Teen girl victim of potential babysitting job fraud incident

A 16-year-old girl agreed to a babysitting job posted to Facebook, only to find out the address provided to her was a vacant home. Police in Chester County are now investigating.
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[@johnjones5354]

This is why you never allow your child to babysit for anyone that you don't personally know and trust. Glad she was smart enough to figure it out.

[@froggybug]

IKR?!!?

[@outlawJosieFox]

Back in the day we used to do so all the time. Different world now.

[@SieMiezekatze]

I went to another country Tó babysit and everything was great , It was through a company though

[@johnjones5354]

@@outlawJosieFox Yeah, when I was a kid we roamed around on our own for hours at a time without fearing our pictures would be on milk cartons. Things are different now.

[@Gadavillers-Panoir]

16 year olds are adults in my book, not children.

[@SimplyGobsmacked]

In 1974, 14yo Margaret Ellen Fox of Burlington, NJ responded to a newspaper ad for a babysitter. She was hired and took a bus 5 miles from home on her first day. She has never been seen since. The phone number listed in the ad was a phone booth in Mount Holly, NJ. I was Margaret's age and also looking for a summer job. I saw the same ad and wanted to respond but my mother wouldn't let me. Sadly, Margaret's parents died without knowing what happened to her or who was responsible. Hopefully police are investigating who posted the job on the FB group.

[@ShaneMane-v2c]

Fb in 1974?

[@Tom-sj3vn]

@@ShaneMane-v2c??? She’s talking about the current case, not Margaret’s.

[@ShaneMane-v2c]

@@Tom-sj3vn thanks I didn’t catch that

[@SimplyGobsmacked]

@@ShaneMane-v2c - No, it was a classified ad in the newspaper. That’s how people advertised job openings in 1974.

[@SimplyGobsmacked]

@@Tom-sj3vn - I was comparing the current case to Margaret‘s case back in 1974. We didn’t have Facebook, but we had classified ads in newspapers. I was emphasizing the importance of knowing who you’re responding to.

[@nettakay2116]

Doesn't sound like fraud to me...sounds more like she was going to be kidnapped.

[@TheNeuroticjetfan]

Yep, human trafficking.

[@barrieracc7634]

It's obviously fraud look at the message. They are doing a payment forwarding scam where they bait the victim into thinking that they owe the scammer $1300 since they forwarded a fake payment of $1500... They do this in various ways like emailing "proof" they sent it, setting up a fake payment website with fake dashboard, getting the victim to believe it will be forthcoming but to trust them first.

[@q9r8s7t6u5v4w3x2y1z0]

i don't think so. It's a usual check scam. The scammer lives in West Africa

[@davejohn3600]

This is a check scam. It's done a lot with different variations but it's ultimately the same. They get you to deposit the check and send some amount of the money to someone. They get the money and the check bounces.

[@DengShabu]

Red flags, red flags - don't do babysitting for any family you don't know personally or at the very least have an excellent reference for.

[@MeYou-vp7jb]

Scary, glad she is smart. I had job interview where the guy gave me an address to a shopping center and messaged me to enter through the back. I never showed up

[@tahliasgoddaddy]

Once when I was searching for a rental apartment I saw an ad for rent on a beautiful 2 bedroom house very reasonably priced. I made arrangements to meet with the owner. Just on a whim I checked Google maps for the exact location. It was an empty lot. I rode by the next day and sure enough, empty.

[@goddammitboi]

Facebook and babysitter should not be in the same sentence

[@froggybug]

Ever

[@stevenwinterhill3623]

Yea really

[@SarahCaliguire]

You'd be amazed at how common this is in well to do communities. In palm Beach/Jupiter/areas of Miami etc. There are mom groups for finding sitters and even outside of them just in local groups Young girls home from college or home in high school and they're either posting for babysitting jobs or moms are posting specifically looking for "young energetic college student for 3 busy kids..." It's definitely not the norm for everyday people. It stood out to me too.

[@Gadavillers-Panoir]

What about a facesitter on Babybook?

[@dinky101]

@@Gadavillers-PanoirDo I get paid good?

[@PossessiveK]

Great on her for not falling for the scam entirely. Too many people are getting scammed at best, trafficked/killed at worst.

[@RokushoHasashi]

I'm glad she realized that something was suspicious as hell about that because that's definitely a scam 100%.

[@topsykretts2264]

This was an attempted crime of murder, rape, or human trafficking.

[@davejohn3600]

This is a check scam. It's done a lot with different variations but it's ultimately the same. They get you to deposit the check and send some amount of the money to someone. They get the money and the check bounces. It's why they suddenly asked her about furniture being delivered. They'd send her the check and tell her to send some of it to the movers to pay them.

