Paperless house purchase results in large financial loss

According to the victim, he and the seller executed a verbal agreement for the sale of the home because the seller did not want his wife to know how much money he had received. The seller told the victim that his wife would take the money from him if she knew how much he had.

The victim agreed to buy the home for $90,000 and made a $30,000 down payment. After giving the seller $30,000, the victim scheduled a Sept. 2 appointment with the seller to draw up paperwork for the transaction. The seller later canceled the meeting.

The victim said each time he tried to reschedule the appointment, the seller offered some excuse as to why he could not make it. The victim advised he has not heard from the seller in a month and that the seller’s cell phone is out of service.

A few days after his last contact with the seller, the victim received several phone calls from a woman who said the seller was in jail in New York and would contact him when released.

The victim has still not been contacted.

The case remains under investigation.

Other recent incidents investigated by Barrow County Sheriff deputies include:

•stalking on West Athens Street. A woman said she was being harassed and followed by her mother-in-law and sister- in-law. The woman did not know if the incidents constituted stalking, but she wanted a report made in case anything happened to her.

•suspicious activity on Hwy. 211. A woman reported that two Hispanic males in an unmarked truck came to her house and said they were there to bury a cable line. The woman said her cable line was buried over a year ago and her cable service provider had no record of sending anyone out to her home.

•complaint on Mill Brook Lane. A man noticed a suspicious male sitting in a vehicle. Due to a number of recent burglaries, the man asked the suspicious male what he was doing in the neighborhood. The suspicious male told the man to mind his own business. The investigating deputy later determined the suspicious male was in the neighborhood to do some work on a house.

•animal complaint on Dogwood Trail. A woman contacted the Sheriff’s Office after her dog was struck and killed by a neighbor. The man said he tried to avoid hitting the dog and apologized for killing the animal.

•accidental damage on Arnold Road. A man said his vehicle was damaged when a tree limb fell on it as he was driving.

•burglary on Atlanta Highway. Several boxes of scrap copper pipes were reported stolen. The victim said each box was worth approximately $300, but was unable to advise exactly how many boxes were missing.

•private property accident on Rebekah Drive. A woman was unloading packages from her car when the vehicle rolled forward striking her garage door. The damage to the door was estimated to be $847.

•suspicious person on Plantation Drive. A woman reported seeing a white male in her backyard. The responding deputy searched the area, but did not locate the suspicious male.

•criminal damage to property on Graystone Drive. A rental home was extensively damaged. The damage was discovered approximately one week after the tenant had been evicted.

•theft by taking on Barrow Industrial Parkway. A woman said she was shopping in the company store at Chico’s when she placed her Chanel glasses on a table. The woman walked away and later realized she had left her glasses in the store. When she returned, the glasses were missing. Attempts to locate the glasses were unsuccessful.

•fraud on Cajon Lane. A man said a remodeling company filed a $2,114 lien against his property after claiming he had failed to pay for materials used in a roofing repair job on his home. The man said he paid the roofer in full, but that a subcontractor was now attempting to collect more money.

•harassing phone calls on Jones Road. A woman called the Sheriff’s Office after receiving 23 calls in one day from her ex-boyfriend.

•burglary on Midland Court. A woman said she saw a man run from her house as she arrived home from work. The front door to the residence was wide open, but nothing was missing.

•prowler on Briarwood Drive. A man heard someone beating on the side of his house. No suspicious persons were located in the vicinity.

•theft of lost or mislaid property. A man said he lost his wallet in the Walmart parking lot. The wallet contained his driver’s license. The missing wallet is described as “camo and orange.”

•suspicious incident on Red Fox Lane. A woman returned from vacation and found a hole in her bedroom wall. The woman said she later learned that the couple who had been house-sitting had a domestic dispute in her absence. The wife called the homeowner and admitted her husband had fired a gun causing the hole in the wall, but said the discharge was accidental. The homeowner said she was not convinced it was an accident and wanted to report the incident.

•animal complaint on Cash Road. A man called the Sheriff’s Office after shooting a fox that had been behaving strangely. The man said the fox kept biting itself and acting in a strange manner. DNR was notified of the location of the carcass.

•property dispute on Tanners Bridge Circle. A deputy was dispatched to mediate a dispute between two parties over ownership of a vehicle. The vehicle was registered to one party, but the other party claimed to have been making payments on the car. The parties were referred to Magistrate Court.

•complaint on Victron Drive. A woman said someone had been discharging firearms behind her property for several hours. The deputy was unable to locate anyone shooting weapons.

•complaint on Fox Run. A man said neighborhood children have been riding four wheelers in his cul-du-sac. The noise causes his dogs to bark which further irritated the man.

•burglary on Palmer Court. A witness reported seeing a woman enter a foreclosed home. The witness was unsure if the woman took anything out of the home. The deputy found a door unlocked, but was unable to ascertain if any items had been stolen.

•criminal damage to property on Hog Mountain Road. A golf course fairway and green was reported damaged. The damage appeared to have been caused by someone driving a pickup truck.

•burglary on Dee Kennedy Road. A piece of antique furniture was stolen out of a vacant rental home.

•animal complaint on Autumn Avenue. A woman said her neighbor’s dog attacked and killed her Chihuahua. Animal control was called to take possession of the attacking dog.

•battery on Thurmond Road. A woman said she was assaulted by her sister-in-law. The woman had a black eye which she said was caused when her sister-in-law struck her in the face with a set of keys.

•theft by taking on Hwy. 211. Over $5,500 worth of copper cable was reported stolen from an area business.

•forgery on Mulberry Road. A landlord said a previous tenant forged a letter using his name in order to obtain water service.

•burglary on Monroe Highway. A woman said several items belonging to her son had been stolen while her son was incarcerated.

•burglary on Wages Road. A rifle, batteries, battery chargers and chain saws were among the items reported stolen from a residence. The items had been stored in a carport and a side barn.

•entering auto on Wages Road. A bag of tools valued at $2,000, an amplifier valued at $50 and a bag containing two Playboy magazines and clothing valued at $20 was reported stolen out of an unlocked vehicle.

•enteringautoonHoneysuckle Trail. A gun, knives, GPS unit, jewelry, cash and other items were stolen after two unlocked cars at one residence were entered. A neighbor’s unlocked car was also entered, but no items were taken.

•burglary on Russwood Road. A foreclosed, vacant home was burglarized and vandalized. The property manager estimated the damage would cost $5,000 to repair.

•burglary on Thorn Brook Ridge. A woman said her two dogs escaped after someone pulled down a section of her fence and unsuccessfully attempted to pry open her back door.

•burglary on Princess Drive. A television, PSP game console and approximately $70 in change were stolen when someone forced open a door leading from the garage into the residence.

•illegal dumping on Loganville Highway. A store employee called authorities after seeing a man placing garbage inside the store’s dumpster.

•animal complaint on Cross Creek Court. A man said a neighbor threw rocks at his dog. The man said his dog was on a leash at the time of the incident. The neighbor claimed the dog was not on a leash and had snarled at him.

•theft by taking on Bent Creek Court. A utility trailer valued at $2,000 was reported stolen.