It can happen to anyone who's in a vulnerable state emotionally and seeking validation from a stranger. Those who make sure to never be in such disposition will recognise a scammer from a mile.
I'm 68 years old, retired nurse and tech savvy. So, no, not true that this can happen to anyone. I have scam baited these scum myself. No way would I fall for foolishness like this!
I myself live in a studio apartment, am 53 and disabled. Multiple sclerosis. If I ever had a nice home and money in the bank I'd be so happy I'd never give it away!
@@cynthiagipson8039 don't. She met him online. Never spoke never met. Bitcoin? She doesn't understand that she's communicating with a stolen photo and a Nigerian. Completely fooled by someone's stolen identity.
@Get Real I've been looking at these "love scams" quite a bit and this is the first time I've seen an in person meeting being a part of that. A duplicate FB account could very well be how this was done.
I've seen this lately on some news shows. They meet up first then the man goes on a business trip and gets stuck in some other country or on an oil rig. I guess they have a nice looking man probably hit up lots of women to set them up for online scammers to follow up and drain them dry.
@@eckankar7756 I do doubt she really met this man...but she said she did. I guess the scammers are getting more sophisticated. They are now using fronts.
@@Me97202 not really, real religion isn’t a scam, no real religion makes you pay money. You believe in them out of your own free will. It’s the cults that scam money
Why is the FBI responsible? She made a decision to send this money. The taxpayer isn’t responsible for her poor judgment. Yes, it’s very sad, but she made own choices.
We all can fall for some form of scam in our life but she still believes he might be an honest man after having lost a house and now having to live in one small room? That takes gullibility and denial to a new level.
There are a lot of lonely 😞 men and women out here. This is not an isolated event just about women. Men get done in a lot too. The difference a lot of times is that men usually don’t talk or say anything about it like women. Women talk more then men. Be careful both men and women on these praying mantis.. sad 😞 but it is what it is.
lol...that's what I say too, no man should never think he's going to get to my money. I don't want another man, the love of my life died 5 yrs ago. I'm happy & perfectly content.
@@shirleyharrison2580 I'm so sorry you lost the love of your life, but also so happy to hear that it sounds as though you're strong & confident enough in yourself that you've been able to live a fulfilled, contented life. I wish you all the very best! 👍🏾♥️
I've seen a couple of news shows where there is someone that meets with the victims first for a few dates then they go off on a business trip and get stuck in some country or on an oil rig. That's when the online scam team bleed the victim dry. It really does give validity that the guy is real. The guy probably hits up lots of women in the area to set them up for the scam then probably moves on to set up others to be taken.
@@merilynwinter731 real sad someone of "sound" mind can give all their money to someone they haven't met. I feel for the people who are some what retarded, an easy mark
I feel sorry for the scammer to have to look and listen to these ugly middle aged women who sold their dignity and cleaned out their bank accounts for the word "LOVE" '
Every time someone asks for money then it has to be a scam. Anyone who professes love will never ask for money if they are honest. Denial of what happened to her is a facade on her part. She doesn’t deserve any credit for being so naive.
There is no way on Gods green earth I would send a man any money...a grown man needs my money....I don’t think so. Not one red cent would I send a man. These stories they are involved in is just over the top, if it sounds Outlandish, it is.
Likewise. I was contacted on Facebook by some bloke who came on strong but I wasn't fooled. I spun him a huge story, none of it true, and strung him along until I became bored with the game then I blocked him. It was all too much, too soon, and you could shoot peas through the holes in his story.
It’s really sad when someone is so lonely and desperate for Romance that they let someone make a complete fool out of them. I stop talking to a man if he ask me for $20.
Millions are lonely and desperate in the USA. That's why the drug use is so high. The two-parent family has been downgraded and destroyed, and a real humane meeting of these needs, which would include a legal commercialized sex industry (for consenting adults) is shunned in the puritanical USA. What are these millions of isolated, lonely, non-pretty (by TV and Hollywood standards) supposed to do? They are still humans with human needs for affection, attention, and sex.
