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April 11, 2008
South Slope Rental Scam (via West Africa)
A con artist is trying to bilk would-be renters in Brooklyn out of dough by pretending to offer apartments for rent in a condo building that hasn't even had any closings yet, according to brokers from Brown Harris Stevens who are representing the building in question. A person claiming to have an $800 apartment for rent at 317 16th Street has posted ads on "www.craigslis.org" (a non-functioning URL as of this morning). The fake landlord emails interested applicants and tells them to send him a one-month deposit via Western Union money transfer. "317 16th St. is a new condominium offering. We are the exclusive agents," says Christopher Thomas, an executive vice president at Brown Harris Stevens Brooklyn. "There are no apartments for rent. The building hasn’t yet had its first closing. I believe the information in the scam is taken from our web site or marketing materials." An email chain between the confidence man, who poses as a "reverend" living in West Africa, and a prospective renter is reprinted on the jump. Renter beware!
Photo by Triple7.
[Prospective Renter, Personal Info Redacted]:Good morning!
I am very interested in the apartment you have for rent. I was wondering if it can be seen tomorrow?
A little about myself I am a graphic design at the food network, I have lived in brooklyn my whole life and would love to stay here and not move to jersey, I am very quite, I do like having my family over, I don't smoke, and I do not have a pet. I understand that you want someone neat and clean and I couldn't mind signing something that states that I will keep your place neat. Will it be unfurnished and how long is the lease?
Please call me back if you can. Thanks!
Have a great Monday!
[Reply]: On Tue, Apr 8, 2008 at 9:35 PM, Rev. Erber David
Sorry for the delay!! Thanks for the email. My name is Erber David, I own the 1 bedroom apartment located @ 317 16th Street #1A, Brooklyn NY 11215. and also want you to know that it was due to my transfer that makes me, my wife and Son to leave the house and also want to give it out for rent and looking for a responsible person that can take very good care of it as we are not after the money for the rent but want it to be clean at the time and the person that will rent it to take it as if it were its own. So for now, We are here in west Africa, our new house.I personally wanted to Sale the house before but I and my wife decided to put it out for rent.If you could promise us to take very good care of the house,the you can send an email with the information required.One Mr. Smith called me about the apartment,I told him that I cant give him the apartment because he is married with 4 kids ,I do not want his children to get my property damaged.If you are still interested, Note that the rent is going to be $800
I will like you to give me a call on this effect to know how serious you are.
Requirement for now.
Names???
Occupation:?????
Full Address:????(Where keys will be shipped to)
Phone number:??????
below is my phone number
# 0112347084406599 or +2347084406599
I personally will actually come visiting you at May as our new tenant.Looking forward to hear from you.
As a man of God please I am giving you all this base on trust and again i will want you to stick to your words, I am putting everything into God's hand, so please do not let us down.
Regards
Erber David
[Prospective Renter]: Subject: Re: $800 / 1br - 1 bedroom condo layout with sleek,
To: hidove200@yahoo.com
Date: Wednesday, April 9, 2008, 2:47 AM
If this would be based on trust are you sending me the key and I would send you a check? To be honest I don't think I can believe you. How do I know I have your word? How do I know you aren't going to try to scam me? I'm sorry I can not give you my personal information until I'm sure this is all true. I hope you can understand where I am coming from. I am still very interested but I'm not sure this is true.
[Reply]: From: Rev. Erber David
Date: Wed, Apr 9, 2008 at 2:16 PM
Subject: Acceptance!!
To: [Redacted]
Dear [Redacted],
I have discussed your issue with my wife Debbie and she is very excited that you are going to become our new tenant. The utilities are included and pets are allowed...Because we both have decided to you the apartment, that's why we have to remove the advert from www.craigslis.org
The fact that we do not have any body in the states to have the apartment shown to you. We are left with no option that to have the keys and rental document shipped via FedEx to 699 Decatur St. Brooklyn NY 11233 . Due to the security of the building , I will include a latter of authorization to avoid you from being embarrassed, when you go for inspection.
Before we ship the rental document and keys to you , you will have to make a payment of 1 month security deposit via WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER,which stands as a commitment fee. Then once the documents arrives and you have them signed, you will then pay for 2 months..This arrangement is based on the fact that I feel secured since you will have to sign as you collect the package from the FedEx agent that will deliver it to you.
1. When are you willing to send the 1 month security deposit????
2. How long do you intend renting the apartment????
As soon as I hear from you, I will let you know how to have the security deposit sent .
Regards and God bless you.
Erber David
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Comments
Anyone who sends money via WU to West Africa for something that they have not seen deserves to lose it.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 11:08 AM
Wow whoever actually responded to this ad (prospective tenant) is more gullible than I thought anyone could be.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 11:14 AM
These Mugus are relentless, but their target is typically immigrants and lower-income people who would not realize sendig a Western Union for anything in Business is a huge red flag.
