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Pinoy Abroad » Crime

Three Pinays among 60 arrested in Malaysia for online love scam


At least three Filipinas were among 60 people arrested in Malaysia Monday for allegedly taking part in an Internet love scam, a Malaysian news site reported Tuesday.

Police taking part in "Ops Tiong" raided an apartment complex in Kepong in Kuala Lumpur where the racket was being committed, Malaysia's New Straits Times reported.

During the three-hour raid that started 2 a.m., police also arrested 49 men and three women from Nigeria, three men from South Africa, a woman from Uganda, and a woman from Thailand.

Five tested positive for drug abuse, while 28 did not have travel documents when arrested, the report said.

The racket had been the subject of 332 Internet scam complaints from January to April, and had caused some RM51.3 million (P698.337 million) in losses this year.

It was also the subject of 967 complaints involving RM40.9 million (P556.764 million) last year.

Seized during the raid were 30 laptops and 68 cell phones.

Investigation showed the syndicate would court women through social media, and promise to give them expensive gifts.

But the syndicate would tell the victims the gifts had been seized at Customs, and that they needed money to release them.

"The victims will be coaxed into transferring money several times," police said. — BM, GMA News

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THIS IS A DESCENT MAP TO SHOW YOU WHERE YOUR SCAMMERS ARE RESIDING........

Love-struck Australians lose millions
ABC

By Claire Moodie - September 25, 2013, 8:13 am


 

Online fraud: Calls for a national taskforce as love-struck Australians lose millionsABC Online fraud: Calls for a national taskforce as love-struck Australians lose millions

There have been plenty of warnings but love-struck Australians continue to part with more than $20 million a year in online romance scams.

There are now calls for a national approach to combat the fraud, which can have a devastating - and potentially fatal - fallout.

Earlier this year, a West Australian woman was found dead, presumed murdered, in South Africa after travelling there to see a Nigerian man she had met online.

Since then, the state's police have stopped other scam victims from travelling if they believe they are heading for a similar fate.

The prevalence of the scams has prompted Western Australia's fraud squad to join forces with the state's consumer-protection watchdog to take on the organised crime gangs responsible.

But it is a huge effort, and those witnessing the impact first-hand say Australia needs to set up an effective national taskforce to come anywhere close to winning the battle.

Neil Johnstone, a 50-year-old divorcee, turned to the internet to find companionship.

He was bombarded with attention from Mavis Mensah, who claimed to be an Australian living in west Africa.

But there was heartbreak ahead.

"I finished work - I was on night shift - and I got that message and I was over the moon it was all happening," he said.

"I jumped in the car, drove to Perth very excited. Got to the airport - nothing."

A plane ticket, one of five Mr Johnstone paid for over their year-long relationship, turned out to be fake.

And so was Mavis, whose photos belonged to a US-based model.

"You just believe within yourself that they're real, they are the best person, that's the person I want and anything they ask for or anything they want - you give it to them no matter what," Mr Johnstone said.

He borrowed most of the $100,000 he sent to west Africa, and says he was upfront with the banks over what he needed most of the loans for.

"It's pretty close to D-day where all the banks want their money back now," he said.

Perth woman fooled by scammers twice

Detective Sergeant Rob Martin from the Western Australian Major Fraud Squad has heard it all before.

"It's a very unpleasant job to actually have to turn up on the victims doorstep and break the news that the person that has made them feel better than they've felt for a very long time isn't real and the romance that they thought they were involved in is just a fantasy," he said.

Perth resident Tracey Holmes, 48, is still coming to terms with the fact that she has been conned.

She thought a US man called Todd Hamilton was in love with her. Over the past year she sent him $25,000 to help with his business.

He was the second online identity she has lost money to in recent years.

"I actually thought he was a lovely gentleman. And I thought he had the most sexy voice I've heard from a man," she said.

But the romance turned ugly when Ms Holmes discovered his photographs were of an unknown man and were probably lifted from a social media site.

Now, the scammer is blackmailing her over revealing photos she sent to him online. He had also taken secret footage of her.

"He has scantily clad pictures - not fully exposed but pretty scantily clad," she said.

"I had no idea that he was videoing me but he videoed me. So he's been accumulating information about me all this time and using it against me to now blackmail me into paying him $10,000."

Ms Holmes was also duped into becoming a so-called "money mule" - someone used by the scammers to funnel stolen cash through Australian bank accounts.

