Two days after a man rented and moved into a Buffalo Grove home, he discovered the residence was actually for sale and the man he’d paid was not the owner, according to a police report.
The report said the real estate agent who represents a vacant home in the 500 block of Lasalle Lane came to the house Feb. 8 with a potential buyer. The real estate agent walked in to find a man inside, who appeared to be living there, the report said.
The agent called police, who spoke with the renter and learned that he had found the property in Craigslist’s “for rent” section on Feb. 5. According to the report, the man met the person he believed was the landlord at the house the next day.
The new tenant moved in right away, according to police, after paying the man off Craigslist $1,000 in cash and $1,500 in a cashier’s check to cover February’s rent.
The man from Craigslist reportedly had “keys [that] worked to unlock the front door,” an officer wrote in a report.
“But when I looked at the front door, I immediately noticed the door had been pried open and the locks changed,” the officer said, according to the report. “He appeared to be the victim of a rental scam.”
The house’s owner allowed the would-be renter to stay another night, but the report said the man still was upset about his predicament.
“He is out $2,500,” and looking for a new place to rent, the report reads.
Police said they are continuing to investigate.
Twitter: @RonnieAtPioneer