Welcome to the Victim Support section.

[roo1ginger]

Hello all, I am a scam victim too and lost money due to cashing Fraud CVS checks, without knowing they were Fraud before I cashed them. I will Never, Ever help anybody any more with their money problems, especially since I don't have any money, after not having a job since 2009. Also, why do men ( or I suppose women too ) ask for money when they know you don't have any? Are they that stupid? I need to check out an email address but how do I do it totally free without having to pay? Is there such a site?

Also, if someone is asking me to help them post on Craigslist, how can I tell find out that what they want me to do is not a scam. I am not going to do it, because I am done helping people , but I want to find out if it is a scam or not, just for my interest.

[FrumpyBB]

I am very sorry to hear this. I´m afraid it is a very common scam twist. They also count in your bank needing a number of weeks to realize the fake check has bounced. Please let the bank know that it was a check scam - they consider it a fraud cashing fake checks and please let the bank know if you haven´t already

Just start a topic in WHite MAles section and post early emails, pics, money request email and money receiver name.

[Pinky]

Hi Roo1ginger! Sorry for my delayed response here. I thought I responded the day you posted, but it seems my connection dropped and my post didn't go through.

I think you just learned the hard way, it is never good to do any financial transaction with someone you only know from the internet. I hope your consequences will be less since your part in the fraud was innocent and unintentional.

These scammers don't care that you don't have extra money. You have access to money. They would pry a penny from the hand of a dying child, if they could get to it.

You should NOT help anyone with an ad on Craig's List. If it were anything legitimate, they'd do it themselves. Post the information you have and we will be happy to check it out for you.

[Isctcmn]

Hi-I am just recently scammed-I think. Where do I get help, have my questions answered, get advice etc..?

[FrumpyBB]

The FAQ; the informational topics; the "How African Scammers Work" section. Basically, all links in my signatureline - for first guidance.

Summary in two words: Block him!

First and foremost, please post your scammer´s email address, photo and money request email/chat log, so that we can comment

[Pinky]

If you sent money to a man you only know from internet chat and email, you have been scammed. There are no 'buts' about it. There are no special circumstances, nothing that we might not be understanding and no logical, plausible or acceptable reason for any man to expect you to give him money (or merchandise, or cash his checks) just because he's called you honey and babe for hours on end, unless he's a lying, cheating, thief and scammer.

The site is not hard once you know a few things to look for. I use the BOARD INDEX to navigate through the different forums. You want to read through the FAQ, as Frumpy suggests and also, take a look at how we collect and use the information you're going to get to us. There are explanations for why we do what we do and ask for what we do, in the FAQ - but I'll be happy to answer questions here, too.

[Poppet]

I've got a scammer online and im hooked. Luckily I dont have money to send to him. Scammer Aaron Ramos made sure I fell for him before my 6th sense told me to just zoom in on his photo and then search google for this guy. I know him as Christian. We are still talking and he still tells me the most beautiful things, I cant picture him the idiot he is. I cant delete him on tagged or yahoo. Please help me get this pig out of my heart. He send me details of a guy in Ghana so that i can send money to him tomorrow. Why in this world did I have to meet him????? He made sure that I trust no one now.

[Pinky]

Go in General and look at the Scammers4Real thread. That'll give you an idea of what your guy really looks like.

Meanwhile, please learn how to get a header from his emails and post it along with his email address in the 'Am I being scammed?' thread. We'll help you expose him - and under NO circumstances should you tell him you know. The time you've spent chatting with him is totally wasted so you might as well use it to get an education on how to protect yourself in the future. You can trust again - with protection.

[Willow5041]

Good day to everyone,
I am a newbie on this website, and have never been scammed, but have a friend who has been twice. She is an older lady in her mid 60's and has been a widow for 15 yrs. She lives with her son and daughter in law. A year ago she was scammed by a Nigerian from Facebook for 6 months worth of her salary,she would wire him her entire monthly salary and even had her new car repoessed. She went without her car for 2 months and they held it for her, she then had to pay all the back fees and 2 months of payments for having it held in storage by the bank.

Finally her son threatened to throw her out as she also couldn't help out with her part of her monthly payments to stay at their home with a few bills. She just retired 2 wks ago after working here for 15 yrs. Recently she confessed to me that she had met a man at church and was engaged and wanted to retire in 2wks. I was her Mgr.
I asked how they met and once again on Facebook. She only said they met 1 time in church; but I later found out that she hasn't been to church in 20 yrs and had lied to me. To make a long story short, she received $4,000 in tax refund in February and she wired the entire amount of money within a couple of days to this person. He goes by the name of "David Markson" living in California, LA and supposdely has other property in San Francisco and San Jose. He was supposed to retire @ the end of March and has now per her been advised his employer won't let him retire until the end of May. So phoney, when you retire you retire. He has promised her he is already building a big house for her in Ft. Worth Tx, and it will be finished the end of May. She is supposed to get a lump sum of $36K from her retirement in a few weeks and am sure she has told him. He will get this. She told me she is so in love with him, and he is 60 yrs old with a 7 yr old daughter. He is widowed. Of course. He has a heavy accent, told her he was Italian so they never hardly talk on the phone just emailed back and forth on cell phones. She told me she cannot understand him as his accent is so heavy!! Now this woman is so hungry for Love she believes everthing he has told her.
We have all tried to talk to her and warn her again she is being scammed, but she gets mad and won't listen. She told me she was going to pay off her car note and then save the rest of the money, but my inclincation is he will have her conned out of the entire $36K and she will not have any money left to pay her bills again as her SS and retirement is lower than what she was making. Poor woman is so delusional and love struck. Both her son and daughter in law know she is being scammed again and she has no common sense that a person who has never ever met this man could fall in love so quickly and then send him money. The last guy had a long tale too of his wife died and left him with all of these bills and he wanted to fly to Texas to see her but didn't have the airfair, so after 6 months of sucking money from her she finallyh realized but only took her another 6-8 months to be scammed again. She will never ever recoupt this money ! I feel so bad for her but she won't listen to any of us,,,,,,duh , can't she see this is a BIG SCAM and my bet this is a Nigerian scam once again. Once he gets her money he will be gone, and that picture of him looked like a middle eastern man, not Italian, have seen his pic. These scammers go on line and copy pics and then start their scams. Please pray for her, and in the meantime one day the governments will get smart and start trying hopefully to work with governments all over the world to arrest these poor lost souls feeding off other lost desperate people for the wealth of large organized crime scammers! Thanks for listening. Newbie, Willow

