Complaint Review: TONNIA WILLIAMS - ODUNLAMI RAPHAEL

I had posted an ad online at roommates.com and craigslist.com to rent my apartment in florida. this individual TONNIA WILLIAMS. if that is really his or her real name, replied with the following innitial email titled 'Am Interested!!':

From : tonnia williams
Sent : Wednesday, June 6, 2007 2:51 PM
Subject : Am Interested!!!!!



Hello
I am interested in your room /apt posting online. I will be having some seminars coming up soon in the USA. Right now I am in Western Part of africa for a programme on children with heart related probs. My next programme/seminars will be in the USA and I will be needing a room to stay for this seminars and I need to secure a room before my arrival to the US. I am having fun here and I can't wait to arrive to the US. Pls do get back to me with the room description, move in rent fees for the first month and any deposit if included. I await your reply .
Regards

i had conversations with this individual for over a week, all the while looking forward to renting her my apartment, here are a few of the emails, just so you dont get fooled:

From : tonnia williams
Sent : Wednesday, June 6, 2007 10:57 PM
Subject : Thanks!!!


Hello,
Thanks for your email, Well my name is Tonnia and I am 27 years old. I am a humanitarian officer involved in projects that includes orphans, orphanages, heart related diseases in children betweeen the ages of 4-10yrs. I will be staying for a minimum of 12 -13 months. I don't drink nor smoke, no pets and no boyfriend because I am a very busy woman. I like honest, responsible, trustworthy and hardworking people while I dislike lazy,messy,uncaring people and I love pets so much. I like the job because it involves travelling which is one of my hobbies. i will be through with my programme soon and will be on study leave in states, i will still be getting paid, so paying my rents on time won't be an issue of discussion. so i want you to get back with me with the full name and the address the payment will be send to with your contact cell number and a pics of the room if available. i wont mind if you can please tell me about your self in your next mail. i will be expecting to hear from you soon .
Regards.
----------------------------------

From : tonnia williams
Sent : Saturday, June 9, 2007 4:34 PM
Subject : Payment sent via usps tck #1Z47WR190194632026

Hello.
Am very happy to inform you that payment has been mailed out by my boss and i just got the confirmation now that he has mailsd out my deposit fee to you. Payment is been mailed out via usps with tracking # (number deleted) and it will be deleiver to you soon, Pls keep me posted as soon as payment gets to you. Hope to hear from you soon, it will be very nice to be roomie with you, cant wait o meet with you.
Regards.

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Then she informs me that her 'boss' made a mistake and sent too much money to me. he sent the money to pay for her to ship her furniture and car along with the rent payment. she now asks me to send her back the balance via western union.


From : tonnia williams
Sent : Wednesday, June 13, 2007 4:40 AM
Subject : WAITTING TO READ FROM YOU MAMA!!LOL

Thanks mama,
its lovely pics,just to keep you uodate that i av book my flight already also to let you know that i got number 6 for the secon right hannd sit,flight information as schedule. i will be departing from here by 11:45pm nigeria time so i will like you to pls make thrasation as soon as you receive this message by sending $1,850 to the shipping agent so he can take my car and furniture in my present nd i can hand-over the key for landlord immediatly before my departure.Below is the agent information you will sending the cost fee for the shipmet to...
NAME.....ODUNLAMI RAPHAEL
ADDRESS....24,MARYLAND RD,IKEJA
STATE....LAGOS STATE
COUNTRY...NIGERIA
ZIP-CODE....23401
TEXT QUESTION......SAJEEN
ANSWER.....TONNIA
AMOUNT....$1,850
MTCN......?????
Please after sending the money you will forward the details of transfer to me for reference..

1.NAME/ADDRESS OF SENDER
2.AMOUNT SENT
3.TEXT/QUESTION/ANSWER
4.CONTROL/REFERENCE NUMBER.

Please do SEND it through Westernunion money
transfer..
Warmest Regards.

SHE WROTE ME SEVERAL TIMES THROUGHOUT THE DAY ASKING IF I HAD CASHED THE MONEY ORDERS AS YET AS SHEE NEEDED TO LEAVE HER APARTMENT BY JUNE 15 AND ALL HER STUFF WAS PACKED UP WAITING FOR THE SHIPPERS TO COME. THEN SHE KEPT ASKING ME WHY CANT I GO TO MY BANK TO CASH IT CAUSE SHE REALLY NEEDS THE MONEY ASAP.

During my lunch time on the same day i got eh money orders. i drove by my bank and asked them how do i cash a money order. they said that they will hold it against your account for 2 days, juust like a normal check, so they will cash it but only if u have enought money in your account to cover it. i wasnt going to take out my money to help someone i dont know, so i drove off.

after work i went to a check cashing store, after calling and asking if they cash money gram money orders, even thought they were made out by wal-mart. as soon as i enter the store, the cashier started to look on my funny, and when i reached the wondow, she promptly told me that they were fake. i asked her what! how do u know. so she had me put my hand underneath the glass and felt a real money order, which had texture, and the fake ones which was as smooth as a photocopy. the real ones also has a security feature which turns white when heat is applied. also when you photocopy the real one, it had VOID written all over it.

i asked for photocopied of the fake money orders, since they held on to thee real ones, as they said it was fraud, they took my info and said they will send it to their fraud department.

so the next day i wrote TONNIA a long letter, she acted surprise and thet she will get to the bottom of this because her boss is a man of integrity and she cant believe anyone in his office will issue a false check. she was complaining that she had to go change her flight now , and the morning before she told me that she had already shipped off some of her luggage. yeah right. needless to say, i never heard from her again after that day. the day before she was suppose to leave NIgeris for Florida.

Elmira
Fort Lauderhill, Florida
U.S.A.