Nigerian scams reach a new low: eHarmony
Nigeria strikes again. Seriously, when are they going to realize that we’re onto them? But now they’ve reached a new low. An alert reader notified me of this new development (the name has been removed):
Hmm… If he’s going to try to scam a dating site, can’t he at least come up with a decent cover? An occupation of “still trying to get a good job” is not exactly appealing unless you’re one of those “I can change him! I can change him!” type of women. Oh wait, sorry. His job title is: “Still trying to get ba good job.”
I love how his ethnicity is listed as African American, but his picture is this:
This just screams “Hey! I’m from a catalogue! I’m FAKE!!!!”
I really would like to find the source of this photo. Has anyone seen this picture? Maybe on a frame you bought at Target? If so, please tell me.
I’d love to write a follow up.
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May 19, 2008 at 8:26 am
They let you into eharmony!?
They let a bot into eharmony?
Apparently I am so full of fail that the system doesnt work for me.
Here let me get you what it says:
eHarmony is based upon a complex matching system developed through extensive research with married couples. One of the requirements for successful matching is that participants fall within certain defined profiles. If we find that we will not be able to match a user using these profiles, we feel it is only fair to inform them early in the process.
We are so convinced of the importance of creating compatible matches to help people establish happy, lasting relationships that we sometimes choose not to provide service rather than risk an uncertain match.
Unfortunately, we are not able to make our profiles work for you. Our matching model could not accurately predict with whom you would be best matched. This occurs for about 20% of potential users, so 1 in 5 people simply will not benefit from our service. We hope that you understand, and we regret our inability to provide service for you at this time.
May 19, 2008 at 8:28 am
Maybe in a few years, with the help of the people who use the Google image labeler, you will be able to type in: blonde man, jeans, yellow shirt, sandles and find him.
http://images.google.com/imagelabeler/
May 19, 2008 at 2:35 pm
How bizarre! Good catch, Steph, and I’ll be scanning the shelves at Target next time I go to see if I see Mr. Thoughtful Blonde Guy. lol
May 19, 2008 at 9:19 pm
“His job title is: ‘Still trying to get ba good job.’ ”
And apparently he learned the mother tongue from watching old episodes of Fat Albert…
May 19, 2008 at 10:02 pm
yea, they are heartless.
May 20, 2008 at 1:01 am
If you still have idiot women still falling for this nonsense then blame the gulible dopes on this side of the ocean as well.
May 20, 2008 at 1:39 am
yeah things like this have been going on for a while still good to see that someone decided to point out idiots like this fake page come on the typo was great lol =] the least they could do was go to page 47 in google or something and get a picture of an african american that actually looks real..
May 20, 2008 at 5:07 am
hilarious
May 31, 2008 at 4:02 pm
[...] online dating scammers aren’t even trying anymore. Along with being an African American w/ a white guy photo he’s also ‘still trying to [...]
June 22, 2008 at 5:24 am
I encountered one of these nigerians on eharmony. She (He) posed as a young woman living in Florida, she had pictures, etc. But her grammer and spelling was terrible, so that’s what made me suspicious. She immediately wanted me to send her more pictures of myself. I think their doing this to have more of a database of real people’s pictures. Eventually she got around to wanting me to send her $2,200 to a bank in Africa and she mentioned she was working in Nigeria. When I started asking her how she wound up in Africa, when she was suppose to be living in Florida with her grandmother, no response. She had her profile listed as Native American, but she didn’t look indian to me.
June 25, 2008 at 2:57 am
I got matched with 6 scammers from Nigeria all of whom said they were from the US. Some sad story how they had to leave the US. Next, they will get around to asking for money. Stay away.
June 25, 2008 at 2:26 pm
Awesome comments. Thanks for sharing your stories! I may be contacting some of you soon for more details.
July 30, 2008 at 1:38 am
I too was being scammed on Eharmony but a lot of things didnt add up. The person I met 3 weeks into talking to each other told me his daughter Jane Brown was in South Africa with his mother and sufferred a brain tumor and needed $2k more so she could have emergency brain surgery. when I started to ask question, he started to say what kind of woman I was to let a child die because I wouldnt send money.
July 30, 2008 at 6:13 pm
WOW!!! Talk about a scammer! That’s absolutely crazy. It sounds like there are more of them on eHarmony than I had any idea.
August 15, 2008 at 4:29 am
Unfortunately it is up to the administrators of the site to be more alert to the Nigerians and review the photos better. This is one good reason why people should wake up to Free Online dating. You can read my article about the dangers on my Squidoo page at http://www.squidoo.com/MMMomma. Scammers can ruin peoples lives, they go after seniors and singles on dating sites. You need to read my article before you sign up for another free dating site. Compare the dollar store to a quality store…something gets lost in the quality and don’t you deserve the best?
August 21, 2008 at 4:29 am
I came across a scammer on Match.com pretending to be a guy from Texas. He said he was originally from England and had been here several years. His English and grammar was poor to say the least, especially for someone who supposedly grew up in England. After IMing several times, he said he was in Nigeria on business and needed money to bring home the goods he purchased. Asked if I could loan him the money and he would replay he a few days when he returned. Yeah, right!!!. His Match.com photo didn’t match the one on his IM screen, second flag, then the hit for $$. Asked him for his US address and phone ##. Address came up as a business that didn’t match his and the phone ## wouldnot go through. He explained that as him turning it off when traveling. Another, yeah right. Be careful about giving away any personal information, photos, etc. These people use this to post on other dating sites and may even, depending on the info you give them, steal your identity. I reported it to Match.com and asked them to verify his identity and information. I’m sure it’s borrowed and he’s using someone’s elses credit card that he lifted.
