Victim Location 91107
Total money lost $1,150
Type of a scam Fake Check/Money Order
I recently moved and decided all my furniture wouldn’t fit into our new place so decided to sell off some pieces on Craig’s List.
A day later I was contacted by a man, allegedly Jack Thomas, who messaged me that he was in the hospital but wanted to buy my sofas for his daughter. If I could hold the pieces until he could get movers to come pick it up he would give me an additional $100. He then began to text me, sometimes multiple times daily. He was always cheery and friendly. He told me he would send me a cashier’s check and once I had deposited it he would send the movers to get the furniture.
A few days later I received an Express Mail envelope with the cashier’s check in it and it was for more than the price of the $800 worth of furniture. I questioned him and he explained the excess was for the movers fee when they came to get the furniture. Later he asked me to not pay them in cash but to send a Zelle payment to Annette Shakir at [email protected] for $1,150.00 (the moving company) as they don’t trust the drivers with the cash. I waited for the check to clear the bank which I thought it had due to the fact it was no longer showing pending on my bank app. Right after I had sent the payment via Zelle, my bank contacted me to say the check was questionable and they were putting it on hold. I asked Jack if there was any problem with the check and he assured me he would make it good. I asked for his address and he told gave me one in Washington State (14646 57th Ave SE, Everette, WA 98208). I asked him why he was buying a sofa from me in CA, with a check from a bank in Hollywood if he lived in WA? I asked him for a copy of his driver’s license and he told me he didn’t have one. I asked for a copy of his passport and then all communication ceased. I tried to call the phone number I had been texting with and it was out of service.
I called the bank the cashier’s check was drawn on and was told the check number was fraudulent. I immediately called my bank to stop the Zelle payment, but of course they go thru immediately and cannot be refunded. I attempted to ask the email address thru Zelle to rescind the money and I was told it came back denied. So that’s why they wanted a Zelle payment. I had been had!
I did some research on the names on the internet thru truthfinder.com and LinkedIn and found that Annette Shakir was indeed an actual person. The many email addresses listed for her included the one I sent the payment to [email protected] . Looks like she has a varied past and interestingly her middle name is Thomas, same name as the alleged man who I had been texting with. There was probably never a Jack Thomas! I didn’t feel safe calling the numbers listed or email addresses for her. The reports show she is primarily from Jonesboro, GA and is a Christian Counselor…pretty ironic!
I want my $1,150.00 back from these scammers!!