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North Iowan answers Mason City Shopper ad that turns out to be scam

Mason City Shopper
Dozens of Mason City Shopper newspapers, found in a dumpster in 2012

MASON CITY – For those of you left out there that receive a Mason City Shopper, you may want to beware of answering ads without keeping your guard up.

According to the Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office, a North Iowa resident came to the sheriff’s office Monday to report a fraudulent money order that he received after responding to an ad for an undercover shopper in the Mason City Shopper newspaper.

According to a document provided to NIT by Sheriff Kevin Pals, the person who reported the scam had responded to the Shopper advertisement that sought a part time / online / mystery shopper.  In an email from the apparent scammer, the respondent is thanked for “your quick response in helping to start this transaction.”

The man who responded to the advertisement received what appeared to be a money order for $975 in the mail.  The man then took the money order to his bank, which declared it to be a fake.

The $975 was to be an up-front “payment.”  The respondent would keep $150 for “observing” and then “evaluating” a Wal-Mart and a Western Union branch, then forward about $800 to another mystery shopper through Western Union to a man in Chicago.  The scam appeared to be that  the respondent would forward payment to the next mystery shopper before he discovered that the money order is bogus.

“Most people never fall for the scam,” Sheriff Pals said.

Once the snow melts, thousands of Mason City Shoppers will be exposed, rotting in the grass and streets of the city.  If you pick one up, be very careful about responding to ads.
Once the snow melts, thousands of Mason City Shoppers will be exposed, rotting in the grass and streets of the city. If you pick one up, be very careful about responding to ads.
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