[@NiaPgn]

So glad she followed her instinct and decided to check things out and asked her mom for help.

[@csps56]

Who hires a baby sitter on the fly without first meeting you or doing even the minimal DD. lol Good situational awareness

[@hummingbird11]

Ya, it is disturbing, but it happens. I used to be on the Facebook neighbourhood site. Once in a while, you'd see a post about someone needing a babysitter ASAP. I thought that was extremely stupid. They were putting their children in the care of a stranger, just because that stranger also lives in the area, because it's convenient for them. No way in hell would I trust just anyone with my kids.

[@csps56]

@@hummingbird11 Right. Who does that?

[@superpixelated7354]

Hide her name, so that she can scam more people.

[@BlueIvysAssistant]

You think she's using her real name? 😂

[@Amtcboy]

Certainly pictures were taken off someone else’s account.

[@Sam-w5l]

Watch woman our being kidnapped for human trafficking. Smart Girl thank goodness she did her homework

[@DAVELew-nq4zq]

She aint smart. She gave into it.

[@Edwardsjm]

​@DAVELew-nq4zq was she trafficked? HOW many holes 🕳 were violated?

[@kenlompart9905]

@@DAVELew-nq4zq Did you even watch the video? She made sure to research it before showing up, most kids her age wouldn't do that, she handled it right.

[@spoonypoon7998]

They probably used a fake name and a fake picture

[@prowlandsasuke]

Why would someone kidnapped someone with a family and evidence of their crime ???? Most often women and men are trafficked by someone they trust like a family member or a spouse.

[@kimberlyfamoly1963]

Just an FYI, any parent that is trying to find a babysitter or nanny will want to meet with you 1st unless they were referred by someone they trust. I would ask to meet in a public place then maybe the net time at the home to meet the children.

[@charly3575]

Smart girl. Mama didn’t raise a fool.

[@HollowHill17]

25-30 dollars an hour for babysitting is a big red flag 🚩

[@texanlady4]

Depends on the area. Pretty standard in the areas I work in. I make that as a pet sitter.

[@joebriggs5781]

@@texanlady4 yeah I was going to say the same. I mean I live in Oregon which is expensive, but that seems pretty normal now.

[@LindaQueLeenda]

lol Depends. when i was a nanny i made six figures w. benefits and would never babysit on date nights for less than $35 depending on the family. (It’s also a red flag to work for a cheap family. They are the worst, tbh, bc they expect a lot and usually are the type of people who don’t treat others with respect.)

[@phillywizkidz]

Very smart young women KUDOS !!!

[@Wileyg4lify]

Wow she’s 16 years old and she didn’t fell for a scam so proud of her very smart girl

[@geminibull888]

Smart girl. It’s so unfortunate that our world turned like this.

[@TheLast-One]

She did a better job than that one lady who sold her car to a man who had a different fb profile picture

[@Maleeha16378]

She is an amazing intelligent girl. She made sure that her security is priority one. I hate to think what the purpose of this posting was but happy that she did her due diligence.

[@deborahbaker4770]

In this day and age you can’t afford not to check something out before doing it no matter what it is especially when the mother doesn’t want to meet you with her kid’s to see the interaction and question the young girl before she takes care of your kids

[@raquiely]

This type of Scam is old! They will ask you to send the extra money back or they will get money from your account.

[@davejohn3600]

Yeah, it's why suddenly there were movers involved. She'd be asked to pay them with part of the check money.

[@yogiyogesh-vh2zx]

Bravo 👏🏾 Maggie Drozdowski wow you’re such a clever smart young lady ❤

[@tracyb1473]

Thank goodness you are safe

[@WakkasLove]

Thank God she listened to her inner warning.

[@OleensEmbroidery]

As a child my neighbor was murdered by a stranger she thought she was going to babysit for. NEVER babysit for a stranger.

[@JunWang-u5p]

This is one of the oldest scam the Nigerian Scam. They are still doing it shows there are people still falling for it. Kudos to the girl.

[@SL-lz9jr]

My mom would never let me babysit for anyone I never met in person or talked to on the phone. She always insisted on dropping me off on the first day to meet the family and see the house. There were a couple of times I went to interviews by myself but it was during the day and nothing felt fishy. She was more wary of night time things than daytime things. 🤷‍♀️

[@mm7365]

As a mom, I would NEVER hire someone I don't know to watch my kids..

[@jcc9thSI1917]

That is a very smart girl she will go far in life.

[@sela8788]

Thank you for spreading the word! I am part of a babysitting group on Facebook and constantly see scams none stop. It’s so sad and unfortunately the situation can be dangerous both ways. I wish people weren’t so cruel and evil.

