The Federal Trade Commission said romantic scams are now high on the scam list, and elaborate cons are costing victims thousands of dollars.
Seeking love may leave people vulnerable, but it is not just the ship that is the victim.
Many unsuspecting and smart online dating people are attracted, including a woman using the name ‘Angela’, who contacted the Action News Investigation Team when she was still in contact with a man named ‘James Earl Thompson’.
Thompson sent dozens of photos to Angela and said he was an expat from New Zealand who now lives near White Plains, New York.
“It’s devastating,” said Angela, reflecting on what happened. “If you are someone in my age group, who is now single after divorce, trying to recover on your own is quite difficult.”
Angela said she met Thompson on the dating site Bumble in 2019.
He claimed that he was an expert who restored historic buildings in Europe.
“It came out very credible,” she said.
Online dating lasted a few months.
Then Thompson stated that he was going to Cyprus for a project.
It was then that his elaborate scheme emerged.
“He sent me copies of the airline tickets with, curiously, passport information,” she said.
Soon Thompson regaled her with stories of a stolen laptop and frozen bank accounts.
And then she shared this voice message saying that she got a call from an alleged nurse.
“We are calling about your husband,” said the interlocutor.
The voicemail said Thompson had been in a near-fatal car accident and was in dire need of surgery.
She then received an email from an alleged doctor. There was a link to what appeared to be a beautiful hospital.
Despite her reservations, she has sent almost $ 20,000 over time to help with expenses.
“I’m sure this is like a model that they use for all women,” she said.
That’s where blogger Patsy Roach comes in.
“I can’t believe you’re the guy in the picture,” Roach said to a man who contacted her online.
Roach was almost deceived in 2016 and decided to turn the tables on exposing romance scammers.
“I’m the guy in the picture,” said a man on the phone to Roach.
“If you were the guy in the picture, you would show me your face,” she replied.
Roach told Action News that the main reason she does this is to publicize false story plots.
“So people, especially women, can see that and not fall in love with these guys and send money to them,” she said.
Roach said he caught dozens of scammers, some even several times.
His MO is the same, often claiming to be a military man or a businessman who works abroad. Others said they are recent widows.
Authorities said many of these scammers are in remote locations abroad and sometimes use the money to operate illegal operations.
In the FBI’s most recent Internet Crime Report, Pennsylvania ranks fifth among the states with the most catfish strokes.
New Jersey and Delaware are further down the list.
“It’s scary and absolutely terrifying,” said Roach of how many schemes there are.
Roach said the scammers have infiltrated virtually all online dating platforms.
“I was on Match.com. I was on Our Time. The big one was Plenty of Fish, more like a lot of fake ones. And then Twitter and Instagram,” she said.
Angela went to the police and the FBI.
She said the investigations had gone nowhere.
The authorities will say that the scams are too widespread to be investigated.
Angela said that just a few months after the alleged ‘James Earl Thompson’ accident, she found him again online, probably looking for another victim.
“This is something much bigger than anyone can understand,” she added.
The authorities tell Action News that the best advice is never to send money to someone you only met online, regardless of your story.
If you are diving into the world of online dating, good advice is to check your dating profile picture.
Google Images is a good start, as is tineye.com.
You must also report any alleged crime to the FTC and the FBI.
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