My Scam Story #23

A Romance Scam Victim/Survivor’s Story

Survivor’s Origin: USA

This is the original victim’s story, enhanced by the SCARS Institute Editorial Team to improve comprehension, readability, and continuity.

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My Scam Story

Hello, thank you again for allowing me to join this group and for taking careful measures to ensure our safety through proper screening. I chose this group because I felt it would support my healing process, enabling me to eventually help others. I previously joined other groups but disliked the practice of posting scammers’ pictures and degrading them, especially since many in those images are victims themselves or unknowingly involved. I couldn’t understand how that approach could genuinely help emotional healing.

It’s difficult to share my story without mentioning my faith, as it began through communication with someone I believed to be a Christian radio host. It started with a message on Facebook, thanking me for being a supportive listener. I had previously interacted casually with this individual, participating in their radio program and exchanging brief conversations online, which made me confident that this was genuinely the same person.

During our conversations, I opened up about my struggles with my homeless and addicted son, as well as my personal mission to reach out to the broken-hearted, offering prayers and comfort. The person responded with kindness, encouragement, and mentioned that his team was praying for me. He invited me to participate in a new show, offering assistance in completing and publishing a book I was working on. Given his established reputation as an author and his thriving media ministry, I was deeply honored and flattered.

Around this time, my husband passed away following a prolonged illness. This individual was among the first people I shared this painful news with. He offered genuine comfort, sent heartfelt prayers, and even provided a beautiful memorial piece for my husband. His compassion and emotional support during my grief made me trust him deeply.

Over several months, our friendship grew, characterized by mutual encouragement and emotional intimacy. Eventually, he mentioned discussing my situation with influential people who were reportedly impressed with my work and wanted to help support my ministry. This led to an elaborate story involving official documents supposedly from a well-known Rockefeller-associated organization. The individual referenced a real person affiliated with this organization, which I verified via Google, leading me to believe everything was legitimate.

Under his guidance, I opened a bank account and shared personal and financial information, far more than I should have. Subsequently, I was manipulated into participating in a customs package scam, resulting in a loss of $5,350. Even after the incident, I continued to believe it was genuinely the radio host who had simply lost his way. We continued communicating, spending our birthdays chatting online. He affectionately referred to me as “sunshine” and “butterfly,” expressing sentiments that felt genuine and caring.

After realizing the scam, I attempted several times to end our conversations, encouraging him to reconcile with his wife and reconnect spiritually. He repeatedly persuaded me to stay in contact, asking for daily Bible verses. On one occasion, I even attended his live show, sending him photos from the audience; he pretended to acknowledge my presence indirectly, claiming he couldn’t directly respond due to oversight by his supervisors.

In late October, he expressed feelings of guilt, and we mutually agreed to limit contact, acknowledging he needed to pursue his relationship with his wife. Despite this, we struggled to maintain distance, exchanging occasional messages expressing mutual affection and support.

On October 25th, I received an unsettling phone call from someone with a heavy accent, repeatedly apologizing, claiming he couldn’t continue deceiving me, and vowing to return to his faith. At this moment, my reality was shattered—I finally realized the entire relationship had been fraudulent, including his declarations of faith and affection.

Soon after, I contacted the radio host’s actual female colleague, with whom I had interacted previously. She confirmed they were aware scammers had used the host’s Facebook identity, replicating it exactly, differing only slightly in URL. The genuine host later publicly announced changes to his social media presence and picture due to this impersonation.

Recently, the scammer reached out one last time through a fake email associated with the radio host’s group, seeking forgiveness and signing off with the alias previously used. I have since blocked all channels of communication, reported the incident to local law enforcement and the FTC, secured my financial accounts, and set up alerts to prevent further issues.

Thank you for listening to my story. I’m grateful to have a safe space to share and begin my healing process.

SCARS Institute Notes:

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