What is the name of your state? CA
I responded to an ad in the newspaper for a condo and after seeing it, the owner, who is still living in the unit, told me that he recently bought a new home & he was moving out in 2 weeks and that he would hold the place if I gave him a check for $500.00. I gave him a check without a written agreement and have since come to discover that he has taken three $500 deposits from 3 other people and that he never bought a new home & never had any intention of moving. (I only know about the 3 because we all showed up at his house at the same time, but there may be more) He still resides at the property, & even when I know he's home, he won't answer his door or respond to phone calls. He cashed all of our checks. So it was some sort of scam. Isn't this a crime? It seems to me this would be a criminially fraudulent act. Can I contact the police as I doubt small claims would go very far as he has a huge list of actions against him already. At this point, I just want him stopped so he doesn't do this to others. My main question is, in the state of California, is this a felony criminal act that the police would respond to?
I responded to an ad in the newspaper for a condo and after seeing it, the owner, who is still living in the unit, told me that he recently bought a new home & he was moving out in 2 weeks and that he would hold the place if I gave him a check for $500.00. I gave him a check without a written agreement and have since come to discover that he has taken three $500 deposits from 3 other people and that he never bought a new home & never had any intention of moving. (I only know about the 3 because we all showed up at his house at the same time, but there may be more) He still resides at the property, & even when I know he's home, he won't answer his door or respond to phone calls. He cashed all of our checks. So it was some sort of scam. Isn't this a crime? It seems to me this would be a criminially fraudulent act. Can I contact the police as I doubt small claims would go very far as he has a huge list of actions against him already. At this point, I just want him stopped so he doesn't do this to others. My main question is, in the state of California, is this a felony criminal act that the police would respond to?