SARANAC LAKE – Village police are reporting that one or more unknown people are scamming others out of money after posting real estate for rent on Craigslist.

Police said properties are being fraudulently listed for rent on the popular classified advertisement website, with the ad poster posing as the owner of the properties. Police said the scammer claims to not agree with how a supposed real estate agent was trying to sell the property and therefore is attempting to rent the property on his or her own.

Police said all of the fraudulent properties were advertised for $600 rent and did not include any pictures on the Craigslist ads.

Police said the scammer(s) then requested a Walmart-to-Walmart digital transfer of funds when asking for the first month’s rent and security deposit. Police said once the payment is processed, the scammer(s) then promised to send keys and a lease agreement via Federal Express via same-day or next-day delivery — but once a payment was sent, the scammer never contact the buyer again.

Police said the only contact information for the properties they’ve come across are the following email addresses: “upm3040@gmail.com,” and “durexcu@gmail.com.” Police said they believe it is likely any posting from these users are fraudulent in nature.

Village police request to contact them if any members of the public have questions or believe that a property may have been posted fraudulently.