Woman taken into custody in Pierce County rental scam

A scam in Puyallup has people looking to rent a room out for thousands of dollars. There are at least eight victims and the losses range from $500 to $2,270.

The scam involves listing a room, handing over the key and changing the locks once the supposed new tenant pays up.

Pierce County deputies arrested the suspect from a home on 114th Avenue East in Puyallup.

The sheriff’s office says while they were there, two more potential victims tried to sublet.

“It was a really good deal, $750 all utilities included,” said Kat Benjamin, who saw a Craigslist post for a sublet of a room in the house.

“She was very nice, very polite, and she was a smooth talker. I never would've thought of anything,” Benjamin said.

She and her fiancé signed a lease, paid a $650 deposit and got a key.

“The key worked at the time,” Benjamin said.

She says there weren't any red flags until a few hours later when they came back to the house to find they couldn't get in.

That's when the excuses started.

Text messages show Benjamin trying to coordinate a move-in, to finally just trying to get her money back.

She ended up posting a warning on Facebook and Craigslist, telling others the sublet is a scam.

“At least five others contacted me from that alone,” she said.

The Pierce County Sheriff’s Office identify the suspect as 34-year-old Alayna S. Thompkins.

She has a long rap sheet in Washington with more than 30 cases.

The sheriff's office says deputies came by the home Wednesday afternoon but suspect wouldn't come out.

Court documents describe the scene, saying:

“The defendant refused to leave the house. Police made the announcement over a PA. Police got permission to enter the home… they saw evidence she had gone into the attic. They gave several warnings to come out, but she refused. They sprayed OC spray in the attic, but no reaction. Eventually, a K-9 searched and found her in the attic.”

People on scene shared video of Thompkins' arrest.

Neighbors say they had no idea what was happening at the home.

"I've seen people come and go out of there, but I just never thought about it," said Chrissy Taylor, who lives next door. "It's kind of mind-boggling,"
she said.

It turns out the suspect was changing the locks out after handing people keys.

Deputies recovered boxes of locks inside the home.

“Do your homework, Google the person,” Benjamin said. “I want to warn everybody else to make sure this doesn't happen to them.”

Thompkins was renting the home and the sheriff’s office says her landlord also had no idea a scam was being run out of his property.

Prosecutors are charging Thompkins with theft of a rental or leased property and resisting arrest.

Deputies also found items from a nearby Rent-A-Center she allegedly pawned, and unpaid bills for Rent-A-Center items in the house. Thompkins is also charged with trafficking stolen property.

There were several previous warrants for her arrest.

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