Scam Bilks Residents Out Of Cars, Cash: Harford County Sheriff's Office

HARFORD COUNTY, MD — Car buyers have been warned by the Harford County Sheriff's Office to proceed with caution when purchasing a vehicle privately off Facebook Marketplace.

"Our criminal investigations division is currently seeing a trend of motor vehicle thefts after they are purchased through Facebook Marketplace. The buyer sees a vehicle they would like to purchase, travels to a public location to complete the transaction and heads back home with their new car," the sheriff's office posted on Facebook. "The next day, the car is missing from the buyer’s property and video shows a suspect entering the newly purchased vehicle and driving off. Often times, the car the buyer paid for was already reported stolen in a different state. Many times, the suspect tries to sell it again after stealing it back."

The sheriff's office advised residents who are shopping around for a vehicle to buy either from a licensed dealership or someone they know.

"If you are buying from a stranger, don’t carry a lot of cash and remember, 'If it seems to good to be true, it probably is,'" they posted.

Sheriff Jeff Gahler told CBS Baltimore that two victims bought their vehicles with cash and now both their cash and the vehicles are gone.

"If there's two, there's probably more. If it's not here in Harford County, probably happening around us," Gahler said.

Detectives do not know if both victims fell prey to the same scam artist nor how the vehicles are being traced to the new owners' homes.