7742006556

AGREED -- look for another place. These guys (Flanagan et al.) are scammers and there is an ongoing fraud investigation. See comments about my experience below.

thanks. i have contacted him and hopefully if there are enough complaints something can be done

I just got scammed by this man today in Denver.  He is using the names of Rick Botega, Janice Botega and Thomas Flanagan.  I mailed my $250 security deposit and $1000 for first month's rent to Thomas Flanagan in Chicago at the 350 W. Oakdale #812 Chicago, IL 60657.  I talked to "Rick" several times on the phone. He said that he and his wife Janice worked for the National Mental Health Institute and had sick family in Chicago and they would be living in Chicago for the summer to take care of the family.  I showed up to move in to my new condo and the unit does not exist.  I immediately called my bank to stop payment on the checks that I had sent him and luckily, they had not cashed these checks yet so I was able to stop payment.  Please beware of this terrible scam!!!

I would also like to add that I just subletted from Mr and Mrs Flanagan this month in DC. Actually came across this AFTER I had paid for everything, but we moed into our sublet on Friday, and everything is great. I know that his wife is very ill, maybe it just was a lapse in communication....

ATTENTION:

Once again we've detected POSITIVE comments from a single person who posts under different names. This time we are not deleting them, so you can find them above (for example see posts from Ryan or Henry).

The same person also wrote to us saying he is a lawyer representing mr. Thomas Flanagan.

I believe I was a victim of Thomas and Carla Flanagan's scam as well. I'm communicating this information to the local authorities and the Federal Trade Commission. I'd recommend anyone who has paid money or given personal information to "Carla" or "Thomas Flanagan" do the same.

I have subleted a unit this summer, no problems yes, but I am now curious because of this post....

It strikes me as unusual that current (as opposed to prospective) tenants with no problems would be researching this phone number. It seems more likely that only prospective tenants, individuals believing they were scammed, and the OWNER OF THE PHONE NUMBER would stumble upon this site. Only the latter has an incentive to post positive comments; the others would likely either be negative warnings or neutral. If current tenants were to research this phone number, it seems more likely that it would be the disgruntled current tenants, not the satisfied current tenants that would be researching the phone number and posting. I'm not saying this with certainty, but just suggesting that positive comments by CURRENT tenants seem strange and should perhaps raise a flag, particularly when made shortly after negative comments.

I fell for this guy's scam a year ago, for a sublet in Boston (that turned out not to exist).  I live in Chicago, and when I reported this to the police, they just laughed and said "How are we supposed to track somebody in Boston?" even though the guy is in Chicago.  After getting scammed, you might think the legal system is on your side, but to be honest, the Chicago police are pretty ambivalent about actually helping and it's virtually impossible to track this guy down for any real court processing (the filing fees would be more than what you lose-- so just try to avoid the scam in the first place!)

A year ago, this guy used Bank of America and lived on Grace street in Chicago; Same phone number.  I actually met him in person to hand him the check (ha, huge mistake, though it was on a busy street corner), and the person I met was about 6 feet, white, 200lb+ with brown hair.  Definitely gay.  Late 20s to mid 30s.  His craigslist ad did NOT have pictures, and when contacted, he emailed two small jpgs (pics that you'd think someone just copied from an online website), one of a bedroom with a low bed (light wood, white sheets) and one of a living room (with a very small silver flatscreen TV and a couch facing).  Best way to avoid his scam?  Ask for more photos, look up the apartment on google maps and call the management company.  If there is no management company, or they don't know who this guy is, it's not just a "misunderstanding" but rather a scam.  Also, when confronted, this guy has been known to pretend that the condo/apt/whatever exists until the end, or have one of his alter egos call/contact you and say that he has fallen ill or has been in an accident. He also claimed that the negative reviews of him online were from someone who tried to back out at the last second and was just trying to make him look bad.  He's also pretty good at cyber-censoring honest reviews of him.  Kind of amazing how little morality runs through this guy's veins.

Anyway, live and let live.  This obviously still gets me seriously peeved.  Sincere sympathy if you've already been scammed, but hopefully others find this page before they fall for it!  Or, better it, get the police/FBI involved while this person is still trackable...

This is a test posting.  I am NOT affiliated with 800notes.com, but rather am just showing that anyone can post with "800notes.com" as their name.  This was shown on the next page by an awesome poster, but I wanted to move this point further up so nobody takes the above comment to be a real admin.

