The Seattle PI reports that a Magnolia woman accused of taking deposits from a dozen would-be renters in a rental scam has been charged with felony theft. King County prosecutors say Diana J. Delaney, 63, repeatedly advertised her home for rent, took deposits and backed out of the deals. According to court documents Delaney took $35,874 from people looking to rent the home. All but one of the renters has since been repaid but detectives say that it did not appear Delaney was done trying to rent the home, and was offering other services as well.
?There is still an active ad for the house rental on Cazoodle.com and she had also placed several ads for other services such as childcare, counseling, antiques dealer, ghost writer, and an ad for a furnished corporate house with a live-in errand concierge service included in the rental,? the detective told the PI.
Police began investigating Delaney in February 2009 after a woman reported that she?d put down a deposit on a home in the 3800 block of 34th Avenue West but was unable to recover it after Delaney backed out of the deal. Delaney is charged with one count of first-degree theft and three counts of third-degree theft. More details from the PI here.
We got caught in this like others it seems but found the Magnolia neighborhood as a result of her “rental” so I guess it all worked out. Now we live here, love it, got most of our money back (though it was hard!!), and actually feel sorta thankful to her for introducing us to Magnolia’s glories.
Was this the “ex-diplomat” with a couple dogs that kept trying to rent out floors of a house? She was on Craigslist forever and just smelled wrong.
What a freak. .
I read an ad posted by an “ex diplomat” in Magnolia on craigslist. She said she was a nanny looking for work. She posted the same ad EVERY day. I wonder if it’s the same woman.
I actually knew this woman some years ago, I won’t say how, and this doesn’t really surprise me at all. She was really shifty the whole time I knew her and she was one bridge I had no problems burning.
I have not encountered this particular scam yet. Well, this scam stretches across the world.
What’s happening? So much i’ve heard about with this topic. rental scammer are despretely making money right now. How poor are they.
Just be aware guys. Hopefully scam likes this won’t happen again so things like this will be avoided..
Lehigh Acres Property Management
There are a lot of scam artist around, just be educated and be informed with their tactics to prevent their deceitful strategies..