"He started doing transactions through my account," she said.

"When the money went into my account they would ask for an SMS code and I would give him the code and wherever the money was going ... it was going."

Authorities team up to battle scammers

With about 300 new scam victims a month in Western Australia, the state's fraud squad has pooled resources with the Department of Consumer Protection to take on the fraudsters.

Called Operation Sunbird, it is identifying scams by tracking large money transactions from WA to west African countries, and then contacting the victims.

Initially they are contacting the victims by post.

"In 63 per cent of cases, we're not seeing any further transactions following that first letter," said Ann Driscoll from the Department of Consumer Protection.

But others refuse to face the truth and keep sending the money.

Detective Sergeant Martin says while the victims might seem naive, the scammers are convincing and constantly refining their techniques.

"To me they seem like trained psychologists, the way they're able to actually manipulate the victim. They're able to tap into the things that actually push the buttons of the victim," he said.

But the costs can go well beyond financial loss.

In March, 67-year-old West Australian woman Jette Jacobs was found dead in South Africa, after she travelled there to meet a man who she had been sending money to online.

Since then police have stopped several others from travelling overseas.

"We had an occasion where a gentleman from here, in his 70s, was about to travel to Ghana," said Detective Senior Sergeant Dom Blackshaw.

"We were able to get the name of the person who was going to collect him from the airport.

"He was going to meet a love interest - a young girl. She'd actually provided the name of her so-called brother to this gentleman.

"Once we did the check, we identified he was a member of the Sakawa Boys - they were an organised crime gang based in Ghana"

WATCH THIS VIDEO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://aca.ninemsn.com.au/article/8863099/lovelorn-mum-loses-200k-to-dating-scam

Homeless, heartbroken and humiliated.

On A Current Affair, how this Aussie mum's hard-earned money was fleeced by a man she thought was the love of her life.
YET ANOTHER ONLINE SCAMMER LADIES................PLEASE WATCH THIS VIDEO!

http://www.fbi.gov/news/news_blog/online-dating-extortion-and-other-scams

Online Dating Extortion and Other Scams

Rose on Computer KeyboardThe latest report from the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) reinforces the fact that people looking for love online need to remain vigilant about who they choose to communicate with and how they do so. In a recently reported dating extortion scam, victims usually met someone on an online dating site and then were asked to move the conversation to a particular social networking site, where the talk often turned intimate. Victims were later sent a link to a website where those conversations were posted, along with photos, their phone numbers, and claims that they were “cheaters.” In order to have that information removed, victims were told they could make a $99 payment—but there is no indication that the other side of the bargain was upheld.

Other items in this month’s IC3 report include a new variation on the classic payday loan scam; new malware that has infected at least 250,000 victims, including 46 Fortune 500 companies; and the top words used by cyber criminals in fake e-mails.

http://q13fox.com/2013/01/07/soldier-warns-women-about-expansive-dating-scam/
Soldier warns women about expansive dating scam
Posted 4:15 PM, January 7, 2013, by Tom Yazwinski, Updated at 06:00pm, January 7, 2013

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SoldierJOINT BASE LEWIS-McCHORD — A local soldier has received thousands of emails from love interests around the world.

There’s only one problem:

He’s not looking for love.

Major Gordon Hannett, stationed at JBLM, said online fraudsters are posing as the Major and soliciting money on his behalf. Hannett said someone claiming to be him scammed more than 300 woman into thinking they were talking to the major, and would get the women to send money on his behalf. The woman send the scammers money, Hannet said, and then contact him asking him what went wrong with their transaction.

“Women will send $2,000, $3,000, $10,000,” Hannet said. “I’ve heard of women cleaning out their entire retirement accounts to send to these guys, these scammers.”

Hannet said scammers use fake dating profiles and pictures to trick women into sending money for the chance to meet. A quick search for Hannett shows two false Facebook accounts featuring his real picture. Hannet has no idea how the accounts were set up.

Shannon Smith is senior council at the Attorney General’s Office. Several scams involving wire transfers to men claiming to be soldiers occur each year, Smith said. Though it’s a well known problem, little can be done to stop them.

“Often times when you send your money overseas, there’s nothing anybody can do to get your money back because our office doesn’t have the ability to chase people down overseas,” Smith said.

Major Hannett is now making it his mission to fight the scams and warn others about the crooks.

