Scammers are using stolen military photos to try to trick women into sending them money. One woman from Nebraska, identified only as Ann, explained to WOWT-TV how she was duped out of $45,000. Ann, who has been a widow for several years, met a man online who claimed to be a captain in the military. The two exchanged notes back and forth, and Ann felt like she had found love again.
"I thought we were going to be together and live a happy life. I mean, he sent such beautiful letters to me."
Then things started to get weird. The scammer promised to send her gold but asked her to pay the taxes and customs fees. Ann made the payments, but the gold never arrived, and she realized that she had been scammed out of $45,000.
“A perfect target, he knows I have a house. He knows I’m single living alone,” Ann said.
She contacted the police and they launched an investigation. It turns out the suspect had stolen photos of other members of the military from social media and was using them to trick unsuspecting victims.
"We did learn the military unit that he claimed to be from doesn't actually exist, and this person isn't a real military service member. It's still an ongoing investigation," Nate Kovarik, a sergeant with the Douglas County Sheriff's Office, told the news station.
Unfortunately, officials do not believe they will be able to recover the money Ann lost, but they hope to spread the word about the scam to prevent other people from becoming victims.
The military is aware of the scam and has some pointers to avoid falling victim to the fraudsters.
There are a variety of words and phrases used by scammers to hook unsuspecting men and women into relationships. Here are some examples:
They say they are on a "peacekeeping" mission.
They say they are looking for an honest woman.
They note that their parents, wife or husband is deceased.
They say they have a child or children being cared for by a nanny or other guardian.