SCAM FOR MONEY AND PERSONAL INFORMATION

Since this page is getting increased use, I've decided to provide a summary of what other people have posted for the ease of those quickly looking at the page.

1. Several individuals have alleged this individual has SCAMMED PEOPLE OUT OF BOTH MONEY AND PERSONAL INFORMATION.  [How the scam worked, names used, addresses used, and phone numbers used discussed below in number 4; steps to take if you think you've been scammed are discussed below in number 5]

2. A few positive posts were made by supposed current residents, but as I pointed out on page 2 in my "Response to Bill Morgan" it seems highly unlikely that current tenants with good relationships with this alleged scammer would be researching the phone number, stumble on this site, and post a positive comment. BE WARY OF POSITIVE POSTS.

3. Anyone can post under 800notes.com, not just the company (see above test post and test post on page 2). So, also BE WARY OF POSTS MADE BY 800notes.com.

4.
The SCAM: The alleged scams typically appear to involve advertisements for rental properties in various cities (Sacramento, Denver, so on; though he/she appears to be based in Chicago, Illinois) on craigslist. The individual has solicited either upfront payments for deposits or rent (even collecting in person once) or personal information (including SSN). At least one post indicates that the individual has also pretended to be an attorney. The individual is aware of this webpage and has attempted to craft stories to explain it away.

ALIASES Used: Thomas Flanagan; Carla Flanagan; Kelly Jacobs; Ricky Botega; Douglas Mennin; Ace Tech Consultants ... Has posed as gay, married, in academia, etc.

ADDRESSES Used: 3623 N Broadway 1n, Chicago IL 60613; 350 W Oakdale Suite 812, Chicago IL 60657

EMAILS Used: The emails used appear to typically be the full alias used at gmail.com (e.g., thomasjflanagan@gmail.com)

BANK ACCOUNT NUMBERS: Apparently, he has used solicited direct deposits into bank accounts (see bank account number below, but remember, new accounts can be easily opened)

5. If you feel you were scammed by this individual, take steps to protect yourself and protect others. Contact your local police (and probably Chicago PD as well) with as much information as you can. Contact the FTC if you believe certain personal information, such as a SSN was solicited in an effort to steal your identity (contact the credit bureaus as well). Post your story on this website to help others learn about a likely evolving scam before they get caught. Also, Kfrenzel@admin.usf.edu posted below and appears to be collecting information.

Go to the police if you believe you have been scammed. This guy appears to have engaged in several scams, particularly recently, and appears to be based out of Chicago, Illinois. Contact the Chicago PD if you see any connection to Chicago as well as your local PD. There will soon be enough complaints and info to make it a more serious matter and possibly lead to an arrest.

This entire post and page is fake. It is being created by one person who had a negative experience with an individual. Such is life in the world of business. This person is creating fabricated accounts hoping that people will see this, and elect not to rent from the person associated with this phone number

I can vouch for the fact that Craigslist ads tied to this number are truly a scam.  I have been working with the Chicago police, and they are well aware about Thomas's exploits.  The person even faked a death to try to explain away the fact that they took my money.

This sublet scam with Thomas Flanagan now goes under the name "Donald Spencer". They will ask you to send a check to a Chicago address. I am contacting the local authorities.

Hey Tom- Nice try planting "good" comments! You've scammed too many... get a new hobby/livlihood cause the cops are finally after you!

Stop everything! I've just exposed Thomas Flanagan for a DC sublet too...

Hello...We are Detectives handling this case and I am trying to locate victim's who have met Mr. Flannagan in person.  Please call me ASAP if you have met him, in person, as this is a time sensitive matter.

Contact:  312-744-8200 Det. Simpson or Det. Ryle

If you have been scammed from Mr. Flannagan, PLEASE contact us ASAP
Hello...We are Detectives handling this case and I am trying to locate victim's who have met Mr. Flannagan in person.  Please call me ASAP if you have met him, in person, as this is a time sensitive matter.

Contact:  312-744-8200 Det. Simpson or Det. Ryle

Hello...We are Detectives handling this case and I am trying to locate victim's who have met Mr. Flannagan in person.  Please call me ASAP if you have met him, in person, as this is a time sensitive matter.

Contact:  312-744-8200 Det. Simpson or Det. Ryle