Public safety report: Resident targeted by a TikTok apartment scam

A Waltham resident was the target of a TikTok apartment rental scam last week.

On Sept. 10 at 11:00 a.m., police responded to a residence on Underwood Park where a caller explained he found an apartment listing on TikTok and contacted the number on the listing. He was asked to deposit money to hold the apartment. 

After putting down a deposit, he paid a fee that was supposed to cover documentation needed to visit the property. He then became suspicious and reported the incident to police. He was unable to reach the number again. Police are investigating the incident.

Additional police activity from Sept. 10-14 is as follows:

On Sept. 10 at 5:19 p.m., police responded to 200 Trapelo Road. A park ranger called to report that someone cut through the chain link fence on the Fernald property. About 25 feet of the fence was damaged. Police are investigating the incident.

On Sept. 10 at 9:49 p.m., police responded to a residence on Charles Street where a caller reported that two men he didn’t recognize were going in and out of the residence. The officers spoke with the men and determined they were house painters with permission to be there.

On Sept. 11 at 1:39 p.m., police responded to reports of a scam at a residence on Crescent Street. The reporting party said she received a call from someone claiming to be from Bank of America as well as another call from someone alleging to be a police officer. Eventually, after getting on a video call with one of the callers and sharing her screen, the woman noticed over $12,000 missing from her accounts. Police are investigating the incident.

On Sept. 12, police responded to reports of a scam at a residence on Bartlett Way. The caller said she had been convinced to buy $8,500 in gift cards by someone who was pretending to be a Bank of America representative. Police are investigating the incident.

On Sept. 13 at 9:46 a.m., police responded to the area outside of 573 Main St. where an e-bike driver struck a pedestrian. The pedestrian was transported to the hospital for treatment of injuries.

On Sept. 13 at 9:42 p.m., a driver arrived at the Waltham Police Department at 155 Lexington St. after being involved in a road rage incident that started on the highway. The driver decided to drive to the police station in an attempt to stop the incident. The other involved vehicle continued driving once the driver turned into the police station.

On Sept. 14 at 5:23 p.m., police responded to reports of a scam at a residence on Adams Street. The caller reported buying $7,000 in gift cards for someone identifying themselves online as Elon Musk. Police are investigating the incident.

On Sept. 14 at 11:16 p.m., police responded to a residence on Woodlawn Avenue where a caller reported seeing a light on and movement that he believed to be a person trying to grab his American flag. Officers checked the area but didn’t find anything.

All information was obtained from spokespeople with the Waltham Police and Fire departments, the publicly available police blotter and police reports available at Waltham District Court.