WIXOM, Mich. (WXYZ) — A man in Wixom is sending out a warning about scams on Facebook after his home address was being used to trick victims.
A fake profile selling items online was asking for a deposit, then giving out the address for where buyers could pick up the item. The homeowner only found out when he got a surprise knock at the door.
"Yesterday, family and I were having dinner and we get a knock on the door,” explains Steve Anton of Wixom. "We open the door and the guy goes to me, 'Are you the Harris family?'"
It was that simple visit that led Anton to discover his home was at the center of a Facebook scam. Someone in a local Facebook group using the name 'Emily Harris' claimed they were moving, and listed multiple items for sale, from a golf cart to an ATV and a couch The page was selling a lot of big items and asking for a deposit to hold it. The fake profile then gave out Steve’s address for where buyers could pick it up. At least one person says the fake profile scammed them for $400 dollars.
"I was stunned," Anton said. "I was shocked, I'd never heard of this scam before”
The Good Samaritan at Steve’s door didn’t fall for it but alerted Steve, who then shared a post on Facebook calling out the seller.
“I was afraid people would start knocking on my door every day and asking 'Where's my product? I just gave you a deposit,'” Anton said.
Laura Blankenship is Chief of Staff for the Better Business Bureau (BBB) of Eastern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula. She says scams like this on Facebook are very common.
“Marketplace scams happen many times a day, unfortunately,” Blankenship said. “For scams such as these, they often never get their money back”.
Even though the seller is in a local Facebook group, the person behind the account could be anywhere in the world. Blankenship says these scammers are often from outside the United States and there isn't much local police can do.
She recommends people not pay up front and vet the account selling the item.
“Do not use a third party unless you are face to face with that person and you have the item in your hand, never pay for it until you see the item in person,” Blanksenship said. "You always want to look at a profile that’s well built. That you can go back and see that they joined several years ago not just recently, and they have real photos and lots of friends that actually seem to know them.”
Meanwhile, Anton is spreading the word, hoping no one shows up at his front door with an already empty wallet only to leave empty-handed.
“If it sounds too good to be true and they’re asking for money upfront, don't do it,” Anton said.
