posting he made on kijiji.ca for Victoria, BC, Canada. I have some pics and documents he send me to make the transaction and also to believe that he is for real.

Here is what he wrote to me:
Hey,

Thank you for your interest in my apartment located in 751 Fairfield Road, V8V 3E4. 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. 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 650 CAD/month with everything included (heat, hydro, water, electricity, cable and internet-full package, 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 United Kingdom will be about 4 years. Everything in the apartment is new so there will be no need for repairs.



Thank you and look forward hearing from you!
Chris

PS : I attached you all the pictures that I have with the apartment (as you can see everything is in absolutely perfect condition)

this other thread is about this same guy, using a different name, Christopher Schmidt. This thread includes a passport he claims is his (sent to prospective marks to indicate his "sincerity").

viewtopic.php?f=39&t=87620

For someone who is supposedly Canadian his English is very poor. I dare to hazard a guess that the person behinds this scam is not Canadian at all.

More info on this dumbass:

Hey,


Thank you for your interest in my apartment located in 751 Fairfield Road, V8V 3E4. 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. 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 650 CAD/month with everything included (heat, hydro, water, electricity, cable and internet-full package, 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 United Kingdom will be about 4 years. Everything in the apartment is new so there will be no need for repairs.


Thank you and look forward hearing from you!
Chris

PS : I attached you all the pictures that I have with the apartment (as you can see everything is in absolutely perfect condition)

And then:

Hello ,

Thank you for your reply. As I told you before the rent for 1 month will be 650CAD and damage deposit 650CAD ( last month) 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 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 LandlordEnterprise (www.LandlordEnterprise.com) ,they will provide assistance in handling the payment and delivery of the rental package

We use this company to see that you are an trusting and serious person. 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 LandlordEnterprise 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 +44 20 8144 3882 (if you are calling from Canada you may need to dial 011-44 20 8144 3882). 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 . You need to know everything 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!

Chris

I sent an email back because this just raised too many red flags for me. I will be obtaining his/her IP address shortly and will be posting it to see if anybody can figure any info about this guy or report to the correct authorities. After I post this IP, I'd like to see if the guy is using tor or some other proxy service, I can do some probing but would ask that if anybody runs into him again and stumbles on this page by searching the phone number (the one constant in all this).... I am assuming that this number is for a burner phone. If the idiot is not using a proxy I will communicate the date and time stamps along with the IP information, emails (headers and all), background information on how the IP's were obtained, to the correct authority using IP geolocation. Maybe that'll stop him/her/whatever. If anybody has ideas I'd be happy to entertain them.....

If this guy had gotten my money that'd be it I'd probably be making a death dive right off the johnson st. bridge, as I have more at stake than merely becoming homeless. It's hard enough for a monogamous gay couple to find a place to live in this town that is tolerant of the fact that we have a sex life with each other, as progressive as this town (victoria BC) pretends to be (it really isn't), it's extra hard to get that plus economical. There are so many scammers now, it is disheartening to have to deal with them.

Well.. He's changed his name. And his Phone number.
He is now Michael Olays @ +44 20 8144 8941 [email protected]
He is also George as per an ad I found while writing this on Clist scam site. (see below)

I found a really nice suite listed on Craigslist. After emailing the first time, the ad vanished, 'cause he trusts me already and is sure I am going to rent..

After a couple emails and being safe about agents/landlords that aren't local I searched his name, email handle and even image searched what I could, researched his employer combing through pages looking for his name in the roster.. To no avail. Then I searched the phone number (with spaces) and this page was the 2nd result.. Here's the First : https://www.trainingindustry.com/suppli ... erged.aspx
Apparently HE is also a SHE.. LOL. :/
I did find 2 links with the provided name, both were created and registered last year in March 2013.. one of them is a BC rentals website where his description is "Real Estate Pro" but has no links, no resume, no info whatsoever.. and the other again with a ghost profile on Padlister.

Anyhow.. The following is our email conversation :

Nov 9th 10pm

To: [email protected]

Evening Michael,

We just came across your ad for this 1 bedroom at the Olive tonight.. and realized you had an open house today.. hopefully you haven't come to a decision!
My partner of 10yrs and I are very interested to see this unit if it is convenient tomorrow? Or at your earliest convenience!
We are excellent tenants with solid references both from our previous and current landlords and employers.

In our 30's, we are professional, quiet, pet and problem free!

