EXCLUSIVE: Accused Serial Scammer Targets Landlords in Charlotte; Thousands of Dollars In Rent Still Unpaid

CHARLOTTE – Kasey Wilson is a first-time landlord. She says her first tenant was not paying rent for a few months, so she filed the paperwork to evict her. While in court she noticed something wasn’t right. “I’m like, oh, there’s my tenant’s name,” says Wilson. She continues, “And the name next to it wasn’t my name, and I thought there was like a clerical error.  Then I realized that it was the docket up from the day before.”

Through more research, she met Austin Duke, another landlord who was also evicting the same tenant. The tenant’s name is Jessica Springs, or Latorra Williams, depending on the day.

Wilson and Duke say Springs has signed leases with them, as well as six other people since August of 2023, throughout the Charlotte area. Sometimes she uses her real name and info to lease a property, but she is also accused of using the social security number of Latora Williams, a doctor from Georgia.

Duke and Wilson say Springs leased their properties through Zillow. WCCB Charlotte’s Emma Mondo asked how Zillow how Springs passed their background and credit checks. They have not replied. “So, she’s using what we seems to be real info. It’s just that it’s not her info,” says Wilson.

Springs is also accused of subleasing these homes to other people, which Duke and Wilson do not allow in their lease contracts. Springs would allegedly pocket the subletter’s rent money and never pay the property owner. Wilson says she also has questions about the subletters. “It seems that they all are aware to some extent that it’s a scam,” says Wilson. She says, “Whether it’s family or these people have been referred to her as being able to get them a lease through kind of unethical means. They all seem to be in on it.”

Duke says Springs owes him over $10,000, and Wilson says Springs owes her over $12,000. Both say they’ve tried to involve the police who have told them that so far, this is a civil matter, not criminal.

They have a warning for other property owners in the area. Duke says, “It’s at least eight or nine, ten other people that we know of. So this is not just a, ‘Oh, she’s just making $1,000 or $2,000.’ No. She’s causing financial harm and damage to people using, at this point, fraudulent information. That’s not hers. That’s criminal.”

WCCB reached Springs via text message. She said that she is the one who was scammed and harassed. When we asked for more details, she stopped replying.