Nahema Bryan said she was desperate to find a new place to live.
The house she had been renting in Trenton was sold, and she had only nine days left before her Nov. 1, 2021, deadline to get out. “I was running out of time,” Bryan said.
A family member sent her information about a house in Hamilton that was listed for rent on Facebook and she texted the landlord.
She didn’t know it at the time, but it was all a scam.
“I was so desperate that I fell for it all,” she said. “When I look back, all the signs were there.”
Bryan said she wanted to share her experience so others wouldn’t fall for a similar scam.
Over text, the “landlord” told her to pay an application fee of $160 via Zelle, a money transfer system run by major banks, and then fill out an online application, text messages show.
Bryan paid the fee to someone named “Paige” at a Wells Fargo bank account.
Quickly, she was approved.
Next, the landlord told her to send a $1,000 deposit over Zelle, also to “Paige,” text messages show.
She did.
Then the landlord said Bryan could get the keys the next day if she would transfer a $1,000 security deposit — how this was different from the original deposit is unclear — and $1,000 for the first month’s rent. And she should hurry, he said.
She was told the security deposit should be sent to Paige while the rent should go to someone named “Howard” with a Chase bank account, text messages show.
Eager for early access to the house, Bryan transferred the…
