From: [email protected]
To: Michelle Banks
Subject: FLAT DETAILS WITH THE PICTURES ATTACHED
Date: Fri, 22 Oct 2010 00:55:37 +0100
Hi,
Thanks for your response to my ad.My flat is three bedroom apartment but I currently have two rooms available now, my tenants just moved
back to their country so the rooms are currently available.Here is little details about the flat.
Flat address: Sandwich Street, Bloombsbury, London, Post Code: WC1H 9PR
Rent: £500 per month, all bills inclusive(i.e.water,gas,electricity,council tax etc)
Security deposit:£500 refundable after four weeks in the flat.
Minimum Stay: 1 Month(s),Maximum stay:1 yr with the option of extending the contract after 12 months
Moving in date: the room is currently available but I'm flexible with moving in date in case you don't want to move in now.
Flat amenities:TV ,CD - DVD - Video,Radio,High-speed Internet with WiFi,Washing Machine ,dryer, Heating, Iron and Ironing board,Gas
cooker,Electric Kettle,Toaster,Dishwasher,Refrigerator, Microwave e.t.c
The pictures of the flat are hereby attached with this email.
Location: Ucl campus, university of London and soas. the London school of economics, central st. martins, bbp law school, king's college London and the aa school of architecture are a 10 minute walk away.convenient transportation.
About the flatmate: You will be sharing with professional female from Australia, she's 23 year old and work in Finance,she use the third room but
she is not around at the moment,she will be back in a month time.She's a very quiet disciplined person, a stickler for cleanliness and organization.
She spend most of her time reading online and her other interests are online games,board games,poker, crosswords,theater,swimming, housekeeping, gift wrapping, film making, stationery, marketing, different cultures ...many many things actually
About me: I'm 41 year old, I work in a construction company, I own the flat but I don't live in it because I don't live in London. I live and work in Manchester but I come to London one or twice in a month to check on my tenants.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Best regards,
James
The thief will tell you that you can rent his accommodation only if you can prove that you have genuine interest. He will ask you send money by wire transfer (normally Western Union) to yourself or a member of the family to show that you have sufficient finances and that you are not a "time waster".
Another variation of this scam is that you need to send (by Western Union) money in order that the keys and other documents can be couriered to you
He will ask you to send him the transfer details.
Make no mistake ! Western Union Transfers can be picked up virtually anywhere in the world and with the minimum of identification. They are almost impossible to trace once the money has been collected. You will never get to see the accommodation or your money again.
If you are reading this because you are looking for property to rent, and you are in contact with this thief you are probably searching Gumtree or similar listing sites. If you receive any requests from 'Landlords' asking for some kind of payment by Western Union before viewing, then it will also be a scam. Please forward the mail to me at the address in my signature line and I will investigate and list them if necessary.
