Illinois National Guard is Latest Victim of Craigslist Scam

By Camela Furry in News on Oct 1, 2009 2:20PM

Craigslist buyers uncovered a scam by people pretending to be Illinois National Guardsmen who need to sell big ticket items like cars and boats in a hurry before they're deployed overseas. After receiving several calls, the Illinois National Guard verified that the names of the sellers on Craigslist were bogus according to Chicago Breaking News. Guard spokesman Michael Chrisman said the verbiage is almost the same in every ad, only the type of vehicle for sale is different.

The ads claim the guardsmen are being deployed to Afghanistan on October 15th but actually the next deployment is not until 2010 when a small Illinois Guard unit will deploy to Iraq. Other details the bogus sellers provide should arouse suspicion, such as an ad for a 2004 Sea Ray Sundancer ($15,000) said to be in Springfield but the photograph of the boat shows a rocky shore with a Texas flag. Craigslist has since pulled the ads.