Over time, the online relationship turns romantic.
So when Elaines new boyfriend claims to be overseas on business and needs money, shes willing to help.
In the end, the man disappears but only after Elaine had sent him thousands of dollars in cash.
Online romance scams are the No.
1 scam for loss money reported.
[00:00:11] HOST: It’san all too common scenario in this age of online love and dating.
Andyou might be surprised to learn how easy it is to fall into the trap.
[00:00:43] FrankAbagnale: Thank you.
I’m glad to be here.
[00:00:50] FrankAbagnale: Absolutely.
It seems like a low-hanging fruit almost for a scam artist.
They just continue to send money, over and over again.
[00:01:26] FrankAbagnale: Absolutely.
[00:01:27] HOST:Alright, so on this episode we will introduce you to Elaine.
After ending arelationship, she was interested in meeting someone, someone new.
So, she wenton a dating site and before too long ran across someone.
[00:02:50] Elaine: Ididn’t question, because I trusted him.
He told me what he is.
He was supposedlya marine engineer other BS or whatever he came, come up with.
[00:03:03] HOST: Did heplay it up on the romance side at all as well?
[00:03:05] Elaine: Ohyes.
So I gave him a color.
[00:04:42] Elaine: Hemade it so believable.
[00:05:42] HOST: Had hementioned his business overseas before?
[00:05:57] HOST: Okay.
[00:06:48] HOST: Howmuch money are we talking?
Did he mention that at this point?
[00:06:52] Elaine: Thetotal of that was maybe around $3,000.
[00:06:57] HOST: Will Johnson:And did you send it all at once?
And Isaid, “Well, okay.”
[00:08:01] HOST: That’samazing.
And so she finally decides to do some checking around on him.
[00:09:07] Elaine: Igot the background check from different companies.
It was not a house where anybody lived.
So it was phony,every step of the way was phony.
Talk about that,emotionally.
[00:09:35] Elaine:Well, I was emotional, emotionally vulnerable.
[00:09:58] HOST: Andsend you a rose from his garden, as a matter of fact.
[00:10:00] Elaine: Yes.
Has that been hard for you?
And do you talk about it to others?
[00:10:23] Elaine: Ihave no problem telling people.
I will tell anybody.
[00:11:15] Elaine:(laugh).
Well I don’t know.
I don’t need rose garden, I need a real person.
I have a title for thisepisode you might like.
[00:11:26] Elaine: Ohyeah?
Well, look it’s been…
[00:11:27] HOST:Gemstone jerk.
Stay away fromthat person.
Some romance scams are somebody trying to rip you off for asmall amount of money.
Some are very wealthy women who have been conned out ofmillions and millions of dollars in romance scams.
[00:12:07] HOST: Bottomline, that, that’s the first thing.
[00:12:08] FrankAbagnale: That’s the first thing, that’s a red flag.
I could give you the money andthey’re not even asking you for the money.
They turn it around so that you’reoffering the money to them.
I say, “Well let me ask you this, have you ever beento his house?”
“Uh, no.”
“Have you ever been able to callhim at home or only on his cell phone?”
“I only have his cell phone,I don’t have his home number.”
Then you should be suspicious.
And italways turns out eventually that probably the guy’s married.
[00:13:40] HOST: Butlove is so hard, Frank.
[00:13:55] HOST: Don’tsend them money.
[00:13:51] FrankAbagnale: Okay?
It’s the same way here.
Before I invest money in this individual, Ineed to double-check I know who this individual is.
[00:14:36] FrankAbagnale: Absolutely.
[00:14:57] HOST: Itwasn’t the only game.
[00:14:57] FrankAbagnale: They just move on.
When they hang up from you, they move onto thenext one.
[00:15:26] HOST: You doget that.
Was romance a scam for you ever, or did you haveexperience of you know tugging at heartstrings?
And I said, no, because my mother would never approve of megetting married.
This, even if you did like somebody?
[00:17:01] HOST: Welove stories.
She thought I washer age.
Andactually I’m only 18 years old.
First, she thought Iwas kidding because she said, “I met you on the flight.
You were sittingin the cockpit in the jump seat.”
[00:18:17] FrankAbagnale: This is the truth.
Now that’s the thinkingof an adolescent 18-year-old.
[00:19:25] HOST: Youlearned like the wrong lesson.
[00:19:26] FrankAbagnale: Yes, the wrong lesson.
[00:19:28] HOST: Andhow different your life might have been had you actually gotten caught earlier?
[00:19:31] FrankAbagnale: That’s right.
[00:19:41] FrankAbagnale: Right.
I’ve been marriedto my one and only wife for 40 plus years.
I’ve brought three sons into theworld, the one who is an FBI agent.
I mean how amazing it is for me to have ason become an FBI agent.
[00:20:47] HOST: Forpeople who didn’t know that, yes.
My clients likeLexus Nexus, Experian, working with the FBI.
You know, and so it says a lot about our country.
[00:21:29] FrankAbagnale: Glad to be here.
It was at the store where she was getting money actually said don’tsend any more money.
Do you hear about this sometimes?
[00:22:38] HOST: Getout, that’s crazy.
Well then that’s a scam.
They’rejust trying to get your money.
So Walmart obviously is training their peoplevery well because, and I think that’s great.
[00:23:19] HOST: Datingsites.
I mean anybody can get on a dating site and put themselves in howeverthey want to, right?
There’s not, is there a lot of verification going on?
If they’re not doing that, I wouldn’t bedoing business with that dating site.
[00:24:07] HOST:Absolutely.
Anybody can go to a dating site and put aphoto of somebody, right, that’s not them.
[00:25:00] FrankAbagnale: Exactly.
[00:25:12] FrankAbagnale: No, there are two technologies out there now.
[00:26:00] HOST: Wow.
[00:25:19] FrankAbagnale: Yeah, it is amazing.
[00:26:02] HOST: Wow,that’s scary.
She manages the Fraud Watch online grid Facebook page.
Jen, thanksfor being here.
[00:26:14] Jen Beam: Thanksfor having me.
[00:26:15] HOST:Alright, so romance scams.
You guys hear about them a lot on the, with yourFacebook community, right?
Can you tell us about it?
[00:26:21] Jen Beam: Wedo.
What we hear most is sort of two different things.
[00:28:04] Jen Beam:It’s a very good point.
[00:27:59] HOST: JenBeam with the Fraud Watch connection.
Thanks, as always, for your valuable advice.Where can people find the Facebook page?
[00:28:12] Jen Beam:They can find it at Facebook.com/fraudwatchnetwork.
[00:28:15] HOST:Alright, Jen, thanks a lot.
[00:28:16] Jen Beam: Thanks,Will.
[00:28:18] HOST:Alright, stay safe out there.
Don’t punch any links you don’t know.
[00:28:29] FrankAbagnale: Thank you.
[00:28:30] HOST: Thanksa lot.
For The PerfectScam, I’m Will Johnson.
