Facebook ad ‘very traumatic’
Sherkston woman distressed barn photo appeared in online ad
For Jenifer Dayboll, an incident that started with a strange Facebook post has left her feeling nervous and more than a little creeped out.
Early Tuesday, the Sherkston woman’s brother messaged her, saying he had been on a buyand-sell page and was startled to see an ad posted by a Thorold woman.
Her post stated she was “looking for somebody to help move items around, help pack, and help with other general labour duties. Must be able to get to Sherkston this coming week for $20 an hour.”
The photo in the ad was of Dayboll’s barn.
She said she has never heard of the Thorold woman, identified on Facebook as Elizabeth, and has no idea how she got the photo of her property.
Dayboll said she messaged the woman, “I said this is my farm, I do not understand why you’re doing this. Please can you get back to me. And she said nothing.”
Later that day, Dayboll found two more posts from the same woman, who described herself as a professional photographer.
In one, she offered familytype photo shoots with sessions “taking place at a farm in Sherkston” in mid- October. In another the Thorold woman advertised available spaces at a Sherkston daycare.
However, there is no listing online for the daycare she named. When a Standard reporter phoned the number listed, it was answered with a mumble and shuffling sound, then disconnected. A callback found the phone apparently turned off.
In a message sent from a personal Facebook account, a Standard reporter inquired about the labourer work post that included the photo of Dayboll’s barn.
Asked where the barn is because it looked familiar, the Thorold woman replied, “that’s just a photo it doesn’t involve the barn I am moving from my house which is on a farm.”
Immediately afterward her Messenger account was listed as unavailable.
Dayboll said it has been “very traumatic,” especially since the Thorold woman appeared to have responded with personal messages to a few people who inquired about the general labour post, while ignoring Dayboll’s questions.
“I’m afraid I’ll get broken into … is she setting up to get people to come when I’m not home and completely take all my stuff?” she wondered, adding the photo of her barn appeared to have been shot from the nearby Friendship Trail.
“Does she have something else in mind? I don’t know, I have a very unsettled feeling about this. When people reply for the child care, I don’t know if she’s giving my address, I don’t know if I’m going to have some angry people who sent her deposits at my door — I don’t know. It’s kind of scary.”
Dayboll said she spoke to someone at Niagara Regional Police and was told because no crime had been committed there was little they could do.
She also contacted Facebook, which appears to have blocked some of the Thorold woman’s posts.
On Wednesday, Dayboll said her brother reached the woman via Kijiji and she gave him an address for the daycare that’s close to her Sherkston farm. When she went there, Dayboll said, a man who identified himself as the owner told her he had never heard of the Thorold woman.
“I don’t want to live like that,” said Dayboll, adding she gets nervous just hearing a vehicle drive past her rural property.
In an interview, NRP spokesperson Const. Phil Gavin said “some red flags pop up … it’s certainly suspicious.”
He suggested Dayboll contact NRP to report a suspicious person, and that an officer might attempt to speak with the Thorold woman to investigate.
“Vigilance, in terms of being aware of your property and who is on it, security systems are always good — lighting system, motion-activated lights,” he said.
He added, “Unfortunately, the scamming routine is alive and well all over the place, people trying to find a way to make a dollar for themselves at the expense of other people.”