Rochester is filled with all kinds of advertisem*nts for property rentals, sales, business opportunities and personal items for sale. It's an excellent platform for conducting private commerce transactions but there are also risks with the free online advertising columns. Scammers are aware of the fact that there are many innocent people using the site and they've been at work victimizing the unsuspecting and trusting with a variety of rotten scams. Here are five money scams to watch out for on Craigslist Rochester.
1. Stolen ads used for bogus home rental scam
Ryan Yacano is a resident of Rochester who owns a home in the city that he's selling through a realtor. He was shocked when he saw an ad for a rental home that featured the property that he is selling. The home is a Colonial style measuring 1,434 square feet and was also listed for rent on Craigslist Rochester. The scammers were asking $800 a month in rent, with all utilities thrown in. His real estate agent shared that this type of scam has shown up on her listings twice in a couple week's time. These slimy scammers go to great lengths to research the names of the owners or realtors and in this case, they used the name of a relative of the agent in charge of the sale. They communicate only through email and use emotionally charged language to convince inquirers about their legitimacy. They ask potential renters to send a cash deposit to secure the home.
2. Craigslist rental scam in Rochester
A man was arrested for running a rental scam on Craigslist. He attempted to scam Chloe Goodrum out of $900 as a security deposit and part of the rent on a house that he didn't own. David Linton had instructed her to complete a rental agreement and leave it in the mailbox at the home. When she appeared to leave the contract, police who were onto Linton met her and asked that she set up a meeting with the scammer. Linton agreed to meet with her to collect the money but when he showed up, he was arrested by police. According to police, she was the sixth of Linton's victims and she narrowly escaped losing $900.
3. $1 money scam in Rochester area
This Rochester resident is fed up with a large number of rental scams appearing on Craigslist Rochester. She shares a fake email that sent up the red flags. The scammers pose as husband and wife who are living in South Carolina doing work for UNICEF. They come off as being in the ministry and just looking for someone responsible to care for the house. They offer pictures of the interior of the house on Craigslist in their attempt to lure in innocent victims. She goes on to point out that another home was listed on Craigslist for $850 rent, but the real listing exists on a separate website that is set up for apartment seekers with an asking rental cost of $1,200. You must be careful to avoid becoming a victim because if a deal sounds too good to be true, it most likely is.
4. Feds involved with fake gold scammer on Craigslist
A 32-year-old man from Rochester was taken into custody by federal agents for selling counterfeit gold coins to a Pennsylvania man through Craigslist. The scammerr advertised that he had two United States gold collectible coins, but he didn't use his real name. The victim made the journey from Pennsylvania to Rochester to purchase the coins. He paid the scammer $5,000 in cash. After he returned home, the buyer discovered that the coins were counterfeit. He got ahold of the United States Secret Service who investigated the claim.
5. Woman scammed out of $5,000 in RV selling scam
A Rochester woman responded to an ad on Craigslist Rochester to purchase an RV from a scammer who claimed to need the money in an urgent sale prior to being deployed to Baghdad. The RV was allegedly located in Kansas and the scammer claimed that CarFax would handle the sale. When she received an invoice from CarFax, everything looked legitimate. The contract even included an account to a Bank of America branch where the transactions would all take place. She made the deposit into the bank account and waited as instructed for the RV to be delivered. When it didn't come, she tried to call the telephone number that she was provided with and got a busy signal. This elaborate scheme seemed to be open and above board and she even spoke with a person who claimed to be a representative of CarFax. Authorities are working with Bank of America to track down the scammer in their investigation.