Looking forward to hearing from you.

xxx-xxx-xxxx (Edited phone number)

Mark and Mindy

http://vancouver.craigslist.ca/van/apa/4746131581.html

Nov 10 4:00am

Hello,
The apartment located in 3228 Tupper Street, Vancouver, BC V5Z 4S7 is still available. As you can see from the pictures is in excellent condition, very clean and very well kept. I never rented this apartment and I want to find a responsible tenant to take good care of the place. The apartment is fully furnished and it has all the appliances. Of course you can use everything from the apartment or if you want to use your furniture you can deposit mine in the storage unit that is located near the building not far away. It has 1 bedroom and 1 bathroom. The rent is 1000CAD/month and includes everything: heat, hydro, water, electricity, 2 parking spots underground, laundry in-suite, washer and dryer also included, cable and internet- full package paid for 1 year in advance. You will have full access to all the amenities in the building. From my point of view I'm sure that you will like the apartment and you will rent it on spot.

Hello,

The apartment located in 3228 Tupper Street, Vancouver, BC V5Z 4S7 is still available. As you can see from the pictures is in excellent condition, very clean and very well kept. I never rented this apartment and I want to find a responsible tenant to take good care of the place. The apartment is fully furnished and it has all the appliances. Of course you can use everything from the apartment or if you want to use your furniture you can deposit mine in the storage unit that is located near the building not far away. It has 1 bedroom and 1 bathroom. The rent is 1000CAD/month and includes everything: heat, hydro, water, electricity, 2 parking spots underground, laundry in-suite, washer and dryer also included, cable and internet- full package paid for 1 year in advance. You will have full access to all the amenities in the building. From my point of view I'm sure that you will like the apartment and you will rent it on spot.
This apartment is a private property, paid in full and no mortgage on it. Schools and groceries near-by. I'm sure you will have everything that you need there because is one of the most important areas in the city. Pets are allowed.
About me now. I'm 45 years old, I'm married with 2 children. I'm an engineer at Black&Veatch Global Engineering in telecom industry. The company I work for they have projects all around the world so most of my time I'm traveling. I will be away for the next 6 years so it's free for you to stay there as long as you want. I want to rent the place on my own so I need to send you the keys and papers so you can check the apartment.


Best regards,

Michael

He replied at 4am.. My girlfriend put up red flags at the reply, as did I.. these units are selling for 500,000$/CAD and usually renting at 1500$ give or take for similar sizes..
I replied thinking maybe he's legit and its circumstantial..

Nov 10 2:00pm

Hi Michael, thanks for replying so quickly!

We are very interested and yes we would prefer our own furniture in the suite, storing yours is not an issue with us.

We'd love to view the suite as soon as possible of course, and I am just curious who was showing the place this weekend if you are away?

Please feel free to call me anytime between 6am and 11pm Pacific Standard Time - GMT/UTC -8hrs..
I'd love to speak with you.

+x.xxx.xxx.xxxx (Edited!)
Mark

So the original ad said there was a viewing on Sunday November 9th (yesterday) but i didn't even see the ad until after 9pm.. so i asked about it.. he does not answer that question and instead answers questions i haven't even asked in the following reply and i told him it would be myself and my partner Mindy.. Yet.. READ ON!

Nov 10 3:00pm

Hello,

Glad to hear from you. As I told you before the rent for 1 month will be 1000CAD everything included and also you will have full access to all the building amenities. The rent will not increase for the entire rental period. I need to know how many people will stay in the apartment and also what type of rental contract do you prefer: 6 months with option of renewal or 1 year with option of renewal. The monthly payments can be wired to my Canadian Bank Account (TD Bank) or any other payment method that is suitable for both of us. The apartment is in excellent condition like in the pictures and you just need to receive the keys and contract so you can check the place.
At this moment I'm located in London, United Kingdom and I think we need a safe way to complete this deal therefore the solution is provided by a worldwide third party company called Deposit Protection Service (http://www.depositprotection.com). They will provide assistance in handling the payment and delivery of the rental package and using their service you will be able to check the apartment before any funds are released to me. You will have full control of the payment until you will check the apartment. I'm registered with this company since 2009 and I have a record of 45 transactions as landlord and as a tenant also. They are really professional and they have great services.
If you have any other questions about the process you can reach me any time at: +44 20 8144 8941 (if you are calling from Canada or United States you need to dial 011-44-20-8144 8941) or you can email me and I will respond ASAP.
I will wait for your email if you are interested so I can provide you 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!

So I checked the Deposit Protection Service. It is Legit. But I also found this...
http://www.theguardian.com/money/2014/j ... n-loophole

Then all the answers kept piling up.. HERE he is called George : http://reportcraigslistscams.com/xzclf/ ... ille_.html

I just grinned when i read this.. like.. "You sly summofavitch!!"
Anyways.. I'm leaving the email chain now and just shaking my head at a too good to be true offer. The units really are nice.. built by a good developer and in a great central location.. Even RED FLAGS FLY NEAR BY! ( Vancouver City Hall!! hehehe )
Good Luck and SHOP SMART.