September 3, 2008 at 11:35 pm
Has anyone ever heard of a timothy from seattle?
Working in London on an oil rig???
September 4, 2008 at 3:58 am
Haven’t heard of timothy from Seattle. I am currently talking to George from North Carolina. He was working on an oil rig off the coast of Scotland. Was going to see him mom in South Africa for a week and then coming home to North Carolina so we could be together. Oh my, he was in an accident and his daughter has to have surgery, but the doctors won’t do it without 5000 dollars. His mom only has 3000 and said anything I could send him would help. There’s just one problem. I am poor. I told him and he said that if I loved him I would find a way to help him. Well, I told him that the only thing I could do was think of him and pray for him and his daughter. For some reason he reallly doesn’t talk to me anymore. Hmmmmm wonder why. He picked the wrong girl. By the way, I met him through eharmony. What a joke.
September 9, 2008 at 10:23 am
Mindy….your story sounds so familiar. Timothy from seattle all of the sudden had to go work in London on an oil rig. He said there was some kind of oil spill and he would be sent to jail if he did not come up with money to pay for it, or whatever. He asked me to loan him like $1500. Of course i told him no. I had no idea this sort of thing happened. He spent a lot of time talking to me and calling me from overseas. It makes me wonder if they (scammers) really profit off of people???
September 9, 2008 at 10:43 am
Wow! Lots of crazy stories! What a small world that some of you may have been targeted by the same person, or at least the same group of people using the same story.
I think I’ll be writing a follow-up to this in the near future.
September 19, 2008 at 12:33 pm
Hey ya’ll. Just a heads up. I had another scam attempt on myspace. He sent me a message and wanted to talk on yahoo. I started talking to him and within the first 10 minutes he said that I would be a perfect stepmom to his 22 year old child. That’s when the alarm bells started ringing. Then he proceeded to tell me that he is working in England for Texaco and his son is in AFRICA. One day he hopes to bring his son to the US. I finally told him that I was recently scammed and everything he was saying was sounding more and more like another one. I told him good luck in all you do and have a nice life. He wanted to know why I thought that and I deleted him. Whatever you do, NEVER NEVER tell them what they are doing wrong. We don’t want them to learn their mistakes. I found a website that tells you what signs to look out for. I have to say thank goodness for this site. Now when I meet someone online I use this as a checklist.
SCAMMERS BEWARE!!!! We aren’t as stupid as you think we are.
August 25, 2009 at 9:59 am
HI
THINKWE MITE OF COME ACCROSS THE SAME GUY, HIS NAME IS DANIEL WILLIAMS COMES FROM CHICAGO BUT HIS SON ALEX IS TEN AND HE NEEDS TO BRING HIM HOME FORM NIGERIA BECAUSE HE IS BEEN MISSTREATED. HE LIKES TO TCHAT ON YAHOO.. NEEDED £ 600 FOR THE FARE. TOLD ME I WOULD BE A PERFECT STEPMUM AND WIFE… AND THAT WAS ONLY AFTER A FEW CHATS… I DID NOT FALL FOR IT EITHER, BUT STILL PLAYIN HIM TOLD HIM THE MONEY IS ON ITS WAY…. JUST DIDNT SAY WHICH YEAR LOL
October 5, 2009 at 9:35 pm
Hi Jayne and All –
Just another alias to add to the list. Benjamin (Ben) Paxton…bpaxton0000@gmail.com sannime67890@yahoo.com
Identical story…strange grammar, divorced, found ex w best friend, son Alex conveniently homeschooled and shuffled off to Mother in West Africa when he has to jet off to UK for work as a geologist for a job. Alex and ex in car accident, coma, needs $1000 to start surgery.
Had a feeling it was a scam from the start, or at least someone pretty needy, talking about me being “the one”, loner and willing to relocate very early on. Had a very strong feeling he was not who he said he was, vague inconsistent answers to direct questions. Said he already made travel arrangements to come see me (next weekend) but didn’t consult me as to when!
When the hit came this morning, I felt actually relieved. As soon as I heard Nigeria (my apologies to honest fine Nigerians) I decided to put “son brain surgery Nigerian scam” into Google and up popped this site.
I asked him “wh is Jayne?” And told him not to contact me ever again or I would have him arrested for harassment.
I would not have sent money even if I had it, which I don’t. Out of luck!
Honor your gut feelings, people.
October 6, 2008 at 3:40 pm
The person in the picture is a model from Focus Hawaii. He has nothing to do with the illegal use of his picture. E-harmony isn’t the only dating site infested with scammers. They are everywhere on the Internet and its not just a small group of people. Scamming is the 3rd highest source of income for Nigeria. Always research anyone you meet online and never, ever send money. They will always come up with a reason for money. There is no such thing as Basic Travel Allowance. If someone you are talking with online is stranded in another country. Tell them to visit the US Embassy for help because they will never leave a US Citizen stranded in another country. Remember Google is your friend.
