Magazine vendors on campus are trying to scam students by getting them to buy subscriptions that they'll never see, according to a UA official.

The vendors committing the scam usually tell students they are trying to win a trip and have to sell some number of magazines. The vendors then get students to buy magazine subscriptions that are never delivered, said Diane Newman, Mall coordinator.

Newman said the magazine vendors usually look like they could be college students and are very charming, targeting mostly female students.

"I've seen it happen: the students hand them cash or a check, the cash goes into the guys' pockets and they immediately go to the bank to cash the check," Newman said. "Students never see their subscriptions."

The scam has been going on for years and Newman said a fresh group of the scammers has recently been on campus. It's not just one person doing the scam, there's a group of them all over campus, she said.

"They're hard to catch. They've been warned by police and keep coming back," Newman said. "We've handed out warning letters and it doesn't faze them."

The scammers are also targeting students off campus. Emily Buckwalter, an accounting graduate student, said vendors recently showed up at her apartment after she had seen them all over campus earlier that day.

Buckwalter said first a man trying to sell magazines came to her door. She said she told the man she didn't want any magazines and he left.

About an hour later, a woman showed up to the door selling the same magazines, Buckwalter said.

Buckwalter said she mentioned to the woman that she had seen several of the magazine peddlers on campus and the woman said they all traveled together.

Buckwalter said she told the woman she couldn't afford the magazines.

"She was about to leave when she asked to use the bathroom. I'm a trusting person, so I let her," Buckwalter said.

Buckwalter said she hadn't bought the magazines because she suspected a scam and said it did cross her mind that the woman might steal something from her bathroom.

"I just didn't think there was really anything in there," Buckwalter said.

Buckwalter later realized that the woman had stolen her $100 Guess glasses, her Tiffany's & Co. bracelet, earrings and tennis shoes.

Buckwalter said that she shouldn't have been so naïve, but said the woman had seemed very friendly.

"She said she was being graded on personality - she was very bubbly and friendly," Buckwalter said.

Sgt. Eugene Mejia, UAPD spokesman, said police have often had to deal with people peddling magazines on campus without getting a permit to do so.

Mejia said he didn't know if any of the peddlers were running a scam and giving out fake subscriptions.

"They're usually warned to stay off campus. If they do so then we don't press charges, but it is a violation if they come back," Mejia said.

Mejia said police usually come into contact with small organizations that are trying to raise funds by selling magazines. Mejia said these vendors are not supposed to be on campus, although they are usually legitimate.

However, Newman said she suspects most magazine vendors on campus are not legitimate.

"It's been my experience that they are ripping you off," Newman said.

Newman said one student came to her and said she lost $80 to the scam.

Newman said the student tried to call the contact number the man had given to her and found out it wasn't a working number. The student then found out her check had been cashed.

Karen Silvers, a mechanical engineering freshman, said her roommate fell victim to the scam last year when a man came to their residence hall selling magazines.

"The fact that they didn't leave an order number or contact information was probably a sign," Silvers said.

Silvers said she thinks students living on campus are hit harder by the scam.

"They seem to mostly go after the freshmen who maybe don't know better," she said.

If a vendor is not at a table on the mall, Newman said there's a 99 percent chance they're not authorized to be on campus. Students should be wary of such vendors, she said.

Newman said if the magazine scammers were caught, the university would press charges for trespassing.

Mejia said students should look up the magazine company before giving them money. He said most legitimate companies can be found on the Internet.

Mejia said students should always ask for a receipt, an order number and a contact number before buying a magazine.

"Students don't have to buy anything from anyone - if something seems inappropriate, then report it to the police," Mejia said.