@@starcatcher3691 The U.S. is. That's why commercial sex is "illegal," but Secret Service agents get "busted" for buying sex in South America, and congressmen are caught having affairs with minors who are congressional pages. Etc.
It’s baloney when they say it can happen to anyone because sensible people know the difference between words and actions. Sensible people find it suspicious when someone doesn’t have family and friends to support them if they get into difficulties.
I agree...except for the fact that even the most perfectly sensible, educated & intelligent people will often have at least some brief period of their lives in which their circumstances make them vulnerable to scammers and parasites. Grief, extreme loneliness, depression & social isolation can cloud the minds of even the most confident people with desperation. I know, because I've seen it happen myself: when my grandma suddenly died after 60+yrs of marriage, my grandpa spiraled into grief, depression & loneliness. He was a very intelligent, savvy, educated man with an extremely solid support network of family & friends, but he was SO lonely that he married the first attractive woman who paid attention to him. She turned out to be a horrid, greedy, nasty piece of work who had mistakenly thought my grandpa was wealthy. When that turned out not to be true she got mean, fast. Luckily, he was able to divorce her before he passed away, but it was a lasting reminder to me that literally *anyone* can potentially find themselves in a situation which makes them at least temporarily vulnerable to financial predators. That's why I think no it's SO vital to educate people about scammers and similar predators. Because almost everyone will likely be vulnerable at some point in their lives.
I think they mean that anyone can be scammed in general. Not romance scams in general. I agree that it takes a very delusional and lonely person to fall for this type of scam where logic takes no place in the mind in search for companionship.
You have a point. But I think what happens here is, they prey on isolated lonely people or you could isolated lonely people are more desperate to find someone, so it is probably not hard for them to believe that the other person might be isolated or lonely aka in the same boat. Second reason could be, that they actually believe that they are in a relationship and they think they have hit a gold mine with the other person and they don't want that person to leave so do anything to keep them. So they prey on lonely people with low self esteem too. It is kind of a no brainer that when you look certain way you would expect a certain type of people to approach you but when these handsome guys approach these women, these women who are not in a very good shape physically and mentally, do believe that the other person finds them attractive, that is the most bizarre thing to me here, but these women think that someone finally saw them. It is the low self esteem and maybe past trauma. A lot of these scammed women are earning well that means they do know better, but the mind games get the better of them owing to low self esteem and desperation.
Come on man. You have to be extremely desperate and lonely to fall for these type of scams. Smh. Like wth? The fact that she still believes that he’s innocent is scary.
My mom’s story is very similar to this woman. She had to sell her house and bought a mobile home. I believe my mom spent over $500k on her “ military boyfriend”. It’s quite sad that she still believes he will pay her back. I don’t even know what to do with her anymore. Whenever I see her, I just get so upset. No matter what we say, she doesn’t believe her own family members.
@@MoNsTeRDaRkZz . Doesn't matter. U can be high maintenance/ good looking and men are just nOt into older women. Fsve ot gals, u need a companion go for the other lone ladies. Plenty a quality women alone.
It's okay to feel sorry for people that are not totally with it. As people age they tend to lose their faculties for one thing. This lady was played and lost her house, and still has to work full time because she fekk prey to a scam.
Hearing stories like this, you HAVE to question what her relationship was like with her father growing up! Was he present? And if so, was he abusive to her in any way? FATHERS make a life saving, colossal difference in helping people avoid delusions like this.
She's willingly ignorant and needs someone to be her payee representative for receiving her benefits to even get a social security or ssi check because she's not doing well handling her own financial affairs
Fake ID . Stolen ID. Bitcoin can't trace which is just controlled by gangs, mafia. She never met him. Lost her house to somebody she never met. Talking to an African and trafficking laundered money. She lost more than 200Gs
@@rosie6 I am by myself and I am never lonely because I have my dog, my books and the Science and Smithsonian channels. I was an only child so that might make a difference. And I am not desperate. Just enjoying my retirement.