October 14, 2008 at 12:00 pm
Chatting with a guy from Tottenham England who claims to be an accountatnt. Hasn’t asked for $$ yet but fits the descriptions and is coming on really strong. Sentenece structure and grammar is horrendous and his mom is from SOuth Africa. Says his dad is in the hospital awaiting a kidney transplant. He’ll probably hit me up soon. I’m playing along. I’ll keep you posted….
October 14, 2008 at 7:38 pm
Mindy: I hadn’t thought about NOT telling them so they don’t learn from their mistakes. But that’s really good advice!
Concern: Wow! Thanks for the info! I’ll post an updated blog on this ASAP.
Creamie: That sounds like the M.O. Can’t wait to hear what happens next!
October 26, 2008 at 2:56 am
eharmony there s a guy named as richard or rick macdonald, pretending to be from keizer oregon and to be an engineer, working in Nigeria Lagos and suddenly asked me for money, usd850 through western union to his importer agent…they use a very religious image…take care girls
October 31, 2008 at 9:22 am
hey guys i love this forums…this ppl tried with me too but they couldnt!! here some of the info they sent me after all
First Name: Bakare
Last Name: Johnson
Address: 20 Ikeja Road
City: Ikeja
State: Lagos
Country:Nigeria
Zipcode: 23401
they want u to send money by westerunion because there is no bank facilities…..anyways take care everyone..internet isnt a safe place to find love and do business!!!!
November 10, 2008 at 10:19 pm
Melissa & Mindy
Tim from Seattle is a scam….I was the sucker who sent him money….he is very believable…loving dad, christian, caring man etc….sends you love poems. be careful and NEVER send money, no matter how much they promise to repay you…..
November 11, 2008 at 11:42 pm
I have two trying to scam me. eHarmony – I even think that it’s one person working me as two different men. Poor English, one in Africa on business and needs money to get home, one in England, sick neice but hasn’t asked for money yet, all the same things mentioned in every one of these blogs. Very sad! I never had any intention of sending money. The one guy I told him my attorney would draw up legal documents for him to sign before I lent the money just to see what he’d say. Well you guessed it, he got mad and couldn’t beleive that i didn’t trust him because he loves me, blah blah blah!!!
November 18, 2008 at 4:30 am
I met Fletcher from the UK on EHarmony who claimed to be Dutch and living in Macon, GA, but working on an oil rig in the UK. After chatting for a couple of months, we both closed our EHarmony accounts. He had been professing his love for me for some time already and was planning relocating to Las Vegas to be near me so that we could date and further explore our relationship. Four days before he was supposed to arrive, he contacted me and said that one of his workers was killed on the oil rig while he was not supervising as he should have been. He told me that the oil company he worked for was insisting he pay the family $120,000.00 within 5 days or they would pull his contract and not pay him the $200,000 pounds they owed him. He kept me updated on the money that he had gathered to fulfill their request. However, when he came down to the last $10,000.00 he finally asked me if I could give him a loan. When I denied the request and told him I felt that he was scamming me all along for the money, he got extremely offended and broke it off with me. Surprise, Surprise. That only confirmed my suspicion that he was a scam artist. Beware of Fletcher from the UK on Eharmony, Ladies.
December 27, 2008 at 2:21 am
Beware of scammers Norman Snow, Mason Callahan or Myke Smith from UK(supposedly) in business in china, robbed beaten need help. I lost thousands. anyone else ?????
September 27, 2009 at 8:46 am
Can u tell me anymore about mason callahan. I was contacted by him and I’m just wondering what angle he will use… Told me he was from denver. He’s in china for work. Says he will be back next week. Has a son,jeffrey at home.
Thanks
December 29, 2008 at 11:39 am
Watch out for “Patrick” from Belevdere Ca. Says he is originally from Georgia but when I spoke witn him briefly he had a south african/british accent. His profile and what he claimed were not consisitent. Said he was widowed but then said he was divorced. He also goes by “William Patrick Collins.”
He was on eharmony. I think he was going to try and scam me but I caught on.
January 1, 2009 at 12:33 am
I think I caught a “fish” as well, and he is still on BBP.com but doesnt know I know of the fraud yet. His name is supposivley Micheal Perotti, his screen name is “kindhearted962″. He says he lives in South Carolina, but is from Sweden, and born in italy. Wouldnt you know it, parents and brother were killed when he was 9, and his wife was killed 5 years ago. At first, I thought just a regular guy, with a sad story. Of course his writing is wierd, but that would be xplained by his not being from here….he is a geologist, who does routine trips out of country to dig soil for crude oil, diamond, and mineral excavations. The sad thing is, there is a picture of a 5 year old girl, who he claims is his daughter. Who knows how to find out who those pictures really belong to?
Right away I was IT, in his mind. He loves me, after 3 weeks??? He of course can move anywhere, so he said soon he would meet me. Well of course instantly he had to go do a job, and its in nigeria, and wouldnt be able to see me for 8 weeks. He had some mishap with his phone, so couldnt call me, but when he left for Nigeria, I asked him to get a phone to call me!! Well now he has one, but wont call me, he expected me to call him. He has no bank account, he said all of his monthly earnings are sent to a security company…I am sure that story was paving the way for him to ask me for money eventually. He doesnt know I know, boy I wanna stick it to him…. Any suggestions?? He deserves it!! my email is miracles37@msn.com if anyone has ideas on how to find out who the pics belong to and what to do now…..
