Cops: LI Scam Artist Rented Out Home He Didn't Own To 3 Different People
CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A Long Island man is accused of scamming a number of people into giving him money for a rental home he did not even own.
Joseph Carretto, 39, of Central Islip, accepted cash deposits from three people for the same property during the past week, police said. The victims answered ads on Craigslist.
Investigators say Carretto even completed written rental agreements and gave keys to the victims. A bank, however, owned the unoccupied property on Hickory Street in Central Islip.
Carretto has been charged with scheme to defraud and petit larceny. He is scheduled to be arraigned Thursday in Central Islip.
Experts say there is a shortage of affordable rental homes on Long Island, and authorities believe Carretto took advantage of that fact, WCBS 880's Sophia Hall reported.
Suffolk County police Deputy Inspector Thomas Blomberg said there are ways renters can protect themselves.
"They should see where it is that they're going to rent, and even getting to the location, you would want to be able to go in and look into the place, because it's not uncommon for people to meet in front of the house and the person that they're dealing with may not even have any ability to get in," Blomberg said.
"Try to do some research on the person you're dealing with. If the guy is a scam artist, they're probably not giving up information on themselves."
Blomberg added that if a rental deal seems too good to be true, it's probably a scam.
Suffolk County police are asking anyone else who believes they may have been duped by Carretto to call them at 631-854-8329.
