Beware of rental scam

10POSTS

11 years ago

I posted on the forum a few weeks back about the trouble I was having with a rental where the present tenants were refusing to leave: it transpires it was all a scam!聽 The owner was the notorious Annabelle Camilleri Monreal (posing as the Cassar Group Malta) who took 500euros from me for 1 month rent and 500euros as deposit and then fobbed me off since 20 October saying the present tenants were either delayed leaving, heart attack, hospital, and then finally refusing to leave. It is only now that we have found out that the apartment we viewed was not hers to rent and that she is known to the police for this business of ripping people off; she was last in court on 21 November. We have filed a police report yesterday & the police have told us that she will be taken to court again as she is currently being investigated on similar charges, but I will have to go to court too. They are 99% certain I will get my money back, but meanwhile we have had 2 months of absolute hell as a result and the stress has made my husband and I ill with worry. She is a nasty piece of work and I wish everyone to be aware of her.

2 members reacted to this post

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robpw2 ViP

1574POSTS

11 years ago

sorry to hear this , i hope you guys get your money back

Spiridonov Serial expat

240POSTS

11 years ago

There are a lot of stories in FB about this woman (Annabelle Camilleri Monreal) - scam for sure.

jj2013 Guest

0POSTS

11 years ago

A lot of scams in Malta, maybe too much in my opinion

1 member reacted to this post

georgeingozo ViP

3703POSTS

11 years ago

so this woman had keys to the apartment ?

Toon Cyprus Expert

10236POSTS

11 years ago

OMG

Linda&Roy Member

10POSTS

11 years ago

Yes - she showed us the apartment when it was occupied, telling us that the tenants were moving out on the 20th October.聽 We are wondering now if it may have been her own apartment as she took me back there once more saying that the tenants were still there and refusing to move.聽 She is such a liar and you cannot believe a word that comes out of her mouth.聽 Evil woman....

1 member reacted to this post

Toon Cyprus Expert

10236POSTS

11 years ago

am assuming this is the same person

A woman with a long history of court cases related to fraud has been jailed for seven months after pleading guilty to defrauding an Englishman who had paid her to rent an apartment that was not hers.
Annabelle Camilleri Monreal, 28, from Xemxija, is the same person who had been charged over the Gozo farmhouses scam last year.
Magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit heard Ms Camilleri Monreal plead guilty to defrauding the Englishman, xxxx聽 xxxxxx, of 鈧�1,000.
The court heard how the accused rented an apartment in St Paul's Bay for a couple of days, made a copy of the key and later took Mr xxxxxx to show him the apartment for rental. He agreed and paid her 鈧�600 as deposit and another 鈧�400 to rent the apartment for a month.
She had rented the luxury, seafront apartment for just two days with the intention of making a copy of the key.
In court, the accused began crying and claimed that she was pregnant. She pleaded guilty to defrauding the man, relapsing and breaching the conditions of a previous release. She was jailed for seven months.
The woman has pending fraud cases, including one in which she is accused of defrauding her former employer, Zahra Trading and Properties.
Lawyers Veronique Dalli and Noel Bianco appeared for the accused.

source

Linda&Roy Member

10POSTS

11 years ago

Yes - this is the same woman.聽 She went to court on 21 Nov and was found guilty but meanwhile was still scamming us.聽 She is unstoppable and will keep doing this.聽 She has a FaceBook profile and even describes herself as a 'qualified Nanny'.聽 I wouldn't let her near my dog! How many others is she taking money from at this present time I wonder?

Moyes14 Active member

43POSTS

11 years ago

#10

She needs a career change , clearly no good at fraud , amount of times she's been caught !!!!!馃榾 - seriously , she needs a proper jail sentence , clearly not learning her lesson and leaving a trail of misery in her wake.

GuestPoster566 ViP

3692POSTS

11 years ago

#11

The lesson she is learning is that crime pays, particularly here. Being realistic it is one of the 'cons' (pun intended) regarding living here. There are a few doing things like this but they seem to be disproportionately affecting people's lives. Some seem to be involved with and alongside, many who are in very senior positions of power. It's the way it is.

1 member reacted to this post

Toon Cyprus Expert

10236POSTS

11 years ago

#12

Red with respect it is only the way it is because nobody takes action against them and ultimately they accept it as being the norm.....

and it isnt聽 - but when it rears its ugly head its a nightmare for those affected.. we hear more and more of this happening

GuestPoster566 ViP

3692POSTS

11 years ago

#13

Whilst I agree, in part Toon, it is also due to the very slow process of any action through the Courts. Many, if not the majority of cases take so long to resolve that those who perpetrate these actions just continue. Many times it just becomes a game of 'catch up' and they are seldom caught up with! It's not just those categorised as civil matters either, so many criminal cases take far too long to resolve and many are discontinued.

