The owner of a Huntington-based animal rescue says she’s been hacked and someone is using her Facebook page to scam people.
“We have no control of the page, it’s no longer mine,” said Michelle DeSanti of Remember Me Rescue New York. “I’ve been locked out. I can’t get access to my rescue page.”
Two days ago, DeSanti received a message from Facebook that she had been hacked. And then she saw this post about a Frenchie that needed a home on her own page. But the problem was, she was not the one who made the post.
“Twelve-week-old expensive puppies,” she said. “Nobody would be giving that out for free. And first of all, I don’t take puppies, I re-home older pets who have been abandoned and I don’t ask for money ahead of time.”
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After the post appeared, so did the texts and phone calls from strangers -- some asking if this Frenchie was still available. Others told DeSanti they had left deposits for the dog; some spent hundreds, like Miana DeLucia of North Bellmore.
“I filled out this Google form that asked us a lot of questions,” explained DeLucia. “And then they messaged me to say I would need to leave a deposit to secure my spot. So we had to send them $300.”
When they asked for more money, DeLucia got suspicious and called Remember Me Rescue. DeSanti told her she did not post about the Frenchie and that she had probably been scammed. Another woman from Syracuse told DeSanti she sent them $1,200.
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Since the chaos began, DeSanti has had trouble getting Facebook to remove the page.
“They’re the ones who said I was hacked,” said a frustrated DeSanti. “Why didn’t they shut my page down?”
News 4 is awaiting a response from Facebook, but DeSanti fears for the future of her rescue work and the 25 dogs she is currently trying to get adopted.
“I have 20,000 followers, seven years of building a good following and this is ruining my reputation because people think I am selling designer puppies," she said.