[@fidlerfamjam]

I was scammed too for something similar. I reported it to the bank and they closed my acct.. ridiculous that we have to suffer over these ppl

[@francisgill1929]

Very smart girl, a lot of people get that little voice and some choose to ignore it

[@WilliamL1988]

Thank god she did research and I’m glad she is safe

[@aleaseknows8334]

The cops could have setup a sting…. Why didn’t they try to catch the culprit? Could have been cops

[@Paul_Wetor]

There's nobody to catch in person. The scam is to get her to accept a check by mail hoping she will deposit it, pay $1,300, then find out the check is bogus. There's no in-person contact, it was the girl who suggested in-person. Which wasn't gonna happen.

[@CharlesCurran-m9p]

There was no person to meet. The babysitting job was just a cover for a check scam. They would send her a fake check and ask her to send money to a shipper or some bogus person and then disappear.

[@davejohn3600]

@@CharlesCurran-m9p yeah, I guarantee.these people are not even in the country. They might have been able to catch the money mule but that's doubtful.

[@aynrandom3004]

thank god it was just a money scam. Thought she was gonna get abducted or sumthing

[@ShelleyHyatt-zm5ot]

Forget fraud, it could also be a kidnapping setup. Very glad she is safe.

[@davejohn3600]

It's a check scam. It follows all the steps of one. People are likely not even in this country.

[@cerebralsamurai8382]

Any random person who says they will pay you to do a particular job online is a grade A scammer

[@RobertAuditions]

Smart girl! Don't let your guard down girls! Parents protect your kids-NO MATTER HOW SAVY THEY ARE!!

[@benbazy9238]

Financial Scam not a Human Trafficking Scam

[@tammiepressley2684]

Very smart young lady!

[@johnnadial5949]

Thank God she is safe.

[@Latindyva]

Thank God this young girl is OK and that she is so smart and didn't fall for this scam!!

[@ACockatielsSong]

Half of everything online is a scam. Who would advertise online for a babysitter?

[@bettersteps]

What a sweet young lady. And, she has a good head on her shoulders. Her parents are doing a good job.

[@FallnAngel07]

Glad this teenager did her research before something worse happened. The first red flag was someone asking for a babysitter for their small children and "treating them like you would your own". A stranger? Wow

[@brich6875]

Why in the world would you take babysitting jobs off social media? Pashto’s shouldn’t allow their child babysit for any family they don’t personally know

[@ctlo4403]

No one with small children would look for strangers to be alone with them….

[@BobbyDaniels-ck7jv]

Always listen to that gut feeling.

[@ladyterrestrial1679]

Fraud? Ugh not that sounds like a potential kidnapping maybe something even worse! So glad she did her research.

[@davejohn3600]

It's a scam. It follows all the steps of a classic check scam. She'd cash the check, they'd tell her to play the movers a % and then the check would bounce. The "movers" are part of the scam. They get money and she's stuck with a bad check. She'd likely never meet with anyone face to face.

[@violantederojas6188]

Glad she trusted her Mom enough to ask for help checking out a possible fishing trick

[@kuddusjajira8392]

I was scammed in a Facebook group photographer , I complained to the admin but eventually admin also part of the gang i discovered.

[@Randysgirl]

When a babysitter is offered an usually large amount of money, that is your red flag. 🚩

[@sdlock83]

These scams are so common that it's not even newsworthy lol!

[@kellygrubbs915]

You just can’t trust anyone anymore! I’m so very grateful that she was intelligent in researching things first! ♥️♾️🙏🏻♾️♥️

[@davejohn3600]

You could never trust anyone. This scam is as old as checks. This is just a modern take on it.

[@user-qb8qm4mp5n]

When I was a teenager decades ago, I babysat during the summer for a LE detective. Little did I know his and his kids' lives were in danger. Was that bit of important information disclosed? No, I found out later. Today we have the internet. Prospective employees can research their employer and decide from what they discover if they want to work for them or not. tbh, I wouldn't let teenagers babysit for anyone.

[@sarita5572]

Sounds like they were setting her up to be kidnapped.

[@beccalove8791]

It’s too bad you can’t trust anyone these days

[@davejohn3600]

You could never trust anyone. This scam is as old as checks. This is just a modern take on it.

[@CSNGregory]

This similar thing happened to me almost 10 years ago! They texted me offering a check to help bring in their large packages and to open them while babysitting. The conversation felt off and I declined!

[@johncarter4411]

I can't believe even babysitting job ads can be scans nowadays

[@lashellecoleman2754]

There's a lot of those scams out

[@latoyathunderstar9585]

Don’t trust the internet for jobs. Just hand-in resume in person.

[@ScarletAdhesive]

Oh thank God you were that smart!!!! Yay Girl Power!!!!!!