Toon Cyprus Expert

10236POSTS

11 years ago

#14

i must agree as much as it pains me LOL

hope all you guys are having fun - have a great festive season all

take care and look after yersells

GuestPoster566 ViP

3692POSTS

11 years ago

#15

Thanks Toon and the same with best wishes to you and yours. (We are going to London for Christmas.)

Toon Cyprus Expert

10236POSTS

11 years ago

#16

A cypriot chrimbo for us ..... apparently its not that bg here but easter is massive.....

robpw2 ViP

1574POSTS

11 years ago

#17

redmik wrote:
The lesson she is learning is that crime pays, particularly here. Being realistic it is one of the 'cons' (pun intended) regarding living here. There are a few doing things like this but they seem to be disproportionately affecting people's lives. Some seem to be involved with and alongside, many who are in very senior positions of power. It's the way it is.

property fraud is not unique to Malta, it happens a lot more common than you think聽聽.. one lesson to learn聽 i suppose is DONT hand any money over til you sign聽 on the dotted line and get the keys in your hands ..

1 member reacted to this post

Toon Cyprus Expert

10236POSTS

11 years ago

#18

ive always said this...... the smiley smiley people tend to be trusted.....

1 member reacted to this post

GuestPoster566 ViP

3692POSTS

11 years ago

#19

robpw2 wrote after quoting me.............

property fraud is not unique to Malta, it happens a lot more common than you think聽聽.. one lesson to learn聽 i suppose is DONT hand any money over til you sign聽 on the dotted line and get the keys in your hands .

I don't know how you think I think. I didn't say it was just on Malta I just made relevant comment regarding what was happening here and some reasons why.

joanna aquilina New member

5POSTS

11 years ago

#20

not nice what she she is grazy women,i hope they arrested here,

georgeingozo ViP

3703POSTS

11 years ago

#21

robpw2 wrote:
one lesson to learn聽 i suppose is DONT hand any money over til you sign聽 on the dotted line and get the keys in your hands ..

if the person has keys to a property they dont have the right to rent, then the contract is worthless

sarmst383 Member

1POSTS

11 years ago

#22

Why is there not a register of good landlords
The stories about landlords keeping deposits is terrible and no one to help
.

Linda&Roy Member

10POSTS

11 years ago

#23

I DID wait until I signed the contract before I parted with the money (one month rent in advance and one month deposit); however she told me that the present tenants would not be moving out until a certain date so was unable to hand over any keys.聽 The contract was worthless as the flat was not for rent and it was all a scam.聽 The woman is clever as she is doing this as a living.聽 I will go to court for certain; she will not get away with it.

GuestPoster566 ViP

3692POSTS

11 years ago

#24

Good luck at Court. You could be waiting a long, long time. Many people do and even if successful, many find it difficult (impossible) to get their money back.

robpw2 ViP

1574POSTS

11 years ago

#25

Linda&Roy wrote:
I DID wait until I signed the contract before I parted with the money (one month rent in advance and one month deposit); however she told me that the present tenants would not be moving out until a certain date so was unable to hand over any keys.聽 The contract was worthless as the flat was not for rent and it was all a scam.聽 The woman is clever as she is doing this as a living.聽 I will go to court for certain; she will not get away with it.

the woman may be clever , and your clearly not the first victim , however聽 even if the contract was "worthless"(which you didnt know at the time)
people in future need to be aware that handing over money for rental should only be done when you receive the keys in your hands and your sure you can move in.
I wasn't judging you personally , i honestly am sorry you fell for this women and it could have happened to anyone I'm sure. She probably relies on the fact that聽 a lot of expats are unsure to their rights as tenants , the court system is so slow and that many will "give up " when it comes to trying to claim the money back.

i聽 wish you all the best in court and hope that you are able to claim your money back

Toon Cyprus Expert

10236POSTS

11 years ago

#26

I thiought i saw somewhere that she has been jailed already....

There is no register of good or bad landlords as the whole sector is unregulated and as such it gets abused daily and tenants end up paying more than they should as well as being robbed of their deposits in many cases...... garnishee orders seem to be Maltas聽 landlords new weapon of choice when a tenant disputes charges etc...so the watch word is BEWARE and BE WARY all the time....

read your contracts carefully and fully especially when renting form a letting company rather than an agent as they often include unfair terms as well as really high utility rates.....

take it to a lawyer if yuo have too聽 - better to be safe than sorry - its well worth the fee to be safe

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robpw2 ViP

1574POSTS

11 years ago

#27

so shes been jailed and also being charged with other cases
"In his request for bail, defence lawyer Noel Bianco said his client was paying back the money she owed people and claimed she was a victim of usury."
i know its his job to try and get her off but shes robbing peter to pay paul ,she hasnt learnt from the lessons the first time and shes harldy a victim ... other people are the victims

ricky ViP

3522POSTS

11 years ago

#28

She is still not in jail as she has appealed the verdict.