January 1, 2009 at 3:20 am
WOW. These stories are amazing. It’s crazy how these scammers get around to so many people!
Andrea – I’ll be sending you an email!
January 23, 2009 at 4:41 am
Hey his name is Steve MacDonald that is all that needs to be said, but he tried hard 6 months of talking… and i hope all of these scammers are reading this ….
HOW F….G STUPID DO YOU THING PEOPLE ARE , IF YOU SEND MONEY ORDERS FOR THEM TO CASH WHO IS TO SAY THEY ARENT GOING TO SPEND THE MONEY AND NOW THE SYSTEM IF IT IS OVER 100 THEN YOU HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL IT IS CLEARED 2 WEEKS SO HAHAHAHAHA
February 3, 2009 at 4:04 am
The Kidney one is going on now with me. He was posted on Soulsingles. Says he is from Globe Arizona. Accountant. In Nigeria with his son Junior and his dad who waiting for a kidney transplant. The transplant is supposed to happen tomorrow. This should be interesting.
February 3, 2009 at 6:07 am
Wow Sandra, that sounds VERY interesting. Keep me posted on what he attempts next!
February 3, 2009 at 6:00 am
Has anyone been scammed by someone in Haiti?
February 3, 2009 at 6:53 am
Do you have any advice as to what to do once he makes the play?
February 3, 2009 at 3:10 pm
Okay 3 am. I just got a text. “We really need to talk” I asked why is something wrong. I am waiting for the response. And here it is “call me we need to talk about something” This is so exciting. I am dialing the phone here goes. Okay no hit up. Weird. But it is coming. I will keep you posted.
February 4, 2009 at 1:41 am
Okay now it is 1:30 pm the following day. The hit has been set up. All he has is check from the US which he will go to the bank tomorrow to cash. He has spent all his money on his hotel bills and his dad’s surgery and he needs to book his ticket home. I have asked him many questions, about his accent which is clearly not South African, about the car in his driveway in Arizona which does not have an Arizona plate, about the photo of him driving because he is on the wrong side of the car, this amazing. An answer for everything, not a good answer but an answer.
I will keep you posted
February 4, 2009 at 6:15 am
I am keeping this guy on the line. He is calling me all the time. He misses me. He loves me. The interesting thing is he even gets annoyed with me. I told him to eat his dinner later and talk to me now. He hung up. Called me back and said I was inconsiderate. I see the mechanism. Try to make me feel like I am doing something unkind. Then the hit works so much better. Play on my guilt. I can see how women are being pulled in. It must be devastating. He says all the right things. I have to say he is good. Too good to be allowed to continue. He may have met his match.
February 4, 2009 at 11:48 pm
Well here is an interesting turn of events. This morning I got a call saying he needed to talk. I really thought he was going for the cash. The scene had been set. It was ready to go. And then he confessed everything. Everything. Said he was not who he said he was, not his photos, no son, no sick father, never been to the states and that he was scamming women for money.
I was to say the least shocked. He said he just couldn’t to it to me. Amazing. Another ploy? We will see.
February 5, 2009 at 12:43 am
Wow Sandra, that is a really unexpected turn of events. It sounds like an attempt at a new ploy. What did he say after that? That he wants to stay in touch? Very interesting!
February 5, 2009 at 5:56 am
Well, he is staying in touch. So I guess it is another ploy. There have been others who have confessed but they all seem to have done it after the hit. This is a unique situation. I will continue to play it out. I am a documentary fil maker and I find this so interesting. The emotional strings that are pulled. SCamming is one thing but using peoples hearts, I don’t know for me it makes it so much worse. I will keep you posted. I am sure this is not over.
February 10, 2009 at 2:08 am
he is still trying to call me. I have been busy so I have not been answering. It seems to make him more persistent. I told him there was not a circumstance where I would send him money. But still he calls. I told him not a dying mother or baby nothing. I would never send him a dime. But still he keeps calling. Would it not be great if he had finally changed his ways?
February 18, 2009 at 4:40 am
It certainly would be great if he finally learned his lesson! Unfortunately, most keep it up hoping to find the occasional person who will fall for the scam. Do you have any new news to share with us?
February 17, 2009 at 2:45 pm
ok I have the same story only is to pay for a shipment of materials. he has NOT asked me for anything. He has been robbed and had a gun to his head and his daughters and still has NOT asked for anything. I feel like its a scam it sounds like one it feels like one but he has almost all of the money he needs and he still has not asked me for anything
February 18, 2009 at 4:40 am
The “being robbed” story is pretty commonplace among scammers. I would venture to guess that he’s not asking for anything yet to gain your trust, and will ask for something once he has it. Recently, some people’s profile accounts on Facebook have been hacked into, and the hackers claim the person is kidnapped and needs money. Keep me posted on what you learn next!
February 18, 2009 at 4:06 am
Another eHarmony one? Olivia Robert ?