[Pinky]

There is not much more you're going to be able to do. She's in total denial and further proof from you is likely to make her hostile towards you. You mentioned that she has family. Can you alert them? Family could do more legally by notifying her banking institution or even getting an attorney to help them declare her incompetent of managing her own financial affairs - but this is very hard to prove.

I think prayers are all you've got.

[Willow5041]

Hi Pinky,
Yes, she has family, in fact lives w/her oldest son and his wife. She won't listen,she will be 66 in July. I cannot believe someone can be so gullible or naieve to someone scamming you out of money you have worked for years for and could have a good life. Wouldn't you question someone not calling and talking to you, just texting. Also not being able to see the "supposed house" being built" while he is living in Calif. How can one be so STUPID?

Oh well, I have tried to help her out and she is getting ready to see a huge loss when he gets all of her monies. All I can do is pray for her. I was her Manager and tried to help her not get scammed the first time and she lied to me and told me she wasn't dealing with this man anymore and he scammed her and she lost her car for 2 months. Now once again, no ring, 1 pic with a little girl and no ring and nothing but she gives away her money. Wouldn't surprise me if once she starts getting her social security checks she cashes them and send all the money to this man.

I am done, thanks though for the advice!

[Pinky]

There is a lot more going on that no one can help her with. First, if I were a profiler, I'd say that she's probably very insecure about her appearance. She desperately wants to believe someone can love and want her for what's inside, not out. I'll bet she's entirely comfortable with the long distance relationship and probably scared to death to meet her lover face to face. She may even have some doubts that he's not real, but that is so painful to consider, she refuses to. The delusion feels good.

Secondly, she's probably never had a real man in her life who has praised and adored her and agreed with everything she's liked and disliked. If it ever crossed her mind that she might be involved in a scam, compounding what I said above, could very well be the notion that she's getting value for her money.

Hard core cases like this are sad because it's almost like an addiction to the victim. They can't stop. The scammer is their drug of choice. The greatest worry is that when the scammer bleeds her out, she will most likely believe she has nothing left to live for. She is absolutely a suicide risk. Please bring her family in on this. She is going to need support of people who love her, not 'I told you so' and criticism.

I sometimes wonder, what it would be like if the victim's loved ones and family, treated her like they know they're going to need to after - before the scammer is through - would that make a difference?

[Willow5041]

Hi Pinky,
Well she was married before, 3 times, the last husband died of cancer and she was only married to him for 18 months before he passed. Anyway, like I said before the 1st scammer cleaned her out for 6 months worth of pay, or around$15K in money. Then after she lost her car she then became aware he "might" be a scammer, so let it go and lost contact with this guy.
Now once again she is totally enthralled with this man, he did con her out of her IRS tax return of $4,000, and her retirement bulk payment is due any day for $36K. He will get that and then continue to drain her accounts dry. How can a person be so guillable to believe he is having a house built and it will be finished at the end of May for them to move into. He hasn't even given her an address or photos of what the house is supposed to look like.
From what her Daughter in law has told me, she is very guillable and naieve at any man that will tell her something, she falls for it, they use her up and toss her in real life too!
I will alienate her from my friendship if I continue to ask her questions and express my doubts about this man. Her son almost threw her out of his house where she lives with them the 1st time when he found out she was being scammed. I don't think they realize how this time it is being taken even further. Maybe they do because they have gone to an Atty. and had some papers drawn up so she cannot sell the house with their permission because they fear she will be scammed to do this and give the scammer the $. Your correct, she isn't responsible for her delusional way of thinking of romance with men. She is a lost soul. She cannot see how awful this is going to turn out, her entire retirement is going to be sucked out of her bank accounts on a monthly basis and have nothing. I wish we could help her, but cannot. She isn't listening to anyone at all. He is the love of her life and that is how it's going to be, we don't know what we are talking about. :-) Thanks for your advice Pinky!

[Zeba]

To kindhearted,

Be the best to your kids so they realise that you are worth more than what they lost and so there are no hurt feelings from them later on.

[Zeba]

I was scammed 2 years ago and though I was over the scammer and being scammed, I actually didn't like him from the beginning but was so desperate, I feel I need a sense of closure and the emotional hurt it has caused me because I feel people think I can't be trusted. The money I sent was borrowed money that I did not have and I have claimed bankruptcy so I do not have to repay it.