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ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Julia Abrantes spent hours cleaning her house and primping in front of a mirror before heading to John F. Kennedy airport in New York. She was there to pick up the love of her life, whom she had met on the Internet.
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Julia Abrantes spent hours cleaning her house and primping in front of a mirror before heading to John F. Kennedy airport in New York. She was there to pick up the love of her life, whom she had met on the Internet.
After a few months, Giocolo's Internet friend started to make requests. "He said someone had stolen his workboots, so I sent him a new pair." Then, it was $500 to help pay his men.
When the man asked for another $500, Giocolo hesitated. She was strapped for cash herself and sent only $150.
Then, after the man claimed that he had been in a car accident and asked for more money, Giocolo got a sinking feeling.
"I literally stumbled on this Web site on romance scams, and boom, there was his picture. Your heart sinks. There was no contract job, no car accident -- it was all lies," she said.
deserves his/her faith IMO. I don't have much sympathy for morons.
There are also some good internet sites out there -if you care to search for them- where people have gone along with the scam up till the point where they started asking for money and then took out their own sweet revenge on the scammers. It's about as hard as I've ever laughed.
There was one where a scammer offered to buy a horse from a guy and sent him a check for an *extra* amount and then wanted him to wire the excess funds to his friend who lived nearby. The check was fraudulent. So any amount of money he wired to anyone would be on his dime. What followed that was extreme humor. He emailed the scammer and told him the horse broke his leg and it went from there....
Another reason the internet isnt really a good way to meet people. I had a friend who was a widow, and she met some guy who immediately married her after he learned of her husbands tragic accident. After about a year, she started questioning his times away, his private calls outside...only to later learn he had 3 other wives through the phone bills that were coming in, (who too, were widows that were left with lump sums) right within the state of Calif! Most of her life insurance that was left to her had already been spent, as he got a new truck, and was taking several trips all the time, all over the place. What was bizarre about the whole thing, was the day she filed for divorce before she can even have him served....he died of heart failure. He wasnt that old, I think in his early 40's? Imagine that.
people who are sending money to strangers are retarded
you do have to be careful online and take a few extra precautions, but when you meet someone anywhere they can make up a whole lot about themselves that isnt true.
I feel the same way when I hear those stories about some old geezers who were cheated out of their life savings by a scam artist.
You would think that that a long life would lead to some degree of wisdom and knowledge about the world, but evidently it doesn't work that way for everyone.
Well know one thinks there dumb enough to fall victim to scam artists. These people are good. they earn your trust and most find you on sites we all use, myspace, facebook, or dating sites. They either post pictures they stole from a model site or from free sites. There good, they convince you that they want to spend their life with you, that they love you. Sent sweet messages, love poems. I fell victim to one myself. Hook line and sinker you might say. We IM daily, he called me everyday and would sing to me. The common thing is these people are in nigeria or russia. But from somewhere in the USA, there on business or sick family member. Conveniently there family is dead, there a widower etc. Mine was handsome, and very sweet, a widower, had a 14 yr old daughter like myself. We started talking the day before he left for africa/nigeria. An architect building gas stations there. The first time he asked for money, it was for his daughters sick dog, being a kind person and feeling bad for his daughter, I sent $300 to a womans name in NC where he was from. She was suppose to be his dogs nanny. I know it was dumb, but I am a mom and didnt want his daughter to lose her dog. Most scammers send model l9ooking pics, I had real looking pics, him with dog, him and friend, and him alone, then 2 of his daughter emily. I tested him alot, asking probing qustions about his work, trying to see if he would say anything to alarm me. I remodel alot of homes, and know alot about the buidling process. But he wouldnt say much, THEY ALL hate to be questioned too much, they rather question you. I have done the online dating thing many times and never come across anyone like this, he was good and knew what to say and when to say it. They scam for a living, so they know what to do and say. they get poems off of websites and paste and send to you, so you melt from there words. They speak of god and how god sent you to him, blah blah blah. I am not religious, but i fell for this. And how could a good chriastian scam you, right? Unlike some I didnt lose a ton of money, with western union fees and money sent, $540 total. I figure I wouldve spent close to that dating someone new anyways over the months, between gas and food etc. Tom Ayars was good at what he did. he knew I thought he was scamming me, and made me feel bad for thinking that, we would get in little fights and work it out. Just like a real couple. So I thought. The last time I sent him money, it was because he needed BTA money to come home to me. He had airline tickets, but was saying each passenger had to have $200 each to fly to america, I researched it and seen BTA was a nigeria scam. And I mentioned it to him, and he convinced me BTA is real. SUCKER that I am, I believed him, or tryed too. I figured I would know soon, if he showed up or not. Part of me knew he was a scammer, other half was in love and wanted this dream man to be real. After I sent final amount he needed, he couldnt leave the first day because of flight delays in nigeria. Then the job he was supposedly now done with, something was wrong and he had to stay to fix it or he wouldnt get paid. Now he had checked out of his motel, couldnt afford it anymore and part of money I sent was to pay a $55 bill he owed motel. And he was staying with one of his workers now. And after he PROMISED he would never ask for money again and THIS TIME he would be coming to see me, he has yet to come. He says work will take a week, then be here next weekend. Yes I am a fool, I am still talking to him. Still curious to see what next excuse is. SO beware of people that seem to good to be true, tell you they love you in a day, and sad stories of sick family, no food, motel fees they need, or the worst is people sending thousands of dollars for airline tickets. My guy never asked for large amounts of money, just $100-$300, after I sent first amount he didnt ask again for 6 weeks. They have alot of time on there hands, and will spend months wasting your time. You think why would he talk to me for so long, if he isnt real. Because this is there job....If they devote the time, the rewards are better, they earn your trust and eventually you send them money. I am not dumb, I read and researched everything he said, like i said I half believed him...I am a business woman and far from dumb. But when matters of the heart get involved, its hard to fight it.