@@pce-sz1gi I also was an only child and after a 15 year marriage that didn't end well. I am by myself and very happy. I have my dog, and cats I rescued, my books and hobbies jewelry making and mosaic art. I also have a lot of long term friends.
It's horrifying just how far scammers will go to get money. It is frustrating that victims gladly give everything for the ideal they believe is love. Makes me sad that people value their own well-being so little.
She’s a brave lady to tell her story. Very embarrassing. I feel sorry that she felt so desperate for someone to need her. Many people do the same in different ways…and then, it’s gone way to far to fix.
I have a friend who was "had"twice by these scammers. In her case, she did spiritual counsel online. She thought these men were sent by god. She blindly trusted their sincerity. Didn't listen to any family members and their concerns. It was really sad to watch.
Many of these women don't see theirselves. They are not attractive, are living a simple life without many sensations, and they are very naive..Hunting after love make them very blind and vulnerables.
This is a twist, because she actually met him in person. That part took me by surprise. - Edit - Now I see the other comments that say she just made that up. I can see that.
@@loralieisa I think you are getting a few things mixed up. But I do agree with your quote, that's one of my favoriite. I think that every time I see someone wearing a mask LOL
@@loralieisa Well, you do make a good point. I've never even considered the possibility that someone could meet someone in person, then someone else impersonate that person. It's got to be much more rare than the traditional romance scams, though.
She says He didn’t look like the type of person! How exactly is a Scammer supposed to look? People keep subconsciously believing the dangerous person is “ the other”. Certainly not a clean cut W Man.
The same for older men looking for younger women. That is also only a financial transaction. Or young Asians marrying sexpat old men. No money, no honey. These people are ALL deceived.
There is a fetish some men have for old ladies. I also have a friend who is in her 80s who elicits the sexual interests of men.Some men are interested in any woman no matter the age or whether blind crippled or crazy.
I don’t intend to be mean, but this is not a very attractive person. Unattractive women need to come to terms with the reality that handsome or attractive men would not give her the time of day. This is a handsome man. Sorry- he just wouldn’t. The fact that a handsome guy would even talk to this unattractive woman should make her very suspicious. Yes. I know. It is a very unkind thing to say about her but that’s the reality. It’s a very honest thing. I’m not a particularly attractive person, so, I KNOW that the busty 20ish and 30ish women represented In photos are scammers for that reason alone.
Never let friends or relatives "borrow" from you either. If you want to give them a monetary gift fine.I had a cousin "borrow" $3000.00 dollars from my mother and slowly pay it back. Then they(husband and wife) "borrowed" $15,000.00 from her and kept the money. I cut them out of my life because of that. My mother passed away as well as my cousin's brother. At his wake they wanted to know if I had a will knowing i don't have children. As a Christmas Greeting I am sending a card letting them know that they are in my will in that there is a bill of $15,000.00 due and owing to my mother's estate: - ) I am the executrix.
This situation is different than others because she actually met the guy in person. So her attachment is more personal. But that woman’s ego is very delusional, she doesn’t see herself or reality as she is. She really believed that attractive younger man was going to marry her, the shape she’s in? A person who’s honest with themselves could never fall for this type of scam.
@@oliviamartini9700 She is not lying to save face or she would have lied about the large sum of money she sent the basturd(s).She did not save face at all. I have seen a few cases where someone met a live person initially and then the scammers took over.
It's ego and vanity, with a big dose of superficiality. There is no shortage of people -- Americans especially and females especially -- who live this way.
I had this happen to me. I met a guy, a Nigerian. I had a bad feeling about him, but he was GOOD. Said “give me a chance, I’m not a bad guy. It’s just dinner.” So we went to dinner, then he bought me gifts. A few months later we got married. A day after the wedding he quit his job, started drinking. He wanted ME to support him. I wouldn’t and I couldn’t, so we divorced. Turns out he did this same scam to other women. Now he’s a cop in Houston
You ever notice the bigger the amount that's lost in a Romance scam the more ugly the person lol. Also the scammer always looks better than the one being scammed.
