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SzczerbiakManiac
10-05-2009, 09:17 PM
I have an ad up on Craig's List for my room to rent. The following is my semi-redacted correspondence with "Monica". (That's the name this person used, I'm just not convinced it's this person's real name.)

I have preserved all of her comments exactly, including syntax, spelling, and spacing.

On 10/5/2009 at 8:39am, monica cynthia <gosimonica2@gmail.com> also sprach:
Hey,
I am Interested in your place,please let me know if it still available for rent...i will be glad if you can send me pics and details of the place including the time frame when it will be available.On Mon, 05 Oct 2009 at 6:14pm, SzczerbiakManiac wrote back:
Hi Monica,

There some pictures of the bedroom and the bathroom here:
<URL for the ad she just responded to, which includes four pictures>

As for details, the room is roughly 12'x11' with a large closet and a window that faces North looking up the Sepulveda pass. It comes with a private full bathroom. The kitchen and living room would be shared with me. The bedroom is on the top corner of a three story building that is adjacent to the 405 freeway. (the cross streets of XXXX and YYYY in LA) I keep to myself most of the time, but will watch some TV in the living room. I am a night owl, but I keep the noise to a minimum. The one exception to the low-noise level is once a week I host a Dungeons & Dragons game and that can at times be boisterous, but we don't play past 11:00pm. You would have one assigned parking space that is tandem with mine. There is free parking on the street.

It's available to move in right now. I can usually be home in time to show the room after 6:00pm on weeknights or afternoons on weekends.

Please don't hesitate to ask if you have further questions or would like to schedule a visit.On 10/5/2009 at 2:44am, Monica Cynthia <jbisuw@gmail.com> also sprach:
Thanks for getting back to me ,My name is Monica Cynthia.,I am 25yrs
old,I am fun-loving, personal, friendly,clean, caring,and respectful
of others. a non-smoker, don't do drugs, not a drinker,and drama free.
I've been searching and searching for two weeks for a place and been
having no luck,Males/females doesn't matter
as well as homes with a lot of roommates. I graduated last year ,
I am single and have no children. However, I don't have dogs. Am
coming for my masters degree . I was born in Virginia Beach in
Virginia. My dad is from there too but my mum is from Canada.Am on
research work at Guam (USA), am almost done.with that Because its part
of my prerequisite for my masters in Micro-Biology . I would have
loved to call you but I am not mobile my mobile have been disconnected
due to moving out of Guam.Am really interested in renting from you and
will really want to know
everything about the place .I do really love pets but I don't have any
at the moment. I would have loved to see it but am very far,but with
pictures,I am glad.

I will also like you to tell me more about you and if you have
pets. i don't smoke.Please let me know the total payment of the place
and more over I will send your email to my dad for him to email you
later Because He is the one that will be paying the bills(Rent and
deposit fees), but nevertheless,I will like you to send me your full
Name and the mailing address, your phone number as well, so that my
Dad will issue out the payment (Check)for the place as soon as
possible,with that you can hold on the place for me till I come . I
will be looking forward to your email soonest Here is my Dad Contact
e-mail lammchris1@yahoo.com .here is my pics in graduation robe and my
family.
Thanks and have a nice day
Best Regards
Monica

[attached was a picture of a young woman in blue gown with four other taller, probably older, nicely dressed people standing next to a brick wall.]All of these set off little alarms: "However, I don't have dogs"
I don't require dogs in my ad. In fact, they're prohibited in my building.
Almost done with a Masters degree and has horrible grammar
Syntax is weird, as if being written by someone whose first language is not English
E.g., "I would have loved to see it but am very far,but with pictures,I am glad."
Not that being a native-speaker is a relevant quality in a roommate, but it doesn't fit the background offered.
Says is a non-smoker more than once
Wants me to send full name, phone number, and mailing address to a third party [red lights and deafening klaxons]
Gee, would you like my Social Security Number and Bank Account Number as well?
Wants me to hold the place until she arrives (and when would that be?) without having seen it
Like I care what she looks like, assuming that picture really is her.
The second e-mail came from a different address (don't ask me about the time stamp, I'm baffled too)
So what do y'all think?

Strangler Lewis
10-05-2009, 09:24 PM
Scam. "Dad" will send too much money and ask for a refund, and then the original check, wire, moneygram will turn out to be bogus.

Something like that.

Gemini Cricket
10-05-2009, 09:24 PM
Scam-arama.

Just a hunch.

DreadPirateRoberts
10-05-2009, 09:32 PM
also sprach ?

what language is that? German?

SzczerbiakManiac
10-05-2009, 09:41 PM
thus spake
as in "Also sprach Zarathustra (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Also_sprach_Zarathustra_%28Richard_Strauss%29)"
yes, it's German

lashbear
10-05-2009, 10:17 PM
Run a mile !!

Also, I ouldn't consider anyone who won't be paying their own rent personally. It's too easy for them to say "Oh, didn't he pay you? I'll have to chase him up for you"

Alex
10-05-2009, 10:22 PM
Strangler Lewis nailed the scam in question. You'll eventually get a fraudulent or stolen check with the hope that you cash and send money before it is caught.