Dont be so quick to judge the gullible, you or I know better, but many people do not understand how things work or fully grasp the English language. Sad that these Mugus actually feel like they are justified in stealing wealth from greedy Americans when really it is the poorest and most vulnerable that end up suffering.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 11:21 AM
"Anyone who sends money via WU to West Africa for something that they have not seen deserves to lose it."
Thanks 11:08.. Maybe if we keep saying it this mugus will get it! When people keep falling for the most stupid tricks in the world, my brothers in W-Afika dont have a choice but to keep trying.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 11:25 AM
I had to write something! This Blog is getting worse everyday! What's the matter Gabby, you couldn't find anything more racist?! see 50 posts to this topic alone.
BTW I was at the Brownstoner asshat yard sale! Hey Brownstoner, I stood right next to you and No the traffic was fine coming in. A wonderful place to buy overpriced junk, you might have something there.
I noticed the traffic is decreasing and the amount of posts is dropping! I think you have to double post thing there for a reason to make it look like you have the same traffic. But this is "click fraud" and should be reported to your advertisers. I bet they will get a kick out of that!
BTW They are building like mad now! I guess they want the find the last suckers. Condo Madness is what I call it.
This Mutant Real Estate Bubble and this Blog is SO over!
Here is something to watch, wrap your minds around this.
http://www.deepcapture.com/
A massive financial crime is harming the United States. The crime makes a hoax out of corporate governance, destroys firms, deprives society of innovations, and robs Americans of their savings. It may be bad enough to cause the collapse of the financial system. The institutions that should stop it have been corrupted (”captured”) by the criminals doing it. These captured institutions include the financial press, which has remained so willfully blind it borders on a cover-up. Dots are being connected in the world of social media, but the same criminals who are behind the scam are manipulating social media to forestall the day of popular epiphany.
This means you suckers. Yep, this means the "smart guys"!
The What
Someday this war is gonna end...
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 11:41 AM
oh lord, the what is back. Psych ward let him out, it appears.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 11:52 AM
Tell me this is a joke! Who would fall for that? First of all, the person who wrote it states he is not after the money but someone who will care for the place, yeah ok, that should have been the first red flag.Didnt the buyer ask himself who moves without finalizing things first let alone conducting business across continents.Who sends money orders half way across the world for something, site unseen, right here in America? I only have one more thing to say....dumb and dumber!
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 11:53 AM
I agree with 11:08. Anyone, who would send money via Western Union for an apartment they've never seen deserves to lose their money.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 11:58 AM
I agree with 11:08. Anyone, who would send money via Western Union for an apartment they've never seen deserves to lose their money.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 11:59 AM
What's a "mugu"?
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 12:06 PM
Mugu is the term used for the African Scammers that send you e-mails saying they want to transfer millions of $ to you and all you have to do is pay a "Security Fee"
Interestingly, Mugu can refer to the intended target or the scammer himself.
Look it up, you find tons of material on the topic.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 12:12 PM
I would send him $1 via western union just to have him run over there and wasting his time.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 12:25 PM
I would send him $1 via western union just to have him run over there and wasting his time.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 12:42 PM
I'm a little scared to admit that I agree with The What, in that this site is going downhill faster than a shitball on skis
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 1:06 PM
11:08 sums it up perfectly. I can understand sending an initial email about the apartment, but once you got the reply your scam-meter should be pinging like crazy. The address of this apartment is Scam-ville.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 1:06 PM
"their target is typically immigrants and lower-income people who would not realize sendig a Western Union for anything in Business is a huge red flag."
AND "sophisticated" lifelong NY'ers who work at the Food Network and cannot spell or use punctuation very well.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 3:06 PM
"their target is typically immigrants and lower-income people who would not realize sendig a Western Union for anything in Business is a huge red flag."
AND "sophisticated" lifelong NY'ers who work at the Food Network and cannot spell or use punctuation very well.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 3:07 PM
AND you 3:06/3:07 who hits the Post button twice!!!
Posted by: daveinbedstuy at April 11, 2008 3:10 PM
"AND "sophisticated" lifelong NY'ers who work at the Food Network and cannot spell or use punctuation very well."
That is an incomplete sentence 3:06.
But thanks for your on-topic addition to the conversation. Your insight over the poster's grammar and spelling is enlightening.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 3:35 PM
I did laugh when I read that the renter is a "Graphic Design" at the food network.
Posted by: WillBklyn at April 11, 2008 3:51 PM
"That is an incomplete sentence 3:06."
