Today I have learned an embarrassing lesson. I spent over an hour with a woman, distressed, yet in control of her disappointment, who had been defrauded by someone using a local, familiar, yet false identity on Craig's List. All to do with renting a house, which actually is for rent, but not but the illegitimate so-and so claiming to be the rightful owner. A deceiver, by the way, who claims to have temporary residency in Scotstoun, Glasgow. For the faint of hearted that is in a non-bonnie part of Scotland, an industrial area in which few live, and even fewer choose to visit. I know. I've been there.
I sat down at length with N, and read through all the paperwork, reams of it, e-mails and the like. It was so sad. Despite all the warnings, a vulnerable woman is persuaded by comforting phrases such as, "We want to trust you with our home," and "God bless you."
The house, which I quietly visited today, is bona fide; the actual rent is reasonable, and if asked I will go into bat for the victim of this scam to perhaps negotiate a slight reduction. After all, the rightful owners are the victim of identity theft, and I also think that I am good at such discussions! In the meantime Southampton Town Police will be informed, and I will write further regarding their response, not to the scam (for that is an individual's responsibility) but to a case of identity theft.
Oh. My embarrassing lesson? Learning that in the world the two leading countries for internet scams are Nigeria, and the United Kingdom,
No comments:
Post a Comment