A recent apartment rental scam in Somerville's Union Square has left seven people, including at least one Harvard student, with no apartment and hundreds of dollars gone from their bank accounts, according to the Somerville Police Department.

The Harvard student, Jinbao Quian, a Ph.D. candidate in history and East Asian languages, said the scam began when he answered an apartment rental advertisement listed at the Harvard Housing Office (HHO).

The day after answering the ad in September, Qian said he was shown the apartment by a man claiming to be the landlord. He then made out an $800 check to the man and was told he could pick up his key on Oct. 1, Qian said.

Soon after, the man called Qian and told him he would have to wait until Oct. 3 before he could move in. But this date came and went, and Qian was unable to contact the supposed landlord.

He eventually went to the Somerville apartment building and discovered that the supposed landlord didn't have authorization to rent out the apartment at all.

Residents of the apartment building--which is a home for people who have been through a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program run by CASPAR, Inc.--said they had seen the supposed landlord showing the room, but hadn't realized the scheme was occurring.

"[The man] was showing people Eddie's room. I had no idea what he was doing," said one resident who asked not to be identified, in part because the facility is for people who have completed rehabilitation programs.

The resident said the supposed landlord has since left the complex, leaving police and fleeced renters behind.