Received this message from a craigslist user.
Scam Artist: Roland Rushton
Tactic used: Fake Landlord in need of deposit
We DIDN’T get scammed, thanks to your site.
My wife and I are planning a trip to Paris and posted an ad for an apartment swap in Paris (we’re in Los Angeles) and were contacted by a seemingly nice man named Ronald Rushton ([email protected]), Typical BS- he and his wife are in England and need someone to look after the place and perhaps show the apartment (in a fantastic, central, wealthy neighborhood) to potential long-term renters, and all they want is copies of our passports and a security deposit wired via MoneyGram. No rent, just a deposit.
TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE- we immediately did a search for Paris apartment scams turned up this idiot. We emailed him back, saying karma comes around. Thanks for the heads up, we’re going to find a legitimate rental agency and go from there.”