I hope that Maria enjoys her studio room; and has a small dog to take for a walk outside; and she can reflect on her irrational decisions by meditating for a few hours!
When I see the *type* of women being scammed... I don't see it as so much of a scam... but more of a delusional person who *thinks* they have finally found someone who they *feel they deserve* You can call it ego, you can call it misplaced confidence. *But mostly it's over estimated self worth* I'm not sure I really feel that sorry for them at all... and may God have mercy on my soul I never get in that position.
Unfortunately, it is almost always the same frumpy, dumpy, looking older women falling for, way out of their lane, much younger men. It is possible she met him in person, but that does not make it any better. She knew she was lying when she first said she lost 67,000 Notice how her eyes shut when she said it. She is never getting her money back! I am a woman in my 50s. We are one of the least desired age groups. Unflattering as that sounds. It is the truth! I am so glad that I am married and not in the dating world at my age. She seems like a genuinely nice person. She needs to spend the money on herself!
This woman didn’t lose her money. She gave it away for a fake desire and fake dream and for being very gullible. I am sorry these older women are so lonely they that they believe in these Nigerians sweet talk and actually fall in love with a fake picture and fake sweet talk. Then they always give the same reasons for needing money. And you ladies give your money away. Please stop it.
The women are told it is a loan and in some instances are given the scammers fake bank website so they see the scammer has lots of $$$$. Then the scammer endures all sorts of hards ships to get their target to send them money. Many are mot worldly wise and fall victim to these scammers.
I never understood how ; how should I put it ! Not very attractive women think that guys ( most of the time good looking guys) would fall for them , ladies be real , and don’t fall for this BS .
@@EuleneWages4644 Yes, exactly true. I am seeing very snarky keyboard warriors on youtube. This woman is a crime victim who for whatever personal reasons was roped into this scam.
A studio ordinarily would be ok to live in, but in this case she lost a beautiful home. She still has to work full time whereas she should be retired or at least semi-retired.
This same thing happen to one of my best friends- the guy took her entire life savings - she was a social worker and made very little money but managed to put money away for retirement and this guy without remorse just cleaned her out. These are narcissists- they are predators and the sad thing is people are so desperate to find true love that they fall for these manipulative creatures.
You are so clueless! There is no 'guy'! It's a ring of people, men and women, who text these suckers, they probably take turns on a shift to keep the mark on the hook. This is an industry. Preying upon lonely people who will do anything to fell good. The predators use greed and lust to get money. They always pose as having wealth and are always good looking, unlike their prey. Open you eyes.
I mean I guess the older we get the more vulnerable we are...I don't understand how you can fall for this but then again I guess lonely people are desperate and that is pretty sad.
Seen the same thing on several news segments. A guy contacts women online then meet them in person for a few dates. Then they go to another country for business and get stuck there needing money to get out. That's when the scam online team take over and romance and bleed the victim dry. The women are hooked because they did meet up in person. My guess is that actor sets up plenty of women in an area then moves on and repeats the plan.
Looks are very deceiving. And as far as how he sound doesn’t make sense at all. I applaud her bravery for telling her story. It’s heartbreaking because she really thought he was genuine. Sorry that happened to you ma’am. Thanks for sharing…
Wow people must have big egos to think a total stranger would love someone that has known them a week or two., then to give money to them as if they’d pay it back especially this woman believing in him and lose so much jeeez…
TIP: Stay off the internet. Get your friends u know find someone for you in person. This woman is talking to someone in Nigeria with a fake photo. Class Dismissed.
What about India and the Ukraine? Don't give money to strangers. India calls me everyday. Not sure why people feel the need to highlight Nigeria? Racism is real
@@rachelcharlieboy6340 You can search for the real person on a youtube channel called catfished. They have a link below that allows you to do just that. Show her their videos as well. A simple search for romance scam pulls up a great deal of information just on youtube. I deal with many people through my work that are being duped into wiring money to Mexico by scammers to sell their timeshare. They are told they need to pay taxes and etc.before the sale can go through. It's not easy to convince them to stop being scammed, but it can be done.