I live in Oregon, and this woman claims to live in Oregon as well… about 2 hours from where I am. Of course, she’s very pretty, and has terrible grammar as she supposedly was born in Malaysia. She claims to be doing volunteer work in Africa doing art for kids. Yet she has a 3 year old daughter she left in Oregon with her uncle who has cancer. She needs me to cash her check for artwork she’s sold so she can buy a plane ticket back to the states. She says the check is coming from someone in the U.S. and it’s for a few thousand dollars. She is not offering me a ‘finders fee’ and says I can transfer the money via Western Union or Money Gram. Is it a scam? I think so… but it’s odd because it offers me zero money, which is different from most scams. Unless I just cashed the check and kept it. Or will they have a link to my bank account if I cash it through my bank? ID theft? Sending cash through Western Union seems fairly harmless…
I’m nearly 100% sure this is a scam… but I’m indulging it just to see what kind of further details come up!
Any other gentleman come across this Olivia Robert from Newport Oregon? She also got booted off eHarmony recently and has similar profiles on MySpace and Facebook under the same name and location in Oregon, but they have not been used for a long time… I’ve also found her via Google on other dating sites using the same alias and location. I imagine I’m not the only one out there she’s talking to!
February 18, 2009 at 4:24 am
… follow up to my previous post…
After searching around… it does seem this person: Olivia Robert is fitting all the profiles for a scam.
The common things:
Picture of Asian model type, poor grammar, asked for money to help with hotel bill, then asked for help cashing check, also had sob story of uncle with cancel, yet leaves her 3 year old daughter at home in Oregon with him while she’s in Africa for a month doing volunteer work! Yet her uncle is not able to cash the check for her? But can take care of her child? Claims to love you like after 3 emails. Profile was deleted from eHarmony for violation of TOS, so obviously there were others she was talking to.
I think I will no longer indulge this person. I have not given away any person information or address… so that’s good! I don’t know how to track the IP ? Can I get that information out of their email? I also considered setting up a PO Box just so I can get the check… a nice memento of what’s wrong in this world!
Beware… be smart… and good luck!
February 18, 2009 at 4:38 am
Hello! Yes, it does sound like a classic scam. A lot of these scammers use photos that are posted on modeling agencies’ websites to make themselves harder to resist. Definitely sounds like a classic scam! As for tracking the IP from an e-mail address, you can certainly do this by tracking the IP in the header. Here is a good Web site to use for this: http://bit.ly/rugOl (it’s a subpage from whatismyipaddress.com.)
February 24, 2009 at 4:46 pm
Wow, this really helped a lot. I’ve been going back and forth with this girl named ‘Mercy’ on yahoo messenger(found me on yahoo personals) who lives in Virginia, is from England but is now in Nigeria with her sick mom who needs a kidney transplant. She already has $2800 but needs another $500. (Are kidney transplants really only $3300?)
I just recently considered actually sending the money, then I found this page. Thank you all for bringing me to my senses.
I haven’t seen many others on here of girls trying to scam guys though. I think that would happen more than the other way around… ?
February 25, 2009 at 4:49 am
Glad this could help, Kurt! You know, I don’t hear quite as many stories about women scamming men on these sites, but I have heard a few. Maybe it’s because there are more women on dating sites in general? (Not sure if that stat is correct, but it’s just a thought…)
February 25, 2009 at 3:29 am
… well seems my last slew of questions and lack of response has ended communications with the apparent scammer. Just goes to prove that it was a scam.
Always best to go with your gut instinct. Asking for money isn’t all that uncommon in many cultures, they just don’t look at money the same way, so it can be a tad difficult to know if it’s just culture or a scam. But enough good questions always weeds it out. Unfortunately I was unable to find the source where “her” pictures came from… but oh well. What’s done is done.
I also did the email IP trace… and it said the email was originating from France or there bouts, not Africa! Crazy people! Be careful people.
February 25, 2009 at 4:50 am
Wow, France? Interesting! Could have been using one of those anonymous proxies to disguise the location too, or it could have been a scammer from France. Craziness! The pics can be hard to track down sometimes. It took me a long time to track down the scammer I ran into.
February 27, 2009 at 2:29 am
Kurt…
Yeah, I’d stay away from that one with a 10 foot pole! The patterns of asking for money mixed with a sob story seem to be the tell tale of a scam! It’s all the same situation with different characters. They prey on us for feeling sorry. How could such a bad thing happen to such a beautiful woman? Or man I suppose?
It’s unfortunate that a few have to ruin it for so many. There are legit people online. Best to stay local, ask questions about details (city, home, why they are doing what they are doing? etc…), and if you can… ask for recent photos, and photos that relate to where they say they are. It’s ridiculous that someone would enter online dating and not be able to provide pictures or say they can’t provide you any new ones. If all they can give you are modeling photos. You know that’s bad.
Good luck… be safe… and be smart !
March 13, 2009 at 11:25 am
hello; scammer is all around i have the same story like u guys. first last dec. i met in tagged name william alison smith he said his engineer and working in bahrain, and he said he send me some presnt through corporate express and then after few days they asking money to process in malaysian costum. then after chatting with him and talking to him in the phone he admitted that he is not the real person in the picture he said his been used with this gang in malaysia and force to do it even he doesnt like it. but originally he came from nigeria. so watch out! then next is mason callahan from denver colorado and he is engineer too and he work in china and after three day of chatting with him he said he’s going to africa and i find out that he is from lagos nigeria when he ask money to help him bec they been robbeb and he need to pay his worker and he really scared. so pls remember this name……they are scammer!!!!!