[@spoonypoon7998]

There are so many scammers in those groups

[@chillysauceprophecii]

somebody raised her right 👍

[@chelbydavis8202]

This is something new. Man, I’m learning something new day by day. Thank goodness I don’t like babysitting cuz people can be frauds. When something sounds too good to be true then it sure is good to be true.

[@BJSikma-zi3zp]

The girl was coached what to say. You can hear that a male told her to say "and the kids were cute" and she immediately said that on camera. Facebook has so many scams. Why is this news? A babysitting gig that states 25 to 30 an hour? Was legit gig would state the exact dollar per hour for a babysitting job

[@avivacohen8785]

Smart girl

[@kanna231]

Totally red flag it was a scam.

[@lionden4]

Smart girl! Good job.

[@hummingbird11]

Ya, I wouldn't trust anything on Facebook anyways.

[@vanessadobbins2963]

Young girl you are smart and wise👍👍👍👍 and God protected you from potential danger!!!

[@rudyvaldez]

Probably scammers trying to gather data about her.

[@JohnDoe-bi4ho]

I thought there was a law against underage people joining any Internet group contractor going online. I don’t know how that’s even possible. How was she able to join a group at the age of 16 from Facebook? I think there needs to be further investigation for this and possible class action lawsuits because underage children should not be allowed to enter and join a group on the Internet.

[@sherriebent2555]

Obviously...if it's too good to be true it usually is. I don't get why scam like this?! 🤷‍♀️.

[@ithinkigottalent4047]

I'm a service provider and this scam has been happening for years. Scam of a “home owner” asking for services and sending a “retainer” official check, but then they add funds to the check for the service provider to pay for other things. Turns out the official check is fraudulent. Fun times. One of my colleagues lost $4k! I'm in real estate and it always happens with homes on the market. Plus, they'll never have a conversation over the phone or in person.

[@DiamondMagicSparkle]

The listing and the wording seemed realllly off. Anyone else notice?

[@JenniferFinley-cu2qm]

Thankfully u went with ur instinct and gut no doubt someone could a been waiting there to hurt u. 🙏 Be safe everyone!!!!

[@JPIbanez84]

Nope. When people offer extra cash up front and ask for additional tasks it's a clear red flag. Even worse when they ask one to pay for those extra tasks or supplies to give the money back after. Smart girl

[@gladyscommons5559]

Scary for a young girl.

[@MaxCas]

Smart girl, victims fell for these scams are those who got blinded by offers that are too good to be true

[@povang]

Serial killer looking for victim

[@BrianPickrell]

Scammers everywhere...

[@1JoyPeace]

Anyone allowing a sitter around their child without the proper training & experience is a red flag parents. And never go into anyones home that your parents do not know and trust young folks. There are community organizations where young folks can gain skillsets to make money, check with your school's guidance counselor for help. Online is a huge NO-NO, this could have been a tragedy. And $30 an hour is normal for certain sitters, especially on weekends for parents who just need some "me" time outside the house. Be Well.

[@BreBrooke]

20/30 a hr for babysitting??....

[@Peace-nm6bx]

Good for you that you didnt fail in the scam but why didn't police respond to the ad pretending to be you so the scammers fail in their own trap?

[@davejohn3600]

These scammers are likely in another part of the world. They might have caught their money mule. These people often don't even know they are part of a scam.

[@senob44]

I don't know about fraud, maybe a potential kidnapping though. Glad she's ok

[@Bebedollie]

Intuition 🙏

[@angryBorderschick]

Craigslist is full of them too.

[@Sara-r7g3d]

wow thas more than what i get paid

[@sydneywood4398]

Of course it is. That's how they entice somebody to respond. It's not like this person was ever going to hire the girl to babysit.

[@trudichoate1950]

Even looking for jobs I’ve come across them

[@CharlesCurran-m9p]

It’s probably just the old check scam but can you imagine if this was some psycho sex trafficker waiting in that house?

[@hunterparker6169]

so many red flags just in the messages

[@andysdestination8671]

That a very smart young lady. She got strong gut feeling about the babysitting site with lots of rad flags. Very good message. Cheers 😎😎😎🔥🔥🔥🧐🧐🧐🤔🤔🤔

[@Mr.Spanky]

Amish people I got 99 problems but the internet ain't one

[@RobertArmstrong-dc3sj]

It wasn’t fraud it seems like a trafficking thing

[@Tidyingthenest]

This isn’t just for babysitting our business gets these messages often asking my husband to paint or look at something he shows up or googles the house first and it’s vacant or for sale they are always asking him to pay the other person with a check too or to use it to get money out. It’s just so they can see your bank account numbers at some point if you follow it long enough it’s a money scam.

[@johnbergman2746]

This could be a bad situation for her don't trust Facebook 😮

[@earlgreco8636]

Good job Girl. You're awesome. The FBI needs you.😀