Roseburg woman loses $1,500 in scam
ROSEBURG, Ore. -- The Douglas County Sheriff's Department is reminding people about a renting scam that seems to be popular on the Craigslist Web site.
Officials say a Roseburg woman, 30, looked on the website and found a place for rent. She called the number, and was told to transfer $1,500 by Western Union to a location in the United Kingdom.
Before sending the money, the woman confirmed the name of the person in the email matched that of the owner on the property.
The woman later drove by the house and noticed a property management sign out front, which she later called and found out the home was already rented.
Police say to avoid scams like this, don't transfer money using Western Union or Money-Gram, and deal locally with someone you can meet in person.
The scammers got the name of the homeowner from a public assessor file, and are sometimes known to do the same with houses that are for sale.