March 25, 2009 at 11:15 am
Hi everyone,
I’m currently experiencing what I’m pretty certain is an attempted scam. I was matched with a Stephen Williams on eharmony. He claims to own a Accounting and Finance business in Hanford, California. As soon as we were matched he gave me his Yahoo IM address so we could chat online (sweetstephenfun@yahoo.com). He said he was born in Spain to an African-American mother and an African father from Nigeria (which explained his accent). One week later he said he received a letter from relatives in Nigeria saying that his father had passed away and they needed him to come immediately because due to Nigerian tradition he could not be buried without his son present. He left, even IM-ing me from the airport! A few days after he was there he claimed that he wasn’t aware that here was no international banking there and that he had only taken his bank card with him. He needed me to send him $300 to help with the service for his father and he would of course return the money when he returned in a week. I of course said no, at the time only pissed at him for doing something so stupid like asking for money so early in a relationship. He later called me and said if I could at least send $200 that would help. Again I said no. Today I received an email from eharmony saying that they had terminated his profile. This got me to thinking and researching and finding all of these helpful sights that put all the “coincidences” under a spotlight. He also IM’ed me today and I told him straight out that I had received the email from eharmony and was there anything he wanted to tell me? He was upset and claimed that he was emailing them to find out what was going on, that it was complete b**lsh*t. I haven’t heard back from him after that. I consider myself to be lucky to have caught on quickly and not be sucked in any further than I was. I’ve read on other sights about these scammers sending emails with attachment that later record your keystrokes. Be careful everyone, and use your common sense. If I hear from him again I’ll post updates.
August 2, 2009 at 5:49 pm
The same Stephen Williams is on match.com. He claims to be a widower with a child. A civil enginner who lives in California but travels a lot, born and grew up in Spain. He was an orphan and moved to CA about 6 months ago. His e-mail is stephenwilliams120@yahoo.com and his number in the UK is 447024039877. Whatever you do, just ignore his online dating winks and e-mails. He is not who is said he and do not give him your personal information. I gave him my yahoo messenger user name and phone number and now I have had to change them.
March 27, 2009 at 12:52 am
i was scammed on eharmony with the nigeria angle. i think i knew it all along, but i wanted to believe it was true. the first sums of $ were an amount i was willing to risk to find love…..the $ amount kept getting larger each time. after each payment i was beating myself up. but they knew exactly what to say. this last time she wanted $3k. i declined. im hurting right now. im out a lot of money and this person i thought i shared something with was nothing but a lie…..i wish i had found this site sooner…. :[
March 28, 2009 at 3:55 am
Anyone hear of a Mason through match.com. A friend of mine is talking to him and she just sent him $5,000 by Western Union to Nigeria this morning for the cost of shipment of vaccine for 6,000 chickens from Bejing, China to somewhere in Chad, Africa. She is head over heels fallen for this guy and believes anything he says.
April 11, 2009 at 1:36 am
Has anyone heard of Kelvin Taylor, art dealer from Amsterdam? I met him on match.com. He sent pictures of him and his 12 yr. old daughter…very nice looking people. He claims to be a widower. We IMed for a couple of weeks then he had to go to West Africa to find hand-made artwork. While there he spent all his cash and couldn’t use his credit cards. Then, his daughter became ill and he needed money for medical treatment. I refused to send money, but he keeps calling 10 to 12 times a day. I am ignoring the calls.
April 17, 2009 at 10:19 pm
watch up! this one is very professional…a very good experience
has anyone heard of Patrick Brown, an interior designer cum civil engineer? My friend met him on match.com. He sent pictures of him and his 12 yr old daughter and his pet..very nice looking people. He claims to be a widower. Everything looked so real…he has a website :http://patrickbrowndecorators.com/pbhome/contact.html. , email add: enquiries@patrickbrowndecorators.com. a UK mobile phone number which he called her several times, and they chat everyday. After few months, he claimed that he had to travel to Nigeria for business. Somehow he managed to get the British Airline to sent a email confirmation of his trip with his daughter Kimberley Brown departure from London to Nigeria. After few days stay in Lagos, he bought two tickets to her country; again, he managed to get the email confirmation from KLM, “paid in cash and tickets collected”. Then he said he had spent all his cash and couldn’t use his credit cards. He asked her to process a money transfer to her account, guide her to login his internet banking website http://www.albbplc.com/net/secure/account.php..Albany bank..again all the information looked so real in his bank account, name and registered UK mobile phone number. Shortly she received a email confirmation from his bank – accountsdept@albbplc.com, to confirm on the money transfer. After that he asked her to send him the money via Western Union due to the urgency, so she did. Then he lied that he was being robbed, he has no money, no credit card and no more call credit in his mobile phone. He emailed her, expressing his terrible situation in a rather good command of English. but this time she refused to send him anymore money. Unfortunately, she received another email from his bank : accountsdept@albbplc.com, saying that he could not be contacted to confirm on the release of money. He explained that because he had no credit left in his phone which the bank used to contact him, so she had to sent him some money to top up his call credit. She had no choice but to take a second risk, hoping that she would get back her money. After one week, money still not arrived, again he lied about his bank was having some internal problem, where they had to wait for the problem to be resolved. Then he asked her to send him a sim card and top up some credits, because he internet access is due to expire, and he needs to keep in touch with her. But this time she promised herself that she will not send him any money or anything. Instead, she called up a UK ambassy officer in Nigeria for a favor, to call his number, and to confirm whether this person exist or not. To her disappointment, the officer said, he hang up after hearing his voice, and when he tried to call the second time, he refused to pick up the phone. so its obviously a scam. Well, people make mistake, i really pity her. I am writing on behalf of her because she doesn’t have the courage to do it. This man may still be there, please share with us
April 17, 2009 at 11:07 pm
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April 18, 2009 at 12:42 am
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April 21, 2009 at 7:22 am
I recently found out about this widower Ken Kren, very handsome with a young child. He has a web site on jewels, travels to India, China and far off places. was also on match.com scamming shamelessly. He is slick and claims his love within days! Then asks for money. Shame on him. Can’t these guys be caught.
