Overseas fake check fraudster prowling baby-sitters’ websites
Photo by: Shygantic
An online fraudster is prowling baby sitters’ websites in search of his next victim. On target are under-grads and others who register at these sites offering baby-sitting services. He nearly pulled off his con on two students recently; one, a University of Colorado student and the other from the University of Rhode Island. There are signs that he is weaving his web out of Cambodia.
After zeroing in on their profiles at the baby-sitters’ website, he sends them an email. He presents himself to them variously as John Mark and Jeremy Silver among other alibis. He claims to be an international banker or businessman currently living in UK or Cambodia.
Soon he’d be picking up a new job in the US and would be moving in with his family, the mail informs. When he relocates, he would require a baby-sitter for his 5-year old daughter. He sends a schedule to explain at what times he’d be requiring their services. To further up his credibility, he sends a sunny family photo. Would the student be interested in his offer?
He provides ample reasons to say ‘Yes’.
The money he offers could easily cover their grad school fees leaving plenty to spare. He also offers them the use of a personal car. All in all, it would seem foolish for the students to turn down such an offer.
It is when he has them on such a high that he plays his next card.
He comes out with a sudden request. Companies in the US were not acknowledging his credit card. Yet he badly needs to buy a video game system and other games for his daughter. Could the new hire help out? If she’s willing to oblige, he would send her a Wal-Mart money order for $350 to help her make the purchase.
The mail carrying the money comes, all right, except with an important error: the mail would carry two Wal-Mart money orders totaling $1900 instead of one of $350 value.
Taking it to be a mistake, the student calls him up to inform of the error. Terming the whole thing to be a mix-up, he requests the student to cash the checks and wire the excess amount back to him.
In both the reported cases, the students proved to be smarter than the fraudster. Instead of entertaining his request, they went with the money orders to Wal-Mart. After going through the money orders, Wal-Mart told them the money orders were clever forgeries. In making them, the fraudster was in fact particular enough to use genuine serial numbers; although, they were of used money orders.
In their investigations, law enforcement agencies were able to trace the phone number used by the scammer. The trace leads them to believe the fraudster is baiting out of Cambodia.
Sources: KWGN.com & Enterprisenews.com
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December 8th, 2008 at 12:44 pm
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