Gemini Cricket
10-05-2009, 10:36 PM
Scam-a-lama-ding-dong.

wendybeth
10-05-2009, 11:47 PM
http://www.pythonline.com/files/pythonline/story_images/spam1.png

"Scam, scam, scam, scam,..........."

Gemini Cricket
10-06-2009, 02:07 AM
Scambled eggs and scam.

3894
10-06-2009, 05:44 AM
It's a scam and it goes with what my BIL the vice cop told me once:

Me: "Are there criminal masterminds like on tv?"
BIL the vice cop: "Very few. Almost all criminals are stupid."

We can safely class your would-be housemate in this very large group.

CoasterMatt
10-06-2009, 06:10 AM
I DON'T LIKE SCAM!!!

flippyshark
10-06-2009, 06:41 AM
She may be from Scamdinavia.

Or Scam Francisco.

Or Scamburg, Germany

Moonliner
10-06-2009, 07:24 AM
Oh yeah, Scam city for sure. The best thing is probably to just discontinue communications and get on with life, but if you are of a certain mindset screwing with them (http://www.419eater.com/)can provide some level of entertainment (http://www.419eater.com/html/kadijat_jubril.htm).

For example you could say that time is critical, and insist that daddy sends you a check via overnight service.... Costing them $$$. etc...

Cadaverous Pallor
10-06-2009, 08:04 AM
Even if it wasn't a scam (which it is) I would disqualify her for stupidity.

Alex
10-06-2009, 08:54 AM
For example you could say that time is critical, and insist that daddy sends you a check via overnight service.... Costing them $$$. etc...

This particular scam almost always uses such services anyway, for two reasons.

1. Their outlay of cash to ship a check express makes people more comfortable with it. Surely, a scammer wouldn't spend the $15 they think.

2. They don't want to send their fraudulent check through the USPS and thus committing mail fraud which makes things much worse if they do get caught. (not sure if this is actually true or just believed to be true)

innerSpaceman
10-06-2009, 09:14 AM
Loverly Scam, Wonderful Scam.

Ghoulish Delight
10-06-2009, 09:17 AM
Seems on the up and up to me. I say go for it, what's the worst that can happen?

cirquelover
10-06-2009, 10:05 AM
I'm not saying it's not a scam but when I got my first place my Dad was my guarantor.

I was 17 when my Mom decided she was going to follow a man to Australia and threw my brother and I out of the house on Christmas Eve. When I found an apartment I gave the landlord my Dads phone # and address as he was sending the deposits and rent for the first month. He was also willing to guarantee that my rent was paid at least until I turned 18 or graduated from High School.

So in my circumstances it was legit but this one sounds rather fishy!

katiesue
10-06-2009, 10:09 AM
I'm with CP if you're that incoherant in an email I probably don't want to live with you.

SzczerbiakManiac
10-06-2009, 12:32 PM
I appreciate all your responses.

I was 99% sure it was bullshït, but there was a tiny little voice inside my head that wondered if it might be legit.

That voice has been silenced. :)

Gn2Dlnd
10-06-2009, 12:35 PM
I was 17 when my Mom decided she was going to follow a man to Australia and threw my brother and I out of the house on Christmas Eve.


Boy, I was all loaded up with a bleeding Vikings reference but this stopped me cold in my tracks! WHAT!?!?

Gemini Cricket
10-06-2009, 12:41 PM
Everyone (except Lisa) sing along:

Scam! Scam! Scam! Scam!
Lovely scam! Wonderful scam!
Scam sca-a-a-a-a-am scam sca-a-a-a-a-am scam.
Lovely scam! Lovely scam! Lovely scam! Lovely scam!
Scam scam scam scam!

cirquelover
10-06-2009, 01:20 PM
Boy, I was all loaded up with a bleeding Vikings reference but this stopped me cold in my tracks! WHAT!?!?


Yeah, she was a lot of fun growing up with :eek:

Sadly two years later she came to visit and we went with her to Iowa and Cananda to see relatives. She abandon us in the middle of Canada. My Dad was thrilled when he got that phone call too! He wired us enough money to buy bus tickets, it's a Loooong way across Canada, and had $20 left for food for the three day trip. That was a fun time! I've never seen so many drunk Indians in my life and every bus smelled worse than an old ashtray! Some of the bus stations in the middle of Canada were beyond scary places too!

Gemini Cricket
10-06-2009, 01:21 PM
Green eggs and scam.

JWBear
10-06-2009, 01:33 PM
Green eggs and scam.

Whoa dude... Just noticed your avatar... Freaky hands!

Gemini Cricket
10-06-2009, 01:41 PM
Whoa dude... Just noticed your avatar... Freaky hands!
Hee hee. They're just really close to the camera. It's a gripping photo.

:D

Prudence
10-06-2009, 07:49 PM
I agree that there are too many questionable issues for this to be anything but a scam.

