A new (?) twist by the Nigerians on Craigslist
Posted: Mon Oct 12, 2009 4:52 pm
"When in doubt, get even more creative," must be the rule for the Nigerians.
A daughter of a friend of ours got a knock at their door wanting to see the house they had just bought and moved into - turns out the guy had fallen for one similar to this:
A daughter of a friend of ours got a knock at their door wanting to see the house they had just bought and moved into - turns out the guy had fallen for one similar to this:
Press Advisory
David A. Thomas
Special Agent in Charge
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Columbia, South Carolina
_____________________________________________________________________________
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 22, 2009
NEW NIGERIAN SCHEME UTILIZING "CRAIGSLIST" Scam being perpetrated in South Carolina
David A. Thomas, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in South Carolina, advises homeowners and/or prospective renters in South Carolina to be cautious of a new scheme being perpetrated by Nigerians utilizing "Craigslist".
Homeowners list their homes for sale with realtors, who will list the homes for sale in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) and also with public search sites on the Internet. Public search sites allow individuals to query homes for sale via the Internet. Nigerian scammers are finding homes listed for sale on these public search sites, copy the pictures and listings verbatim, and then post the information onto http://www.craigslist.com under available housing rentals, without the consent or knowledge of Craigslist, who have been notified.
After the posting is listed, unsuspecting individuals contact the poster, who is Nigerian, for more information on the "rental". The Nigerian scammer will state that they had to leave the country very quickly to do missionary or contract work in Africa and were unable to rent their house before leaving, therefore they have to take care of this remotely. The "homeowner" sends the prospective renter an application and tells them to send them first and last month's rent to the Nigerian scammer via Western Union. The prospective renter is further told if they "qualify", they will send them the keys for their house. Once the money is wired to the scammer, they show up at the house, see the home is actually for sale, are unable to access the property and their money is gone.
This type of Nigerian scam is becoming more prevalent nationwide and recent reports indicate this scam being perpetrated locally in Charleston, Columbia and Hilton Head, South Carolina. The S.C. Association of REALTORS® provided information to the FBI on this scam.
David A. Thomas, Special Agent in Charge of the Columbia office of the FBI is requesting that individuals that have complaints similar to this to file an internet crime complaint on http://www.ic3.gov with the Federal Bureau of Investigation to ensure the extent of this scheme can be accurately evaluated.