I finally made my idiot friend see she was scammed by having her put the email text in a search engine. The exact words were on scam busting websites. Plus I pointed out the man's mistakes. Romeo was pretending to be American. My friend is from the UK. For example, scammer said he went down to New York from Carolinas. ???!!! He also said he was military and needed cash to pay hospital bill in Afghanistan because marines pulled out leaving him no money or way home. ???!!!! Um, no you are a liar. Then there was his rank--- Left Tenient. We don't have that rank and he spelled the rank wrong. He also used African words of endearment like "My royal queen, etc.". She had sent him 30,000 GBP! He demanded more. Horrendous. She even invited me to their "wedding"... So sad. In all other aspects of her life she is well put together and rational. She is lonely and not attractive so in person seems to end as soon as she "puts out". 😔
When people are on these dating apps, they need to do research and if you can’t meet somebody locally then please block them! And please by all means educate yourself on the military and how it works.
I have a great deal of friend requests from men in the military that up until now I ignored. I am now going to let the romance begin to entertain myself and share with others. Stay tuned. . .
@@ber1779 They have an excuse to not be able to meet in person because they have stolen someone else's pics. They also use the claim of working on an oil rig for the same excuse of not meeting in person. Then they can't access their money and start asking for gift cards or other non-traceable monies.
@@loralieisa People in the military do that? And also wouldn’t in the military be an excuse to not be able to meet up in person bc you’re training, touring, your location must be confidential etc.?
She went to the FBI to complain. The Secret Service would be another option because they investigate financial crimes and have recovered monies from other countries on a number of occasions.
are these woman never looking in the mirror ??? I am in my 80' and get unsolicited contacts by much much younger good looking guys quite often ! And they fall deeply in love within days !!! The best was an Admiral stationed in Bagdad (ha ha ha) with a very sick son and no health insurance ! He even sent pictures from the hospital ! This was better than a suspense movie ! they knew my Million Dollar house and my lifestyle ... it was a lot of fun until they realized I am rich for a reason : brains !!!
I don’t need to do the reverse Image thing i Love money too much I won’t send them or anybody a dime . Money is pretty too 100 dollar bills look so pretty and when they are laying down together they are prettyer
Who would have thought that over 10 yrs later scams would still work? I met a scammer online back in 2011, when this was barely known and checked his flight details to my city. Flight didn't even exist lol.
No one is ever going to listen to you, every one of these videos I have watched, the victim says clearly Do Not Give Money to Someone You Meet Online, and every one of these victims was told by friends, family, banks, western union offices and even the police and they continued to ply the scammer with more and more money. I appreciate the videos, but people have to learn the hard way.
There must have been Something Else going on in her life to make her vulnerable towards this . Usually these people have had a loss or traumatic circumstance that they are recovering from when .. Boom ! In walks their Prince Charming ! And he turns out to be the Devil !!
@@patsygroves3812 Prince Charming never walked in. The victims are most likely mentally ill people with very low self esteem. You can't have a meaningful relationship with someone that you've never laid eye's on or touched.
I have been watching and observing this scamming business for some time and I see a pattern. The scammer love bombs the victim right away. Loves them by the second message, wants to know their friends and family names. They also try to ingratiate victim to their own (fake) children. If she is religious and buys into that love every body nonsense and second chances and give benefit of doubt blah blah, she will OFFER money when he says Susie needs an iPhone. Once she starts sending low dollar gift cards, she feels she owns him now, surely he would never leave her?!? Eventually he does deed start asking for more and more. But will pay it back, he says. BS. Anyway, it’s not a scam if you OFFER the money. That loan stuff is up for grabs and vague. He’ll just say he doesn’t have it. Why do these women say they were scammed? They weren’t!! They willingly gave it all away.