- Terri, who has been sending money to a man she has never met, discovered the shocking truth about her virtual boyfriend, leading to a heartbreaking realisation
- She had sent a substantial sum of over KSh 11 million to her online partner before unravelling the deception in their relationship
- Two years ago, Terri encountered “Ricardo” on Facebook Messenger, and their connection swiftly blossomed
- After a month of exchanging messages, Ricardo proposed a lucrative opportunity to Terri, urging her to invest KSh 1.4 million in Bitcoin
A woman identified as Terri found herself in a distressing situation when she realised that her virtual boyfriend might not be who he claimed to be.
Woman meets ‘lover’ on Messenger
Over the course of their two-year relationship, she had sent nearly $80,000 (KSh 11 million) to her online partner, only to discover that her investments were in vain.
Terri, a recent guest on the popular talk show Dr Phil, initially met “Ricardo” on Facebook Messenger, and their connection quickly grew.
After a month of chatting, Ricardo proposed a lucrative investment opportunity to Terri, urging her to invest $10,000 (KSh 1.4 million) in Bitcoin.
He promised an astonishing return of $1 million (KSh 141,450,000) within six months.
Captivated by the prospect of such significant gains, Terri willingly sent money to Ricardo, relying solely on photos and phone calls as evidence of his existence.
However, despite her continuous financial support, Terri never received any returns on her investments.
Woman learns ‘millionaire hubby’ never existed
Although Ricardo claimed to be a US citizen residing in Los Angeles, he insisted that his relocation to Canada for work prevented him from meeting Terri in person.
Every time Terri attempted to arrange a meeting, Ricardo conveniently provided excuses to avoid face-to-face encounters.
Terri’s sister, Tammy, became suspicious of Ricardo’s motives. Concerned individuals had warned Terri that Ricardo might be a scammer, but she firmly believed in his authenticity.
“People are still telling me that Ricardo isn’t real, that he’s scamming me and that he’s not in Canada. I don’t believe them …I believe Ricardo’s real,” lamented Terri.
Dr Phil shared Tammy’s scepticism and decided to investigate Ricardo’s claims.
Through fact-checking, he discovered that the man in the photos Ricardo had sent to Terri was actually named James, and his likeness had been exploited in various scams.
Man confirms scammers have been stealing his photos
James confirmed that his pictures were stolen from his social media profiles and used for romance scams.
He expressed his frustration, revealing that he had been dealing with this identity theft for over a decade.
He hoped his video would establish his real identity while emphasising that he was not the person Terri had been communicating with or sending money to.
Devastated by the revelation, Terri decided to cut ties with the scammer. She pledged to block Ricardo and change her phone number to protect herself from further manipulation.
She assured everyone that she didn’t hold James responsible and even joked that she would not resort to violence if she ever encountered him.
Lady sends rent o con
Back at home, a lady, Rosalyn, decried sending her rent to a con. Via her Twitter account, Rosalyn disclosed that she had fallen victim to a fraud scheme.
The young lady shared a screenshot noting that the con had informed her that their mode of rent payment had changed.
Rosalyn thought that it was an automated message from her landlord, and she did not bother to cross-check with him.
She immediately sent her rent to the bank account provided by the con man and later n realised she was a victim of rent con.