“They’re the lowest of the low,” he said. “They’ve preyed on retirees and widows. They take their money. It’s just awful.”

The FBI is aware of many online dating scams and features online resources for those hoping to fight the fraud.

Visit these sites for more information on how to fight scams:

http://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2012/february/dating-scams_021412

http://www.fbi.gov/news/podcasts/inside/sweetheart-scams.mp3/view

http://www.fbi.gov/news/news_blog/online-dating-extortion-and-other-scams

Mollie Halpern: An old adage says, “Love is blind”—and that’s exactly what so-called sweetheart scammers are counting on. Financial fraud is one of the dangers of dating online.

Nickolas B. Savage: The problem is certainly large, and there are quite a number of individuals that are being victimized.

Halpern: Hi, I’m Mollie Halpern of the Bureau, and this is Inside the FBI. Those looking for love on singles sites can fall victim to suitors who are actually scammers. Coming up, learn how fraudsters are pulling your heartstrings only to get to your purse strings, how to spot a scam, and what action to take if you’re a victim.

But first—who are these criminals using the computer to lure lovers? And who are their unlucky-in-love victims? Nickolas Savage is the assistant section chief of the Cyber Division...

Savage: The victims are residing here in the United States, but the individuals responsible for the criminal activity tend to be somewhere abroad.

Halpern: The average financial loss from these romance schemes is between $15,000 and $20,000. That number is nearly double what it was a decade ago. The victims are mostly women between 50 and 59 who believe they’re in a real relationship. Savage says the fraudsters work to gain their victims’ trust through online courting.

Savage: Individuals who scam other people are masters at manipulating people who are vulnerable. And time is on their side. They have the ability to draw this out and to get to know somebody to determine what those vulnerabilities are.

Halpern: Once the victim’s vulnerabilities are exposed, the fraudster wants to take the relationship to another level and meet in person.

Savage: But that’s usually accompanied later on with some problem that would prevent them from traveling, and it’s usually something involving money. We’ve seen situations where family members have been sick, or they themselves are having some financial problem, or, ‘If you send me money I can buy the tickets or obtain the necessary paperwork so I can come see you.’ It’s something that is believed to be happening in the fraudster’s life. Something that, some problem they are having that if they’re able to resolve these issues, they will then be able to meet the victim.

Halpern: The criminals continue to perpetrate the fraud until they break the victim’s bank—and heart. But there are ways to spot a scam before your romance fades into financial fraud.

Savage: Especially early on in the relationship, if it’s only your second or third conversation and they’re already asking you for money, then you really need to be careful, be wary, that it’s probably a scam.

Halpern: If your newfound online love sends you photographs of themselves—don’t believe it’s actually a picture of them.

Savage: If they look like something out of a magazine or they purport to be a supermodel, I think you just need to be a little cautious. You should apply common sense.

Halpern: Since the scammers are typically from outside of the United States, be wary if your love interest is overseas.

Savage recommends doing your best to stay away from the scammers by using the more widely known websites.

Savage: I think the most important take-away is that people should stick to legitimate sites. They should stick to larger companies that have a reputation.

Halpern: The FBI investigates and collects data on these romance schemes though our Internet Crime Complaint Center, or IC3.

Savage: What IC3 affords us an opportunity to do is to collect this information of individuals who have been victimized from various parts of the country, bundle them together to look for that common thread or information that will get us back to a particular individual. Once we’ve done that, we can build a case and we can work with our foreign partners to affect an arrest and bring these individuals to justice.

Halpern: If you’ve been seduced by a scammer, let us know at www.ic3.gov.

Recognizing an Online Dating
Scam Artist

Your online “date” may only be interested in your money if he or she:

- Presses you to leave the dating website you met through and to communicate using personal e-mail or instant messaging;

- Professes instant feelings of love;

- Sends you a photograph of himself or herself that looks like something from a glamour magazine;


- Claims to be from the U.S. and is traveling or working overseas;

- Makes plans to visit you but is then unable to do so because of a tragic event; or

- Asks for money for a variety of reasons (travel, medical emergencies, hotel bills, hospitals bills for a child or other relative, visas or other official documents, losses from a financial setback or crime victimization).

One way to steer clear of these criminals all together is to stick to online dating websites with nationally known reputations.
insidethefbi.jpgListen: Special Agent Nicholas Savage describes so-called “sweetheart scammers” and the dangers they pose on the Internet.”


More: Inside the FBI