'Flat Rental' Scams through Western Union. Scam No.2

Hey all - again!

This is my next post with Scam No.2!

Scam No.2: "Accomodative One Bedroom Apartment For Rent "
Location: Bayswater
Seller: 'Donald Houston, Mary Hill, Wife Jane, Eric Murphy'

In this scam, i email this person saying i am interested in the flat and would like to know more information, pictures etc. This is where Mr.Donald Houtson replies to me with:

Thanks for your email and it is my gladness to hearing from you.

I am Donald Houston,the owner of the Apartment you are making inquiry of.Actually I resided in the apartment with my family,presently we moved away due to my transfer from my working place,my apartment is Located in 19 Gloucester Road SW7 4PL South Kensington London, and presently my apartment is still available for rent for 400 GBP per month including the utilities like hydro,washer and security,it is furnished.More so Now, I went for a Crusade in the West Africa and i will like you to get in touch with my wife in the states for more discussion as She is with the keys and the documents to the Apartment.Pls i want you to note that,i am a kind and honest man and also i spent a lot on my property that i want to give you for rent,so i will solicit for your absolute maintenance of this apartment and want you to treat it as your own,is that taken,I want you to keep it tidy all the time so that i will be glad to see it neat when i come for a check up.I do that once in a while.I want have trust in you as i always stand by my words.Where are you located? let us know how soon you are willing to move in.Email my wife Jane, on (myhomerentals@gmail.com )and she will attend to you better.

Thanks for your interest.
Donald Houston

I then emailed that address to have a reply - not from an expected 'Wife Jane' but from another person... Mary Hill and this is what she had to say.

Thanks for the email.
My husband owns the Apartment, also want you to know that it was due to my husband's transfer that made us to leave the apartment and also want to give it out for rent and looking for a responsible person that can take good care of the apartment, we are not after the money for the rent but want it to be clean all the time .So for now,I am in Greensville NJ in the United States in our new home and also I am with the keys and documents of the apartment,we tried to look for an agent that we can give this documents before we left but could not see and we don't want the apartment to be used any how in our absence that is why we took the keys and documents along with us here and as you know that,my husband over in the West Africa for a mission of God,so i hope you will promise us to take very good care of the apartment.So get back to me on how you could take care of our apartment or perhaps experience you have in renting a home.Hope you are okay with the price per month with hydro,heat laundry facilities,air condition, internet connection and so on.
View pictures in the attached files.I am looking forward to hearing from you ASAP so that i can forward you an application to fill out and discuss on how to get the apartment for rent.
Hope to read from you soon
Mary

So i had a look at the pictures, again, very impressive and told 'Mary' i liked the look of it and would be interested in a viewing, to which she replied with:

I am after the good care of my apartment, I am willing to rent the apartment to you for as long as you want. I want you to know I will only send you the keys and documents once the first month rent payment has been confirmed.You will not be able to see inside the apartment.We are willing to rent the apartment for as long as you want. We are willing to rent for as long as you are willing to stay. The rent includes all tax & bills included. I had an accident which affected my hearing and my legs , I am currently on a wheel chair right now, I do not use a phone that's why I am always online, you can reach my husband on +23********.if you are interested, you can fill out the rent application below and get back to me as soon as possible.

******************* RENT APPLICATION *******************
Also,Pls answer these questions below:

1)Your Full Name______________________________________
2)Present Address(where you reside now) & Phone# ____________________
3)How old are you _____________________________
4)Are you married ___________________________________
5)How many people will be living in the apartment ____________________
6)Do you have a pet _________________________________________
7)Do you have a car __________________________________________
8)Occupation _________________________________________________
9)What is your religion ____________________________________________
10)How long are you willing to stay __________________________________
11)1 month deposit needed ______________________________

Looking forward to hear from you with all this details so that i can have it in my file incase of issuing the receipt in your name and contacting you.Await your urgent reply so that we can discuss on how to get the documents and the keys to you,please we are giving you all this based on trust and again i want you to stick to your words,We are putting everything into Gods hand,so please do not let us down in this property of ours and God bless you more as you do this.
Regards

So i filled out the 'Application Form' and emailed her back with it HOWEVER i decided to have a little question against her '11) 1 month deposit needed', instead of agreeing with this i filled in:

11)1 month deposit needed: This is fine HOWEVER i'm quite unsettled about this paying for something without seeing or receiving any goods, i'm not calling this a scam however i would just like to ask this:
Is it possible, to pay you the first months rent - Once i then receive the keys and documents and have got into the flat - will i then be able to send you the deposit? Is this ok?

'Mary' replied with:

Try to call my husband now on +23***********.
Thanks

So i phoned Mr.Husband and asked him, he said ideally, over a crackled overseas phone line, that he would like the full payment and he assures me he will send me the documents and keys via DHL within 2 days of receiving payment.

So, 10 minutes after the conversation and i'm having a think, 'Mary' emails me with:

hi have you tried talking with him and what did he say?

Well, surely she should know as he said he would ring her right after our phone conversation, so i explained and said she needs to send me payment information, she replied within 2 minutes with:

My husband and I are so excited.
You will be sending the payment to me through western union and here is information where you will need to send payment through western union below.His secretary will help him in receiving the money at the Bank.
Receiver's name: Eric Murphy
Receiver's Address: 33 Allan street.
City: Victoria Garden
City State: Lagos
Country: Nigeria
Zip code: 23401
Test Question: Code ?
Test Answer: Mary

As soon as you send the payment from the Western Union Money Transfer,you would be given some informations. You would have to get back to me with following information:

1. Full Sender's Name And Address Including Zip Code:
2. MTCN Confirmation #:
3. Amount Sent:

As soon as i confirm the payment, I will send the necessary document and keys of the apartment to you through DHL and get back to you with the Tracking number and the arrival time of the document and the keys, because the package will be delivered to you the Two days after payment have been confirmed.I also want you to know that this isnt a scam please.Call him when you have this.
Thanks and God Bless you

Hold on - Eric Murphy has entered the situation now! Where is husband donald? Hmm. Nigeria? A country that so happens to be prime location for scams and con artists to withdraw money from through western union as you only need an ID which you can easily present them with a fake one. Where did Donald and why Jane disappear to? Who is Mary Hill... and why am i paying someone called Eric Murphy who has an address in Nigeria with a Zip Code which is located in Keller in the USA.

I emailed them back, saying this is a complete scam and i will be informing Gumtree and high superiors of the act and i got this as a reply:

Hi,
If you think this is a scam can you send the money to me in Canada.Is this okay by you?

Canada? but... previously you told me you live in Greensville NJ in the United States - why would i want to send money to canada? - that is the end of the scam, i have no further reply and the ad is still on gumtree, i have reported it and i expect it should be removed soon.

I shall keep you posted on any further problems i come across! I think i may just leave the private letting and go and find a nice secure agency.