My question involves criminal law for the state of: California.
Hi, so one day I was browsing craigslist women for male section and as a joke and to see what would happen I replied to a ad that was for a 22 year old female claiming to be "selling pictures and other services". I had no intentions of buying pictures or getting any services. We exchanged a few emails then I just stopped because it was just for laughs. Then a few days later, I get a reply claiming to be from the girls mother. She said her daughter left her email open on the computer and she saw our emails and said this is very serious and I needed to reply and before I replied there was a second email saying that the police can find me from my IP address and if I do reply we can compromise out of court and save me prison time.
I replied and she said this is very serious and kept saying and then she said her daughter is a minor. And I will need to pay for her sexual addiction therapy which are twice a week for six months which would come out to $2,400. She said she wants me to PayPal her the money ASAP. And if I didn't she would report me.
Now I was wondering if she is real than I'm I in trouble because the ad was for a 22 year old and in the emails I did ask how much she would do her services for and asked pricing of the pictures but no money was ever exchanged for anything because I just did it for laughs. I asked to meet in person to resolve it and she claimed to be in another state and her daughter lives in California so we couldnt meet. So could this be some sort of scam? And I am 18 yearsold btw.
Thank you.
Craigslist Inquiry Turned into a Threat
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09-04-2011, 08:53 PMconfusedpersonnCraigslist Inquiry Turned into a Threat
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09-04-2011, 09:27 PMcdwjavaRe: Craigslist Inquiry Turned into a Threat
This sounds like a scam to me.
If you did not exchange naked photos and no mention was made of her being underage, chances are no crimes were committed by you.
Now, do you understand why random trolling in chat rooms and on web sites can be dangerous? Oh, and don't expect anyone to buy the "I did it for laughs," line ... you did it because you were curious, it was titillating, and you were curious whether or not you could get a hook-up.
Also understand that Craigslist is notorious for sex scams and prostitution so troll there again at your own risk.
Try meeting girls the old-fashioned way ... in person. It really does work. Guys could meet girls and even "get lucky" well before the invention of the computer, the cell phone, or the iPod! -
09-04-2011, 09:44 PMconfusedpersonnRe: Craigslist Inquiry Turned into a Threat
Thank you for the reply. Yea I understand that "I did it for laughs" would not help me and curiosity can be a factor but honestly I would not have the guts to do these sort things with a stranger. I would 100% bail out but I know you have no reason to believe what I am saying.
I have been buying time and the last email I exchanged with her a few hours ago I said I set up my bank account with my PayPal and I asked her for the email I should send the money too. She sent me the email address just now and it is a different one from the one she has been talking to me from and wants me to select "Send as Gift" on Paypal. I have not replied. Should I just stop now because I was scared and wasn't sure if it was a scam but now since someone else agrees on it being a scam I feel not to be scared any more to stop replying.
Quote:
Quoting cdwjava
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09-04-2011, 10:12 PMMr. KnowitallRe: Craigslist Inquiry Turned into a Threat
If it were me, I would report her to the police.
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09-04-2011, 11:22 PMcdwjavaRe: Craigslist Inquiry Turned into a Threat
I strongly suspect this is a scam to lure people like you in. It's extortion (i.e. blackmail) and it is, technically, a crime. However, the odds of the local police having the resources and inclination to see it through to prosecution is slim.
Whether you choose to pay her or ignore her is up to you. But, it does not appear that you committed any crime that you could be pursued for so that should not be a concern. Whether you want to open up your own email accounts and chats to subpoenas and search warrants is the question you might have to ask. If the police do follow through on the investigation, they (or the defense) may seek to obtain logs of a range of emails and chats and internet records from your ISP, so keep that in mind.
If nothing else, consider just ignoring her and saving her emails ... just in case. -
09-05-2011, 05:54 PMconfusedpersonnRe: Craigslist Inquiry Turned into a Threat
Hi, thank you everyone for the replies. It has calmed me down.
But she just sent me an email saying shes sick of waiting and wants the money now or else she will take action because she has given me more than enough time.
Can you guys help me with a reply or should I just leave it? -
09-05-2011, 06:11 PMcdwjavaRe: Craigslist Inquiry Turned into a ThreatYou can simply ignore it and make sure you save all the emails with their full headers, or, you can reply. If you do reply you might consider telling her that her emails have been archived and her IP has been logged for the police.Quote:
Quoting confusedpersonn
You can always send her this link to CA law and ask that she read it.
Notably the following sections:
518. Extortion is the obtaining of property from another, with his
consent, or the obtaining of an official act of a public officer,
induced by a wrongful use of force or fear, or under color of
official right.
519. Fear, such as will constitute extortion, may be induced by a
threat, either:
1. To do an unlawful injury to the person or property of the
individual threatened or of a third person; or,
2. To accuse the individual threatened, or any relative of his, or
member of his family, of any crime; or,
3. To expose, or to impute to him or them any deformity, disgrace
or crime; or,
4. To expose any secret affecting him or them.
520. Every person who extorts any money or other property from
another, under circumstances not amounting to robbery or carjacking,
by means of force, or any threat, such as is mentioned in Section
519, shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for two,
three or four years.
523. Every person who, with intent to extort any money or other
property from another, sends or delivers to any person any letter or
other writing, whether subscribed or not, expressing or implying, or
adapted to imply, any threat such as is specified in Section 519, is
punishable in the same manner as if such money or property were
actually obtained by means of such threat.
Of course, you had better be certain that no sexual references were made to a person who told you they were under 18 or implied that they were ... hints such as "Last week in my 8th grade gym class .." can be a clue. Though, it is still a crime to extort someone by threatening to report an offense.
You might even consider calling the police yourself and allowing the next reply to come from THEM! -
09-05-2011, 06:18 PMconfusedpersonnRe: Craigslist Inquiry Turned into a Threat
Some dirty words were exchanged but only because the ad said she was 22 and there were no hints of her being underage until "mom" claimed she was.
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09-05-2011, 06:32 PMcdwjavaRe: Craigslist Inquiry Turned into a ThreatI still do not see a crime here, so you could probably just ignore her.Quote:
Quoting confusedpersonn
Or, maybe call the police.
It's up to you. -
09-05-2011, 06:39 PMconfusedpersonnRe: Craigslist Inquiry Turned into a ThreatOkay before I just forget about her, do you recommend me sending her the penal code website ?Quote:
Quoting cdwjava