April 22, 2009 at 12:13 am
Here is something new on Ken Kren. He has a website alright with his picture. This slick dude is a businessman alright, but he is much older; almost 70, not 50 his stated age. Looks like grandpa, no teeth. But love the suit. Ladies wise up. If they fall in love with you in days and promise you marriage, love and happy ending RUN and don’t look back.
June 5, 2009 at 1:47 am
Ken Kren – info about this scammer is everywhere (starts out on Match and then gives you an Yahoo address). He’s using the same story over and over. I was smart (thank goodness) and didn’t fall for his BS. I’m wondering how many out there have fallen for this CREEP!
*enjoyed the long stem red roses, Godiva Chocolates…not sure about the bear-but it was a nice touch.
April 23, 2009 at 9:14 pm
Beware of “Dewey Wolfe”—supposedly from Houston Minnesota and on a job erecting a cell tower in Nigeria. Very smooth talker—asked to have money orders in my name sent to me in the US from clients that owed him money–Filed a report with FBI Internet security, NJ Cyber Crimes Unit and talked to the Houston Minnesota police chief.
I pushed the issue to have him call me because I wanted to hear his “voice”—Oh my, an American businessman he is not!
Beware
I was on Mingle2.com
June 10, 2009 at 5:43 am
KM PLEASE CALL MY OFFICE 817-645-0981
June 10, 2009 at 10:56 am
I as notified of your comment—–will call you
thanks
May 7, 2009 at 9:36 pm
Anyone heard of Melvin Wellburg? Supposedly an IT Engineer living in Philadelphia but contracted to work in Nigeria weeks at a time. Widowed six years with a 7yr old daughter, age 46 yesterday was his birthday. Can find nothing on him. Have been corresponding thru eharmony about 2 weeks. Cannot return phone call from number left on my cell but he answers texts. Sounds fishy
May 19, 2009 at 2:14 pm
It’s a classic part of the scam for men to say they are widowers with one child. They often claim to be “petroleum engineers” or engineers, or something similar or self-employed.
Manipulation is also a hallmark of their interaction with their targets. First they lavish loving praise on you and then, if you don’t send the money, you’re frozen out and it’s human nature to want to feel that love and appreciation and closeness again. They’ll be harsh and demanding and accuse you of being cruel and horrible – anything to get that money. Remember- they are skilled at this – and you’re not. This is what they do for a living.
Say ‘no’ and don’t feel bad. If someone really loved you, first they wouldn’t demand money from you, and even if they asked, they would understand and be supportive if you felt uncomfortable sending it to someone you had not set eyes on in a foreign country by, of all things, Western Union, Money Gram or wire transfer. After all, anyone who really loved you would want to know that you’re being careful and protecting yourself in general. That would make them happy.
Also, never give out real information. You can get a disposable phone number at http://www.Vumber.com (not vNumber, but vUMBER.com) which is great. Remember, phone numbers can give scammers and others your full home or work address in seconds.
Make up a similar name but don’t use yours – especially your last name, don’t provide real birthdays (helps identity thieves) or other accurate information. If the person you are communicating with does turn out to be The One, you’ll both have a great laugh over it later and he or she will respect you for being proactive and careful as opposed to being upset with you for concealing your true information early on, at a time when The One could have been just anyone or a scammer or a potential stalker. The people who love you want what’s best for you. That is what love is about. They don’t manipulate, bully you or otherwise try to MAKE you do something.
Everything I’ve seen above fits the patterns of these scammers. Keep in mind that they tend to cut and past other people’s profiles into their own, so you can try to take a line from a profile or e-mail and Google it – When you do this, put the phrase in DOUBLE QUOTES to get an exact search. For example, put the following in Google with the quotes:
“touching fingertips, smelling your neck”
I know – ick – but Google will show 221 hits for it. It pulls up a profile from a guy posing as a doctor on Chemistry.com and the identical profile for a lot of other people on a lot of other dating sites, both male and female.
Try it with the bad poetry they send you too.
Best of luck, and be please careful.
