Conman at work
I have been staying with James and his family ever since I got back to UK. It's been a good 2 months now and I haven't been able to find my own place to stay. At first, I was gonna live with 2 other friends, but they ditched me. So those times spent on finding flats were wasted. Now I have to find rooms to share with other random people in a flat/house. =.=
Anyway, ever since I have been looking for rooms, I haven't been as lucky. The first 3 or 4 people I contacted through email gave me similar replies. All of them said they had to leave the country as their job got transferred to USA or talked about missionary work etc. They all said they were friendly and honest people so they're looking for someone reliable to rent their place and treat that place as if it's that someone's place. *Hmmmm* Something fishy going on? So I thought I'd send more emails to them to make sure the emails I've gotten were automated replies. And surely enough, after 3 emails noone ever replied. Stupid.
However, I got an email from someone offering me a place with good deals. I contacted so many people that I don't even remember who I gave my emails to. So I thought I must have expressed my interest in this person's ad somewhere. So I replied the girl's email saying I'm interested as it was a god damn good offer. After liaising for a while, she told me to add her on MSN to chat. So I did. We bs-ed for a bit (I was tryna be friendly.. have to kiss-ass to get the place :P) and requested for a viewing. She agreed on the time and date I suggested. And she dropped her bomb. She wanted me to prove that I had the ability to pay my rent for the rest of my stay before the viewing could proceed. WTF!? I've never heard of this bullshit before. I have to prove that I am rich to see a place I want to rent (a place which I don't even know I'd like btw)??? Normally, people let you view the place first and only if you like it then any money talk comes in. So, I asked her how would I be able to prove it. Bank statements? She said she doesn't accept bank statements as they can be forged.
Ok, fair enough. Then what? I told her I'm a student so I live off my parents. I guess this was her cue. She immediately suggested that my parents send me money through Western Union (a company that does currency exchange and sends money etc and is not a bank). She SPECIFICALLY stated that I had to be the receiver of the money. But I told her it's more expensive for my parents to send me money that way and they normally just transfer me the money through internet. She said: "Listen, as long as you show me the slip that will be sufficient for the contract to go through."
For goodness sakes! She kept insisting on this even though I told her to let me view the place and I will decide on the spot there and then if I want to rent the place. If I decide to rent it, I will pay her CASH UP FRONT. Who in the right mind would not want cash and want a stupid payment slip?
Then at school yesterday, I told my friends about this. As soon as they heard "Western Union", they were like: "NOOOOO! It's a scam!!! Don't go through with it!" Loool. And true enough, she googled and this is it:
There have been other cases like mine. There is a barcode or something on the slip that people can just scan and get the money. No wonder she kept insisting. I don't even know if the person who contacted me is a even "she" now. Could be a guy for all I know.
So immediately I told her I do not want to go through with this anymore. She was mean to me. She replied: "WHAT! Do you think I am after your money! You are not capable of renting my flat!"
LMAOOOOO! It's really a cruel world we live in. People so desperately trying to get money. So people, please be smart enough to know when something fishy is going on.