Apr
12
SANTA BARBARA, CA – 4/11/2007. A local woman is sadder but wiser after falling victim to a scam perpetrated by means of the Internet. Unfortunately, the same scam in various forms has been attempted throughout Santa Barbara, and, indeed the entire U.S.A. Others have fallen prey to a similar ploy. In this case, it all began when the victim, a 19-year-old Isla Vista resident, used ‘Craig’s List’ to post a roommate wanted advertisement. Craig’s List is a popular Internet site for people buying, selling, trading, or seeking just about anything. The victim’s advertisement was answered by an unknown person who identified themself as a 25-year-old British woman named “Casey Brownâ€, currently living in the Republic of Benin, Africa. The victim and ‘Brown’ corresponded by E-Mail, and made a verbal agreement for ‘Brown’ to share the apartment. ‘Brown’ then introduced the victim to a third person who sent rent payment in advance to secure the apartment. The victim then received four cashier’s checks, each in the amount of $950. The victim was then told (by E-Mail) that instead of one check, four checks were sent by mistake. The victim was instructed to deposit the checks, withhold a month’s rent ($680) and wire the balance by means of Western Union to the city of Cotonou, Republic of Benin. The victim dutifully did as told, depositing the checks and wiring $3,120 out of her own account to the address in Benin. All seemed well and good for a few days until the victim’s bank notified her that the money orders were counterfeit. In short, the victim was swindled out of the full $3,120.
A common variation on this scam involves someone from another state or country buying a product or services offered for sale on Craig’s list or other Internet postings. Just like in this case, the person overpays with counterfeit checks, and instructs the victim to wire the balance. The nature of Western Union wire transfers makes them nearly impossible to trace. SBPD warns the public not to send money or a product until certain that the check payment is genuine. Remember: People from all over the world can and do misidentify themselves for financial gain. In general, theft cases leading to foreign countries are not investigated, and there is no hope for financial recovery.
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