Anchorage Daily News

JUNEAU -- Amyanna Bryan regularly checked Internet listings to find a Juneau home to rent at a reasonable rate.

She thought she found one on the Craigslist Web site: a three-bedroom house in the Mendenhall Valley for $1,000 a month.

The ad said to send money in return for keys, but several red flags raised her suspicions. She held off, eventually learning the house was for sale, not for rent, and that scammers half a world away were trying to get her money.

Juneau has joined other U.S. cities, including Anchorage, being exploited by West African scam artists who try to rent houses they don't own.

Sean Henderson, owner of Assist-2-Sell real estate company, said four potential renters have expressed interest in houses he listed for sale in recent weeks.

Information he posted on Craigslist was repackaged and posted as a rental property. The scammers asked for private information and a deposit.

"It's pretty blatant, in terms of what they are asking for," he said. He has discontinued posting properties on Craigslist.

On its Web site, Craigslist tells its users to "deal locally with folks you can meet in person" to avoid most scam attempts.

Bryan responded to the fake ad and received an e-mail that said the owner was doing missionary work in West Africa. The e-mail asked Bryan to answer a few questions, including her full name, age, address and occupation.

Bryan said she thought the e-mail sounded "really nice" and responded with the requested information.

She got an e-mail back telling her the house was hers in exchange for a payment.

"Please once again, we are giving you this on trust and do not disappoint us and i promise you that, you will love the house," the e-mail said.

Bryan never sent the money. She visited the house and saw it was furnished and looked occupied, complete with a dog and cat in the backyard. It also had a "For Sale" sign in the yard.

She called Assist-2-Sell and learned the house had never been listed for rent.

A call to the cell phone listed at the bottom of the e-mails sent to Bryan, which had a Nigerian country code, did not work.

Bryan said Juneau residents are not immune to scams perpetuated from a distance.

"Be very careful," Bryan said. "If you get a bad feeling, go with it."

Police Sgt. David Campbell agreed.

"Like anywhere else, there's a potential for fraud," he said. "People need to remain vigilant."

It's tough to account for the number of people who have been victims of such fraud, he said, because often they are too embarrassed to report their loss.

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