Well know one thinks there dumb enough to fall victim to scam artists. These people are good. they earn your trust and most find you on sites we all use, myspace, facebook, or dating sites. They either post pictures they stole from a model site or from free sites. There good, they convince you that they want to spend their life with you, that they love you. Sent sweet messages, love poems. I fell victim to one myself. Hook line and sinker you might say. We IM daily, he called me everyday and would sing to me. The common thing is these people are in nigeria or russia. But from somewhere in the USA, there on business or sick family member. Conveniently there family is dead, there a widower etc. Mine was handsome, and very sweet, a widower, had a 14 yr old daughter like myself. We started talking the day before he left for africa/nigeria. An architect building gas stations there. The first time he asked for money, it was for his daughters sick dog, being a kind person and feeling bad for his daughter, I sent $300 to a womans name in NC where he was from. She was suppose to be his dogs nanny. I know it was dumb, but I am a mom and didnt want his daughter to lose her dog. Most scammers send model l9ooking pics, I had real looking pics, him with dog, him and friend, and him alone, then 2 of his daughter emily. I tested him alot, asking probing qustions about his work, trying to see if he would say anything to alarm me. I remodel alot of homes, and know alot about the buidling process. But he wouldnt say much, THEY ALL hate to be questioned too much, they rather question you. I have done the online dating thing many times and never come across anyone like this, he was good and knew what to say and when to say it. They scam for a living, so they know what to do and say. they get poems off of websites and paste and send to you, so you melt from there words. They speak of god and how god sent you to him, blah blah blah. I am not religious, but i fell for this. And how could a good chriastian scam you, right? Unlike some I didnt lose a ton of money, with western union fees and money sent, $540 total. I figure I wouldve spent close to that dating someone new anyways over the months, between gas and food etc. Tom Ayars was good at what he did. he knew I thought he was scamming me, and made me feel bad for thinking that, we would get in little fights and work it out. Just like a real couple. So I thought. The last time I sent him money, it was because he needed BTA money to come home to me. He had airline tickets, but was saying each passenger had to have $200 each to fly to america, I researched it and seen BTA was a nigeria scam. And I mentioned it to him, and he convinced me BTA is real. SUCKER that I am, I believed him, or tryed too. I figured I would know soon, if he showed up or not. Part of me knew he was a scammer, other half was in love and wanted this dream man to be real. After I sent final amount he needed, he couldnt leave the first day because of flight delays in nigeria. Then the job he was supposedly now done with, something was wrong and he had to stay to fix it or he wouldnt get paid. Now he had checked out of his motel, couldnt afford it anymore and part of money I sent was to pay a $55 bill he owed motel. And he was staying with one of his workers now. And after he PROMISED he would never ask for money again and THIS TIME he would be coming to see me, he has yet to come. He says work will take a week, then be here next weekend. Yes I am a fool, I am still talking to him. Still curious to see what next excuse is. SO beware of people that seem to good to be true, tell you they love you in a day, and sad stories of sick family, no food, motel fees they need, or the worst is people sending thousands of dollars for airline tickets. My guy never asked for large amounts of money, just $100-$300, after I sent first amount he didnt ask again for 6 weeks. They have alot of time on there hands, and will spend months wasting your time. You think why would he talk to me for so long, if he isnt real. Because this is there job....If they devote the time, the rewards are better, they earn your trust and eventually you send them money. I am not dumb, I read and researched everything he said, like i said I half believed him...I am a business woman and far from dumb. But when matters of the heart get involved, its hard to fight it.
Come back after you've taken a remedial English course.
Come back after you've taken a remedial English course.
Ask about paragraphs, specifically!
Hahahahaha! One big text dump!
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