There is a woman in the USA who is slowly bankrupting herself in order to send money to her Italian 'lover', whom she met on the Internet 18 months ago, when as she describes it 'An attractive person came on there and said "wow you look like you wouldn't hurt a fly". I said "wow this guy's really handsome, I can't believe he's talking to me!", and the pair have spoken for hours over the phone every day ever since.
.... well we (and possibly millions looking at you), can't believe it either Sarah.
So far, twice divorced 'Sarah', which we assume is not her real name, has given her Internet lover, who uses the name 'Chris Olsen', vast sums of money. He has told her that he is from Milan, in Italy, but moved to the U.S. 18 years ago .... however, he now works in South Africa on business (although though like much of the story, its changed over time, and he’s also said he’s working in Nigeria and Benin).
Strangely, every time he has allegedly attempted to return home to the US to meet her, strange forces have intervened and each time, he gets arrested on 'false charges', most of which could only be sorted out by her transferring him vast sums of money. So far its totalled $1.4 million for hotel bills, calling cards, lawyers, an expired visa, stolen credit cards, and police bail .... and the claims keep coming, and last June, she even had to sell an apartment she owned, in order to wire him $550,000 'bail' money.
All this time he's promised to come over asap and pay her back all this money ..... these promises have come in several different accents, and voices, from 'Italian' to 'African'. She also doesn't think it odd that he has a Nordic surname, and Anglo first name, even though he is 'Italian'. Still despite these discrepancies, she is apparently '95 per cent certain’ that he’s the real deal. 'He sounded Italian now his accent's kind of changed I don't know if he's adapted to where he's at... in Benin.' But, she concludes: 'I still believe in love.'
And I still believe that you can't cure stupid and that's a fact .... 'Romance' scams are old enough to have their own websites, but that will never stop the chronically stupid or desperate from falling for them, and in fact, all the other email scams, from the 'African Prince with money to sneak out of the country', to the 'You have won the Spanish Lottery', they all survive because like the poor, the stupid or the greedy will always be with us.
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| 'Sarah' on Dr Phil's TV Show |
.... well we (and possibly millions looking at you), can't believe it either Sarah.
So far, twice divorced 'Sarah', which we assume is not her real name, has given her Internet lover, who uses the name 'Chris Olsen', vast sums of money. He has told her that he is from Milan, in Italy, but moved to the U.S. 18 years ago .... however, he now works in South Africa on business (although though like much of the story, its changed over time, and he’s also said he’s working in Nigeria and Benin).
Strangely, every time he has allegedly attempted to return home to the US to meet her, strange forces have intervened and each time, he gets arrested on 'false charges', most of which could only be sorted out by her transferring him vast sums of money. So far its totalled $1.4 million for hotel bills, calling cards, lawyers, an expired visa, stolen credit cards, and police bail .... and the claims keep coming, and last June, she even had to sell an apartment she owned, in order to wire him $550,000 'bail' money.
All this time he's promised to come over asap and pay her back all this money ..... these promises have come in several different accents, and voices, from 'Italian' to 'African'. She also doesn't think it odd that he has a Nordic surname, and Anglo first name, even though he is 'Italian'. Still despite these discrepancies, she is apparently '95 per cent certain’ that he’s the real deal. 'He sounded Italian now his accent's kind of changed I don't know if he's adapted to where he's at... in Benin.' But, she concludes: 'I still believe in love.'
And I still believe that you can't cure stupid and that's a fact .... 'Romance' scams are old enough to have their own websites, but that will never stop the chronically stupid or desperate from falling for them, and in fact, all the other email scams, from the 'African Prince with money to sneak out of the country', to the 'You have won the Spanish Lottery', they all survive because like the poor, the stupid or the greedy will always be with us.
Things that tell you he’s a scammer:
ReplyDelete1. He’ll ask lots of questions about you, and you will be showered with compliments about your appearance and personality.
2. Transparency: Little is offered in terms of their own personal information, apart possibly from some tragic details like the death of a (fictional) wife or a sudden (fictional) medical condition.
3. Going offline: The fraudster will typically try to coax you off-line, away from the security of dating sites so that they can isolate you.
4. Contact: Any telephone contact may be from inappropriate location for the profile e.g. West Africa instead of USA. The voice/accent may not match the profile e.g. African instead of U.S.
5. Asking for money: Some weeks after initiating contact, they will start asking for money – possibly for a medical operation, to pay for a plane ticket or other travel expenses, to pay off gambling debts, or legal / bank administration fees. Small amounts initially, but with increasing frequency and amounts.
6. Payment Method:
(a). They usually want you to wire the money.
(b}. Or send via reload cards or gift cards from vendors like Amazon, Google Play etc, because they can get your cash quickly and remain anonymous. They also know that these type of transactions are almost impossible to reverse.
7. Never Quite Coming: They may say they they are on the verge of visiting, but then something always gets in the way - often a legal or medical emergency.
8. The Friend: They may well ask if you will meet a 'representative' or friend (This will be a member of the scam team), to hand over any cash. This person will invariably be of another race i.e. Black African.
Why you are a target:
1. Age Group: You are typically a white single female aged 45-65, with the money to make the scam worthwhile.
2. Love: You are looking for a long-term relationship and are possibly lonely.
3. Availability: You are willing to agree to go off-line and chat to them further.
4. Profile: You are looking for the type of person who they can fake a profile to e.g. a US soldier. They often say that they are working on an oil rig, are in the military, or are a doctor/diplomat with an international organisation such as the U.N.
5. Gullible: You are trusting, sympathetic and receptive to 'sob' stories – and therefore will be more likely to hand over your cash.
Don’t get conned:
1. Don’t ever chat offline or give out contact details, and always use the website which you have paid money for.
2. Search the web for photos of the person you are talking to. Contact the profile persons embassy to confirm if they are in military or work for U.N. etc
3. Search for key phrases in emails. The scams are often formulaic and being used on multiple women. So search for “oil rig scammer” or “US Army scammer.” There are scam lists available, such as this one.
4. If they ask for money, question them VERY closely and Ideally just accept that you have been targetted for a scam and block them ... a little bit wiser but not lost money. If you insist on carrying on, then if it is for a medical procedure, what hospital is the operation taking place in? Who is the doctor? Check the facts yourself e.g. Ring the hospital.
5. Talk to people. Tell others that you are talking to someone online. Tell them if you are asked for money. Listen to your friends fears.
6. If you have been of fear that you are a victim of a romance scam should call Action Fraud UK on 0300 123 2040 or contact the US Federal Trade Commission.