By Associated Press - Sunday, November 26, 2017

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) - A Delaware man says he’s the victim of a so-called “home takeover” scam.

The News Journal reports that Alexander Pratt lived in a Wilmington house for 10 months with his fiancee and son before being locked out. He’ll be forced to retrieve his belongings next week.

Pratt said the man he thought was the landlord and to whom he paid rent disappeared. The real property owners said they had no idea anyone was living in the house.

Pratt said he rented the house from a man who posted an ad on Craigslist. The man offered a great deal: $4,000 up front for the year.

Such scams are not new. And researchers at New York University’s Tandon School of Engineering found that Craigslist often fails to identify scam rental listings.

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Information from: The News Journal of Wilmington, Del., http://www.delawareonline.com

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