Long Beach : Rent Scam Uncovered
Two men apparently defrauded more than $6,000 from would-be tenants in a house rental scam in Belmont Shore last week. The men offered the plush, two-bedroom house for $750 a month through classified newspaper ads, according to Long Beach police reports. Telling the four pairs of prospective renters they were leery of checks, the men asked for and received cash security deposits ranging from between $900 and $2,000.
But police said the renters realized something was wrong when they all showed up to move into the Pomona Avenue house on Saturday.
Jeri Honda, the house’s owner, told police she had rented it recently to two young men for $900 a month. She said the men gave their names as Wayne Nelson and Stephen Haas.
No arrests have been made in the case.
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