A man from Salem, MA, known as the Craiglist apartment scammer, conned nine groups of victims out of thousands of dollars by posing as a landlord for an apartment he did not own. Yesterday, he was sentenced to three years in state prison.
Jayson Fallis, 35, pleaded guilty in Salem Superior Court to nine counts of larceny over $250. According to Salem News, once Fallis is out of prison, he will be on probation for five years and must pay back the $13,790 he stole from the nine victims, which include single mothers, a young couple with children, and other people of limited means.
Last year, in November, Fallis posted an ad on Craiglist for an apartment at 11 Boston St. in Salem for $850 per month, telling potential renters that he had inherited several rental properties and was unsure what to do with them police said. In reality, Fallis was a former tenant of the building and still had a key.
Deposits anywhere from $500 to $2,000 for first and last month's rent and security deposit were made by the victims. One woman even exhausted her savings account to pay, according to Salem News.
"We try to shield our children from the evil in the world, but now not only was it in our home, it took our home away," the woman wrote in a victim impact statement. "I was homeless for the holidays with a 2-year-old son, and I was beating myself up for letting this happen. How could I have let this happen?"
"On first blush it looks like the dollar amount is relatively minor for a larceny case," Judge Whitehead said, "but to the particular people involved it's a huge amount and a life-changing experience for some of them. It's a very serious crime and a very serious impact."
For tips on how to avoid becoming victim of online scams, click here.
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