However, especially in the sciences, it doesn't surprise me in the slightest that someone with atrocious grammar would be pursuing a master's degree. A friend of mine was a TA while getting her PhD and her lab students were shocked - SHOCKED - that she would mark them down for grammar errors. And she only took points off for the really, really bad ones; the merely crappy emerged unscathed, free from the taint of grammatical improvements. Truly, an alarming number of people are convinced that written communication is simply not worth the investment.

Gemini Cricket
10-06-2009, 08:28 PM
Scam the Eagle

bewitched
10-06-2009, 08:43 PM
GC has had a slow day.

:D

Gemini Cricket
10-06-2009, 09:32 PM
ScroogeMcScam
(Couldn't resist.)
:D

Strangler Lewis
10-07-2009, 06:26 AM
Yeah, she was a lot of fun growing up with :eek:

Sadly two years later she came to visit and we went with her to Iowa and Cananda to see relatives. She abandon us in the middle of Canada. My Dad was thrilled when he got that phone call too! He wired us enough money to buy bus tickets, it's a Loooong way across Canada, and had $20 left for food for the three day trip. That was a fun time! I've never seen so many drunk Indians in my life and every bus smelled worse than an old ashtray! Some of the bus stations in the middle of Canada were beyond scary places too!

Screenplay!

Kevy Baby
10-07-2009, 07:21 AM
Scamalicious

lashbear
10-07-2009, 11:16 PM
Scampons !!

Gemini Cricket
10-07-2009, 11:17 PM
Shrimp Scam-pi

flippyshark
10-08-2009, 07:54 AM
Scam-a-lama-ding-dong

Morrigoon
10-08-2009, 04:04 PM
Scamzilla

RStar
10-08-2009, 11:10 PM
Scam-a-daba-do!


I'm sure you'd get paid by a money order from Nigeria.

MouseWife
10-08-2009, 11:18 PM
Um, what about the question about when he would be home? Or, pictures? Have any of the pictures turned up as a rental? Or, does anyone think they may try and rent it out?

I've heard of pictures of peoples' children being used to 'sell' children to people who are desperate to adopt.

sorry...back to your scamfest........

SzczerbiakManiac
10-09-2009, 08:50 AM
Um, what about the question about when he would be home?I understand your concern (thank you), but it's a gated, multi-unit building, so that's not a huge worry for me.

Have any of the pictures turned up as a rental? Or, does anyone think they may try and rent it out?The pictures on my ad were of empty rooms (bed & bath). I'd be surprised if that was a tempting thing for someone to "steal".

MouseWife
10-09-2009, 10:11 AM
I understand your concern (thank you), but it's a gated, multi-unit building, so that's not a huge worry for me.

The pictures on my ad were of empty rooms (bed & bath). I'd be surprised if that was a tempting thing for someone to "steal".


Good to hear on both counts. :0)

Whatever happened, btw?

SzczerbiakManiac
10-09-2009, 01:02 PM
Nothing. I never contacted her again and she hasn't contacted me.

MouseWife
10-09-2009, 11:30 PM
That's interesting.

Am I the only one who had those thoughts?

Hmm. My kids say I worry too much.

How does your search go, btw?

SzczerbiakManiac
10-10-2009, 08:53 AM
How does your search go, btw?Lot of e-mails, several visitors, no roommate. If I don't find one in the next couple weeks, I will be totally fücked.

Morrigoon
10-10-2009, 11:28 AM
Well, if you can handle a younger person, you can always put an ad up at the nearest J.C.

Gn2Dlnd
10-10-2009, 12:19 PM
Jungle Cruise?

Sounds HOT!

Kevy Baby
10-10-2009, 01:05 PM
Jungle Cruise?

Sounds HOT!No silly, she mean the local Jesus Christ

Gn2Dlnd
10-10-2009, 01:57 PM
No silly, she mean the local Jesus Christ

Oh.

Sounds HOT!

MouseWife
10-10-2009, 10:35 PM
I hope you aren't fvcked. At least not in this way. :0)

Ah, some actors who've portrayed JC have been totally hot.

They make him look so beautiful.

Tref
10-10-2009, 11:46 PM
Ah, some actors who've portrayed JC have been totally hot.

They make him look so beautiful.

I bet he was. I know he had a following.

Morrigoon
10-11-2009, 02:48 AM
jr college

Gn2Dlnd
10-11-2009, 04:47 AM
Sounds HOT!

Strangler Lewis
10-11-2009, 07:07 AM
Don't you work at a school teeming with sensible, self-reliant people?

And have you no Whole Foods bulletin board?

Tref
10-11-2009, 09:40 AM
And have you no Whole Foods bulletin board?

Does Whole Foods have a HOT section?

MouseWife
10-11-2009, 01:14 PM
Who works at Whole Foods?

Kevy Baby
10-11-2009, 01:26 PM
Employees

Gemini Cricket
10-11-2009, 01:36 PM
ScAmsterdam

bewitched
10-11-2009, 05:24 PM
You guys are silly.

Kevy Baby
10-11-2009, 07:10 PM
It is scamdalous how silly we can be

MouseWife
10-11-2009, 07:16 PM
Employees


Ya think so? :p