Adventures With Internet Fraud

So, our house in California has been on the market for a week. Lots of people coming by to look, which is fine. Last night, though, a woman shows up and says, "I saw your ad on Craigslist."

*record scratch*

WHAT?!

We didn't put it on Craigslist; the real estate agent didn't either. After talking to the woman, this is what we know:

1. It was posted as a rental for several hundred dollars less per month than market value.
2. The person searched public records, found my grandfather, and created a Yahoo! Mail account using his full name.
3. The email he sent to the woman was in broken English. He claimed to be an American working in Zimbabwe (!) who just wanted someone to take care of his house.
4. The Best Part: after rambling on in horrible English, he signed the letter REVEREND [Grandfather's Name]. Awesome. Because who wouldn't trust a reverend doing the Lord's work in Africa. On Craigslist.

I am so ridiculously glad I'm not still in California. I would have freaked the eff out if Craigslist people started showing up at the house. I think my grandmother has contacted Craigslist, so hopefully this will get taken down, but it will probably get posted again because that's how Internet fraud works.

What a nightmare.