Victim Location 30523
Type of a scam Rental
I saw a rental listed on craigslist and requested information. A back and forth on email and text message went on for a few days. I agreed to rent the unit. An application and lease was sent to me and I was told I was approved and could take the unit on May 14,2020. There was not an office in the area of the rental and all was to be done online. I was aware of the complex and was not at all concerned. I was to make the payment via cashapp. I did that but it failed twice. I suggested that at that point I needed to make the payment in a more traditional way and was give the name of a company and a bank account number to make the deposit to. The name of the company was Ruta Innovacion LLC. The bank and account number were Chase Bank 590517808. I decided to look this company up and found that it did not seem to have any business involving rentals and was given an F rating by the Better Business Bureau. At that point the huge red flag caused me to investigate a bit. I found that this person, Cheri Ballew nor Ruta Innovacion LLC had anything to do with this rental unit. I found the management company and the owner and the current tenant of the unit. Needless to say I was just short of loosing the first months rent and deposit making a big mistake. The company Ruta Innovacion was never mentioned until I ask to make the payment in a different manner. I have to believe that they have some part in this scam otherwise why would I be ask to make a deposit to their checking account.