A Queensland woman has been financially and emotionally “destroyed” after being scammed out of more than $400,000 by a man she met on a dating website.
Jennifer* first contacted John through the website about two years ago.
See Jennifer’s story in the video above
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“I joined to find friendship and a relationship. That was it. I knew nothing about the scamming that was happening,” she told 7NEWS.
While John said he was based in Perth, the pair got to know each other over the phone and Skype.
Eventually, she fell in love.
“We had so much to talk about,” she said.
“He had a pleasant nature and I was easygoing.”
Despite the couple never meeting, John proposed to Jennifer and invited her to live with him overseas.
“We were planning a life together,” she said.
Things turn sour
The first time John asked for money, Jennifer stopped contacting him.
But he had her phone number and managed to sweet talk her back.
That’s when Jennifer told him she had been diagnosed with an incurable cancer.
“He said ‘don’t worry I’ll take care of you’.”
Things escalated when John had money sent to Jennifer from another person so she could purchase cryptocurrency for him.
Due to her illness, the 65-year-old was unable to continue maintaining her property so she sold it.
“‘He left me more or less destitute’ – scam victim Jennifer“
About a month later, John said there had been a horrible accident at work and he needed money to pay compensation.
Jennifer then sent him what she had made from the sale of her home.
“He was wanting more money … I said ‘I can’t help you, you’ve taken every cent that I’ve got’,” she said.
John then organised for two women to send Jennifer money so she could continue purchasing cryptocurrency for him.
But things began to click when Jennifer found the women on Facebook and found out they were also being scammed.
She told them both to stop sending money immediately.
‘I’ve lost everything’
Jennifer eventually confronted John, who then turned nasty and ended all contact.
All in all, Jennifer lost more than $400,000.
“What he’s done has just destroyed me, destroyed me financially. Destroyed me emotionally,” she said.
“I really can’t get over it.
“I’ve lost everything.”
While Jennifer said she won’t trust anyone ever again, the situation made it difficult for her to receive welfare support payments.
“He left me more or less destitute,” she said.
“He’s very good at what he does.”
Warning to others
Romance scamming through dating websites and apps has been rife during the COVID pandemic.
Australians lost more than $56 million to love scams just last year.
“Someone who loves you … who thinks they’re their prince in shining armour … they are the perfect money launderer,” Moses Sanabria from ID Care said.
“(The victim) is in denial of what’s happening and they lose everything.”
Jennifer now has a blunt warning for people trying to find love online.
“If they start asking for money or asking for gift cards, it’s a scam, it’s a deadest scam,” she said.
“If that’s happening, please discontinue your association with that person.
“It’s not real.”
‘Nightmare’ ordeal
Melbourne writer Nandita Chakraborty, who was scammed after sharing intimate photos with a man named Sam she met online, issued a similar message.
The 46-year-old went in search of love after feeling enormous pressure from her family and friends to get married.
After getting to know Sam for several months, Ms Chakraborty was threatened with phone calls and a letter from Sam, who demanded she send him money.
“He sent a very chilling message to me …’I will make your life difficult. You can’t track my IP address. I will make your life hell’,” she said.
“It became a nightmare for me.
“I felt very, very scared to step out of my house because the letter was so chilling
“I felt numb.”
Ms Chakraborty ended up going to the police, deleting her social media profiles and bought replacement devices.
She’s since written a memoir about her experience and warns others to be aware of meeting people online.
“We want everything to be perfect,” she said.
“I would say, please go, don’t give up on love. Please do that, but don’t wait for a fairy-tale.
“Better you meet the person before making any commitments. Before committing to a person, please don’t send photographs.”
* Not her real name.