Hoboken man scammed out of $2,040 in Yankee tix

HOBOKEN — The Philadelphia Phillies aren’t the only ones feeling blue about the World Series this week.
A 38-year-old Hoboken man was scammed out of $2,040 after trying to buy two New York Yankees World Series tickets on Craigslist early last week, police said Thursday.
Police said the man answered an a listing for two World Series tickets in Yankee Stadium for Game 6 on Wednesday, Nov. 4. The two tickets were listed at $940 each, plus a $160 service fee, according to Sgt. Det. Sam Williams.
The victim said he contacted a woman named Samantha in Queens for the tickets, but she declined to accept payment via PayPal, an online transaction service.
She demanded a cash payment via Western Union wire service, and the victim agreed to send her the payment of $2,040 on Tuesday, Nov. 3.
The victim claimed he was told by the employee conducting the wire transaction that the money would not be released to Samantha without an access code that the victim would have to provide Samantha with.
After depositing the cash payment, the victim called Samantha ask for the tickets to be e-mailed before he would release the access code for the wire transfer.
The victim did not hear back from Samantha and contacted Western Union after he became concerned, police said.
Western Union told the victim the money had been collected, police said. When the victim asked how that could happen without the access code, the employee reportedly said that no code was necessary and that he should not do business over the internet.
Police are investigating charges of theft by deception, but they suspect that the woman used a false name.
For related items, see Police Beat this weekend or watch for it on this website, www.hudsonreporter.com, this Sunday.