Yeah, I know. I figured you would understand the sentence regardless, but clearly I oversestimated your ability.
"But thanks for your on-topic addition to the conversation. Your insight over the poster's grammar and spelling is enlightening."
Thanks. I'm glad to help.
"AND you 3:06/3:07 who hits the Post button twice!!!"
It's not my fault if the "submit" function here is all f-ked up. Complain to Brownstoner.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 3:58 PM
Scammer Erber writes better than TheWhat.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 4:34 PM
Brownstoner traffic has dropped because this site is a more or less imperfect barometer of the local market. When our housing was at its most inflated, traffic to this site peaked. Those who thought they had chosen smartly by investing in overpriced garbage, for flip or otherwise, were assured by Brownstoner and others doing the same that their investments were genius. Let’s not forget that Brownstoner would, without qualification, puff every single piece of overpriced brick and mortar as a steal. We now know better. The market has tanked, and nobody (including Brownstoner) is claiming a 2 to 3 million dollar brownstone is a good value. Not surprisingly, interest in this site has dropped precipitously.
The conclusion is obvious: let’s call it a day. Brownstoner, shut this site down and give it a rest. We are all a little depressed, we don’t need this anymore.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 4:47 PM
4:47 writes...."The market has tanked, and nobody (including Brownstoner) is claiming a 2 to 3 million dollar brownstone is a good value"
Define" tanked".
"Nobody...is claiming a 2 to 3 million dollar brownstone is a good value" Oh really? Just because you can't afford it doesn't mean its not a good value to someone else.
Posted by: daveinbedstuy at April 11, 2008 5:45 PM
4:47 Is absolutely right. I see Brownstoner as a laughable example of the worst excesses of dumb-ass gentrification: mindless racism, would-be elitism, ultimately self-destructive greed, mediocrity, (extremely thin) cultural pretensions, etc., etc. NYC is so over--and anybody paying 2 or 3 million dollars to be an anxious, irritable white "dave in bed stuy" is just a silly fool. Oh, how great to be an anxious, irritable, nervous white landlord in what is basically the ghetto you DESERVE, as opposed to the neo-Slope you hoped for!!!!
There's nothing very special about "Brownstone Brooklyn." It's basically a series of mini- suburbs surrounded by oceans of ghettoes. There's very little real interaction between ethnic groups, except in token ways or among rare individuals/groups, and it's too-often fleeting. These trendy "nabes" were created via ethnic and class cleansing, and these were not/are not victimless crimes. Park Slope, Cobble Hill, and similar places have been subject to redlining and other violations of the fair housing act--and Corcoran's been caught doing it--you can look it up--
NYC is the most segregated big city in America--you can look that up too--and Brownstoner reflects this "circle the wagons" mentality, as does an even more offensive website, Brooklynian/The Daily Heights. As an academic, I plan to use both these site and Brooklynian as paramount examples of this drecky new hyper-racist crap posing as some sort of "kultur." These "lifestyles" are just dreck. OK, rehab a Brownstone. Yay. It's all very Weimar. Don't let the door hit you on the way out, jerk.
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 6:32 PM
6:32 PM Thats the best written post ever!! I'm so jealous : ^ }! You hit it on the head with a sledgehammer!!! My hat is off to you.
This quote " I see Brownstoner as a laughable example of the worst excesses of dumb-ass gentrification" is the money shot! I can't believe white people would overpay to live in the ghetto. This is the psychology on a Mutant Asset Bubble. People believe they shit don't stink and will do dumb-assed things to prove it! I hope the upcoming depression (there will be one) don't drag down the neighborhood when the ASSHATS leave.
The What (This Blogs sucks cock and balls)
Someday this war is gonna end...
Hey Brownstoner fix this fucking site!
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 11:20 PM
6:32 PM Thats the best written post ever!! I'm so jealous : ^ }! You hit it on the head with a sledgehammer!!! My hat is off to you.
This quote " I see Brownstoner as a laughable example of the worst excesses of dumb-ass gentrification" is the money shot! I can't believe white people would overpay to live in the ghetto. This is the psychology on a Mutant Asset Bubble. People believe they shit don't stink and will do dumb-assed things to prove it! I hope the upcoming depression (there will be one) don't drag down the neighborhood when the ASSHATS leave.
The What (This Blogs sucks cock and balls)
Someday this war is gonna end...
Hey Brownstoner fix this fucking site!
Posted by: guest at April 11, 2008 11:20 PM
6:32 "as an academic" means you just don't have the money for a brownstone when you spew all that crap...along with The What...go live in NJ with him
Posted by: daveinbedstuy at April 12, 2008 12:00 PM
"circle the wagons" mentality? i like that!
Posted by: guest at April 12, 2008 9:53 PM
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