Police said a couple defrauded at least 12 families by entering into rental house agreements with them at the same time.
- Couple rented home to multiple families, then left state, police say
- Suspects identified as Nicole Johnson, David Johnson
- Police say there may be more victims
The agreements all concerned the same house, located on Lexington Court.
According to police, Nicole Johnson, 29, and David Johnson, 32, used social media sites to find families looking for rental homes.
"They said they were going to give us two free months of rent and had a lawyers document she had us sign and stringing it along," said victim Bryan Walker. "It all seemed legit."
Walker and fellow victim Shayla Caswell both said Nicole and David Johnson seemed like nice people up until today, when they both realized they'd been scammed.
"[Nicole] is the worst kind of person because she knew about our situation," Caswell explained. "My mom just had cardiac arrest six months ago, and we were looking for a place and she seemed like a pretty caring person."
The Johnsons received deposits from the victims ranging from $1,000 to $4,300.
Victim Melissa Colon noticed something wasn't right with the deal and asked for her money back.
"I still was like, 'I need my money back," Colon said. "Like, I have three kids, I’m a single mom and we’re living in a hotel right now. A one room hotel with like a microwave and a fridge.'"
Investigators said four families recently showed up at the home at the same time, each thinking they would be moving in. One of the families had traveled from Indiana with all their possessions in a U-Haul trailer.
Other families had packed up their previous homes and had to scramble to find somewhere to stay, police said Wednesday.
The home, according to investigators, is owned by Nicole Johnson's mother, and the couple had no authority to put it up for rent.
"The victims were given in-person tours of the home, provided with printed and signed lease agreements and given receipts for associated deposits," the Largo Police Department said in a news release. "Almost all of the families did their due diligence and researched the home and the suspects involved."
Police said the suspects then stalled the victims, coordinating their moves with their own move out of state.
"At this point, it appears the Johnsons fled to New York only days before the victims were scheduled to take possession of the rental property," police said.
When contacted by police, Nicole's parents said the couple had stolen their car.
Investigators said the couple, once apprehended, will have to answer to the more than $25,000 they're accused of making off with.
Yet another victim, Katina Johnson, who now lives in a hotel with her son and his newborn, shared with us her own idea of what needs to happen to the couple once they're found.
"If I were to see her I want to punch her in the face and deal with the consequences after, because how can you take from families and you go home and you’ve got kids yourself and you rest at night while we struggling?" Katina said.
Anyone who was defrauded by the Johnsons is encouraged to contact the Largo Police Department Investigative Services Division, Detectives Young (727) 587-6757 and Detective Allred (727) 586-7475.