Today she was arraigned again and the police say that victims are still queing to file cases against her !

When will this joke end ?

Be carefull signing and paying.

Cheer
Ricky

robpw2 ViP

1574POSTS

11 years ago

#29

she was remanded in custody though...according to times of malta . it is a joke though

Linda&Roy Member

10POSTS

11 years ago

#30

I certainly hope she gets what she deserves but I don't hold out any hope of getting my money back soon.聽

Thanks robpw2 for sharing the link and no, I didn't feel you were judging me personally (16 Dec); I appreciate your comments.

1 member reacted to this post

Toon Cyprus Expert

10236POSTS

11 years ago

#31

a victim usury -聽 - does she really think thats a defence for what she has done....

GuestPoster566 ViP

3692POSTS

11 years ago

#32

Monreal was not sent to prison after she appealed from the judgement and was granted bail against a聽鈧�200 deposit and also a personal guarantee of 鈧�10,000 .

Now you have to ask how secure is that deposit and guarantee given that it is someone else's money?
There are pics of her on the interweb, see here:

1 member reacted to this post

Toon Cyprus Expert

10236POSTS

11 years ago

#33

鈧�10000 of someone elses money聽 - easy money

j_0hN Member

24POSTS

11 years ago

#34

Thanks for the warning re Annabella Linda and Roy. I hope all the stress and worry will melt away as your problems start to get sorted. Regards John.

ddanas Member

10POSTS

11 years ago

#35

This person who hails from Malta mainland Malta moved to Gozo, so to speak on a permanent basis, well over 8 years ago. During this time she has approached many Gozitan property owners so as to gain contacts and information needed to fuel her scams. Luckily few of these owners gave her any attention or information whatsoever.

I just hope that because of people like her, honest and hard working real estate professionals do not get pre-judged by holidaymakers visiting Malta or Gozo. These scams are common in every country.

I suggest to anyone wanting to rent a property to make a proper amount of due diligence when dealing with intermediaries and in some cases even owners.

Taryn18 Member

1POSTS

11 years ago

#36

Please join this facebook group for people who has been her victims and pass it along to anyone else you might know who has fallen into her trap.聽 facebook.com/groups/871078872923373/

jj2013 Guest

0POSTS

11 years ago

#37

Shame we didn't do a more in depth research either - we got scammed 2450Euros by her in October/November.
Checked her out, Maltese ID, Cassar Group, Contract, Receipts & 3 separate viewings - was available for all meetings we arranged & answered all phone calls & messages we sent her.
The property overlooked Kennedy Grove - we served notice on our flat - she gave us a moving in date and.....wham!
Ended up in a hotel as our property we were in had been let already - all our stuff in storage...all before Xmas and the final savings we had left....really hit us hard, very hard.
As of 30th Dec (today) she is in jail serving 7 months for the previous offence, but been refused bail yesterday mainly because of the 10 other additional charges being brought against her - that does NOT include us according to the police.
Feel gutted, upset & stupid as we pretty much checked everything we could - EXCEPT if she owned the property - which we would not have entered our mind considering the amount of times we visited the property over 3 weeks.
Happy Christmas & New Year Anna - hope your new accommodation lives up to your standards - Karma maybe?

eddiepie Member

22POSTS

11 years ago

#38

Hi. Bradshaw-s. Very sorry to hear of your troubles we hope things work out ok, We are planning to move over to Gozo this April from UK, the move has been hard enough in the planning you would think that finding accommodation would be straight forward but we have read some scary stories about flat finding, we have decided to sign up with 2 main letting agents but even now no agreements will be made until we are actually in Gozo there seems to be lots to sort out with landlords electricity tariffs seems the main one. Thank you for posts and we do hope you get your money back and things get better. Eddiepie.

Toon Cyprus Expert

10236POSTS

11 years ago

#39

am not so sure you couldve even checked whether she owned the property or not.. data聽 protection and all that...

leaves a nasty taste though

sorry to hear of this shocking state of affairs....

bottom line is TRUST NOBODY - DOUBLE AND TREBLE CHECK EVERYTHING - USE A LAWYER - THE COST WOULD BE WORTH IT