Scams are unfortunately widespread, with people losing thousands or even hundreds of thousands of pounds. Sadly, this was the case for one woman who unwittingly found herself a target, after a difficult time in her life.
HSBC shared the story of Marjorie – not her real name – who decided to use a dating website two years after her husband had died.
She selected a website aimed at over 50s, with a focus on those who had been widowed.
Soon enough, she hit it off with a man who said he was called Gerald, a supposed businessman who owned his own electrical business in Milton Keynes.
Their conversations moved quickly to WhatsApp, and they sometimes spoke over the phone.
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However, Gerald said he was away in Dubai, working on a significant project building a shopping mall.
As a result, the pair were never able to meet face to face, but soon enough their conversation took a different turn entirely.
Marjorie explained: “Towards the end of February, he began to mention he was having cash flow problems with his business. He said he needed a short-term loan of funds to complete the building project.”
Fully believing Gerald was a businessman, when he explained he would repay her at the end of the project in April, she was comfortable.
Further legitimacy seemed to be added when Marjorie was sent a copy of Gerald’s passport and shipping documents.
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