Consumer complaint received 2019-09-11
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: IL
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Domestic (US) money transfer
Issue: Fraud or scam

Complaint:
I posted a post of subleasing my apartment on XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX. I got an email from one girl whose name was XXXX XXXX and she said she wanted to take my lease and please make a hold on it. So I said ok and I gave her instructions of how to make a rent application form and all the process we have to go through. But she said her boss will contact me through XXXX hangout to talk about the payment and everything. Her bosss name is XXXX XXXX. He said he will be taking care of all the payment that she has to pay. I told him the one who will move in has to fill the form out and pay for it but she said her situation is not good enough to take care of it because of her XXXX problem. Also I am an XXXX XXXX  XXXX I could understand how desperate her situation was. After few days, he sent a message that he needs my address where he could send me the check for XXXX rent fee. Before I got the mail of check, he tracked where my package is through XXXX and he checked if the maul got delivered or not. Once I got the check, it was {$3500.00} not {$690.00} which should be XXXX rent fee. So I asked him why you sent me over {$690.00}? And he said his XXXX XXXX mistakenly sent too much money and he should have sent {$3000.00} to the travel agent who will take care of his assistant to check her flight safe. So I felt bad to have that much money. He said I need to deposit the check first and send {$3000.00} to the travel agent excluding the XXXX rent fee of {$500.00}. He told me to send the difference back right now if not she will be in trouble with her XXXX  and she can not come to US. So I sent {$2000.00} first on XX/XX/XXXX on the same date when I deposited the check and I would send {$1000.00} tomorrow just in case it would be a fake one in my mind. And he said ok. I thought I could get {$3500.00} of check as soon as I deposited. Because my balance looks higher at that time. But when I told this to my friend, she said I got scammed. It turned out everything was fraud and I called the police and I called the bank of America to report it. I got returned the check on XX/XX/XXXX with the charge fee of {$12.00} as well. The police said they are trying to investigate but there is no need to help me with this cause they dont know who the scammer is. The bank said since I used XXXX transaction which is 3rd party company, they are not responsible for that. And they said I was willing to send it so it is my fault. They are trying to investigate it and to return my money back from the receiver by tracing the bank holder where I sent {$2000.00}. But they said they need permission from the receiver who is a scammer. But how could scammer let the bank take over {$2000.00} from the bank account. Since I am an XXXX XXXX and I have been in US for 2 years, this whole thing is new to me. I am a XXXX  XXXX so I really needed to find someone to take my sublease. Now, it was a scam. 

His phone number is XXXX XXXX XXXX In the pictures I attached, the white ones are the scammer and the grey ones are mine.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief