A man who was conned out of £150,000 by a woman who he thought he was in a relationship with has spoken of his ordeal in the hope other people will not become innocent victims.
Tom, who is in his 30s and using a pseudonym to protect his real identity, was the victim of an elaborate cryptocurrency scam that started through a dating app and conned him out of his life savings.
A woman he met online encouraged Tom to trade Bitcoin. The initial profit was a gain, and Tom believed the scam was genuine.
However, after being unable to withdraw £1,000, he was ‘bullied into’ investing the remaining amount of his Bitcoin currency (BTC) before his balance was cleared and ‘there was no money remaining’.
After losing around £150,000, Tom sought advice from his mother, other family members and friends before reporting his experience to police and Action Fraud.
Tom’s experiences led police to issue a warning about an increase of online fraud in which victims are conned into believing that they are involved in a romance.
Avon and Somerset Police said 20 to 30 ‘romance frauds’ are reported to them every month and in the 12 months up to last October a total of £2.4million was stolen.
Tom is now in his 30s. He uses a pseudonym for his true identity. Tom was conned out of all his savings through an elaborate crypto scam. It started via a dating app.
Tom was from Weston-super-Mare and said that he was going through a divorce in 2020. He decided to try a dating site for females outside the UK and Jia was his contact. Jia said she was in their late 20s and lives in Hong Kong.
Soon, she asked for the conversation to be moved from the dating site onto WhatsApp.
Jia initiated FaceTime. Tom replied that it was strange. She showed only a portion of her facial features. I tried to talk to her, but she wouldn’t talk back.’
Tom did not have any photos of her although he requested more. He stated that he had not seen her in many photos, although he did ask for more.
The police said Jia was quick to introduce her agenda. On the second day, Jia asked Tom whether he knew any information about Bitcoin (BTC).
Tom said he had invested in it a few years ago but thought little of her mentioning it as it was ‘secure and she was miles away’.
Jia continued to show Tom pictures of the amount of money she made and photos of her Porsche and business.
Tom refused to do the same when she advised him.
According to police, communication was not only about money. Jia made it abundantly clear that her success as an investor and owner of her business was the main reason for their interaction.
The two would talk about their lives, and she soon told Tom that she loved him.
After trying unsuccessfully to get Tom to trade Bitcoin, Jia called Tom naïve for being cautious, which he admits ‘riled’ him.
The victim met a woman online who encouraged him to trade Bitcoin which initially returned a profit, manipulating him into believing the scam was legitimate and worth further investment (stock image)
After that, Tom was directed by Jia to an online platform for trading and instructed to download the app onto his smartphone.
He was immediately suspicious due to some of the website’s functionalities not working.
Despite his concerns, he was reassured by Jia, and was pestered into investing a small amount of Bitcoin in order to prove the website’s legitimacy; 0.1 BTC (worth approximately £1,165.00 at the time) was transferred to a wallet address and converted to US Dollars.
Jia suggested that he trade FWD, a crypto token. An investigation into the token revealed that it had been likely manufactured for fraud.
According to police, Jia guided Tom in all trades, and advised him when to open and close the trade.
Tom was still skeptical, but he said that he had to increase his trust in the site and prove its legitimacy again by withdrawing funds.
He explained: ‘It convinced me that even though I had doubts about the trading platform, maybe it is legit because it wasn’t holding onto my money, it was giving it back.’
Tom made a profit from his first trade, and was able to withdraw it as expected. He decided to invest more.
The profit was doubled to 0.02 BTC. He converted the currency using the same process as before. More profit was realized and the next investment was $0.5 BTC.
He said, “It was very slow.”
Tom, remaining cautious, tried to withdraw £1,000 without telling Jia, but it didn’t work.
Jia told him it can take time, and sent him the £1,000 to keep the illusion of it being a real investment alive. He was reminded by her that they would be building a “wealthy lifestyle” together.
Tom stated, “I felt fortunate, because I appeared to have met someone who had insider knowledge.”
‘Making money every single time isn’t really possible unless you have inside knowledge.’
Jia was able to calm Tom and tell him that her aunt is an investor who was providing the details.
Tom stated that she portrayed herself to be a highly successful investor who has inside knowledge.
