Teen used Facebook to sell shed and mobile home — but he didn’t own them, SC cops say
A Midlands teenager was charged with multiple crimes after he used Facebook to sell property that he did not own, the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday.
Telvin Barno-Montgomery was arrested on Nov. 3 after a chase, the sheriff’s office said in a news release. The 19-year-old Pinewood resident was taken into custody as he tried to flee from deputies in the area where he had arranged to sell a mobile home without a title, according to the release.
Even though he had listed the mobile home on Facebook Marketplace for $4,000, Barno-Montgomery didn’t have the title because the mobile home was not his to sell, the sheriff’s office said.
On Nov. 1, Barno-Montgomery broke into the mobile home to take pictures of the property to advertise it online, according to the release.
This happened the week after Barno-Montgomery used Facebook Marketplace to sell a storage shed for $1,800, the sheriff’s office said. Just like in the incident involving the mobile home, the storage shed did not belong to Barno-Montgomery and he did not have permission to sell the property, according to the release.
When the woman who bought the shed on Oct. 26 realized she had been scammed, she called the sheriff’s office, according to the release. That prompted an investigation and led deputies to set up the attempted sting involving the mobile home.
Barno-Montgomery was charged with trying to obtain signature or property under false pretenses (value $2,000 or less), obtain signature or property under false pretenses (value more than $2,000 but less than $10,000), and third-degree burglary, the sheriff’s office said.
Barno-Montgomery was taken to the Sumter-Lee Regional Detention Center and was released on a $5,000 bond on Nov. 4, according to the release. He’s scheduled to appear in Sumter County court on Dec. 1, records show.
Facebook urges users to protect themselves and be cautious to avoid scams while using the social media site to shop. Suspected scams can be reported on Facebook.
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This story was originally published November 9, 2021 at 2:27 PM.