“She discussed the future, how to move to the UK and how you could all build this rich life together.
Tom was earning money from what he considered a legitimate investment opportunity. However, he decided to save some of his money.
But Jia told him there was a ‘rare opportunity’ to make increased profits, which he would need to invest quickly or he would miss out.
According to police, Tom was forced into investing his remaining BTC amount. However, his investment would be destroyed.
Tom replied, “My balance has been paid. It was gone.
Everything was gone in a flash. It was horrible.
‘I‘ve worked and saved hard so that I could be financially set for life.
‘It’s like holding a winning lottery ticket in your hand and the wind taking it away. It’s ruined me.’
He messaged Jia, who claimed to have lost more than $1million herself, before she told him: ‘Honey, don’t put too much pressure on yourself every day. I’ll always be with you. You are my best friend.
In a state of desperation, Tom followed Jia’s advice again and used the rest of the money he could get his hands on – £3,000 – into Bitcoin and again invested it through the online platform.
It again was wiped out before Jia refused to help, saying she had to ‘fly to Australia to tend to her sick aunt’.
Tom stated that he felt’significantly affected’ by the events.
He said, “I knew I needed help immediately and went right to my mom’.”
‘If I didn’t have that support, I wouldn’t be here. I was going to do something that wouldn’t leave me here anymore.
‘I am not someone who is able to hide things – I can’t just put a brave face on. It’s always helped me to talk.’
After being unable to withdraw £1,000, the victim was ‘bullied into’ investing the remaining amount of his Bitcoin currency (BTC) before his balance was cleared and ‘there was no money remaining (stock image)
Tom received support from friends and family, as well as occupational health advice at work. This encouraged Tom to tell police and Action Fraud what he saw.
Tom commented, “To be able to know that the report was being reviewed was much more than what I was expecting from it.”
Enquiries were carried out by Avon and Somerset’s cyber team and he also spoke to the Cyber Helpline, the Crisis Team, Victim Support, Samaritans, and MIND.
Tom shared that he often thinks about the things that happened to him when he slept at night and experiences particularly awful days.
Tom said: ‘I wasn’t in a good place. I felt flat after the breakup. It made me unhappy, and I felt just plain sad.
‘It really messed me up, to the point where it clearly impaired my judgement so much, that I’ve allowed this person to manipulate me into doing something which I would have never ordinarily done.
‘I don’t trust women. I now feel that women can manipulate me to my advantage. I’ve lost all my confidence. I’ve lost who I am.
Tom receives continued support from a counsellor.
According to the Avon and Somerset Police, romance fraud is not limited to elderly victims. There’s a roughly even gender distribution of men and women between 47 and 40 years old. However, only 13 per cent cases are registered as genderless.
These figures show that victims of the Avon-Sydney area crime have been all ages, from teens to those in their nineties.
Romance fraud is most prevalent in Avon or Somerset between 40-60 years old, although it’s just as common for people younger than that to fall prey.
Many victims of this con they call romance fraud may never report it to authorities, get help, or seek out support. Not only are there the psychological traumas of believing that they are with someone online but then being betrayed, they also lose money.
Drew Jefferies, a Cyber Protect officer, said Tom’s story was devastating.
He said, “When Tom came to our house with his report, I was obviously devastated for him.”
“His story touched me deeply and impacted every aspect of my life.
He handled this situation with exceptional skill and courage. We are grateful to Tom for his efforts to raise awareness about this issue and prevent others from getting into it.
Amy Horrobin, a fraud protect officer at Avon and Somerset police, added: ‘In terms of investments, it can be really difficult to tell a genuine investment opportunity apart from a fraudulent one – even experienced investors have been caught out.
“Fraudsters will use a variety of tactics to convince investors that the investment is genuine. This includes sending out small returns, setting up fraudulent websites and concealing the identities of legitimate businesses. Before you commit to an investment, do your homework and get independent financial advice.
Tom shared his story in order to warn other people.
‘Whenever something bad has happened in my life which I’ve learned from, I’ve always wanted to prevent others from having the same experience.
“I enjoy knowing I can prevent others from getting in my shoes.” It gives me comfort to know that I can help other people.
Here are some tips and warning signs to make sure you don’t become a victim.