September 29, 2009 at 9:11 pm
I went to the Eharmony site yesterday and filled out the compatability profile, because I was curious. Got 5 matches, this morning, all 3 – 10 years older than me and nowhere near where I live – all without photos. Decided to check a few boards. On a tip, went to their website and tried to send an e-mail to CS. The link is broken.
I tried that phrase you suggested just now. Hits are up to 231. I have now decided to go back to meeting men the old-fashioned way. At least I know they will not be from Nigeria and trying to get me to wire $. I also sent eHarmony an e-mail through their “Success Stories” link, inquiring about the status of Kelly’s lawsuit…
May 19, 2009 at 2:32 pm
One more note – for much more help on this subject along with information on specific scammers, go to
http://www.ScamWarners.com
and go to the fourm called “Love Scams.” It’s an eye opener.
Also keep in mind that along with the free dating sites and paid sites like eHarmony and Chemistry.com, these scammers are all over the religious dating sites, such as Christian dating sites. The idea is that people on these sites may let their guard down more than in another forum. In addition, scammers often emphasize how religious they are and you may see them use all capitals whenever writing the word GOD. For some reason that shows up a lot in Nigerian scam profiles and e-mails. They can use the fact that a person is a devout follower of their faith against them in attempting to force them to send money.
June 1, 2009 at 9:27 am
i was on match .com and i am out $873.00 befor i saw this, page i have a photo of the guy that fool me i woild like to send it to you so you can put it on this page and others, how do i get my money back or do i? thank you nancy rakoz get back to me ok
June 12, 2009 at 10:43 am
Instead of just complaining about EHarmony and the scammers, I did something about it and now there is a class action lawsuit against EHarmony for allowing fraudulent profiles, scammers etc.
Contact the website link to add your name to the claim, this is a class action, and the more people who have had a bad experience with EHarmony regarding the lawsuit, we have the more EHarmony will have to do to correct the issues…..
June 13, 2009 at 1:42 am
Kelly….I’m sure thanks are in order from many people out there that have been scammed from contacts on EHarmony. This should be the first of many ‘dating sites’ including Match.com.
What is the link?
June 13, 2009 at 2:40 am
http://www.eharmonyclassaction.com/main/home.sfx
Here is the link to the Eharmony class action…Because EHarmony selects the matches before the user does, they have more obligation to be aware of who they are sending as matches. They have advertised so much about the 29 point system, which apparently is a bunch of B.S….also they allow users to post fraudulent profiles, which is basically internet fraud…
The system is flawed and they are not concerned about how their own clients are getting fleeced using their site…Someone (me ) wants them to be responsible and socially aware of the pain and emotional suffering they are causing by being so secret about these profiles and scammers. The use of online dating services will be used well into the future and people must be protected from sites that dont protect their customers…consumer laws should apply to any company selling products and or services…..
June 28, 2009 at 5:39 am
Thanks for the information. For the past week I’ve been corresponding with a scammer who found me on Match.com His name was Mark Thompson. His email on yahoo is Markjust4u@yahoo.com He claimed to be working in W. Nigeria and was mugged along with his 12 year old daughter,Stephanie. He asked for help with the medical bills because they took all of his money. After I told him I wasn’t in a position to help and was surprised that he would ask for money when we haven’t even met, I never heard from him. Big surprise. The sick part is they play with your heart and emotions. He had such lovely things to say—I felt so stupid and used. His main thing was he couldn’t wait to see me in person. Adding to the urgency of his money request. It’s my first and last attempt at internet “dating”.
July 25, 2009 at 8:10 am
I recently met this Dewey Wolfe. He says he’s from Houston Minnesota. He says he’s 52 and that he has a 24 year old son. He said his son made him join OKCUPID. I knew that there was something fishy. He also said he met the woman of his life, me. I told him he was moving too quickly and that I was not ready for a relationship at this point. He also said he used his friends ok cupid account because the IM on his did not work. Friend’s id CuteBen50. Then he stated he deleted his okcupid because he met me and that he wanted me to be his woman. Beware I have a feeling this is a big scam.
July 25, 2009 at 7:55 pm
RR
Dewey Wolfe is a total scam——don’t fall for any of it.
Please read my post above
He scammed a woman in Texas–involved thousands
I know he is really smooth—-I actually spoke to him on the phone—this is no American from Minnesota–believe me!!
July 25, 2009 at 11:46 pm
I read your post. Thanks for the information.
July 26, 2009 at 12:29 am
RR
He is relentless—-be careful……..he will try and try again
I am 53 and a widow–told him that I may have lost my husband but not my mind——
July 30, 2009 at 9:41 pm
Hi,
I am emailing with a woman I met on Match. She is (supposedly) working as a consultant in Nigeria helping farmers with casava crops. She had recently moved to Greenville, SC, close to where I live. Her name is Nancy Keller. She is coming home soon and says she wants me to pick her up at the airport. She sent me her flight information for KLM airline and she is supposed to arrive this Saturday (2 days from now). She has not asked for any money yet, but I am suspicious of her quick affection and Nigerian connection. Does anyone recognize the name or have heard of something similar?
July 31, 2009 at 3:01 am
Randolph, this is the same scam that i posted about on 3/27/09 above(with a little change in the details of the job, etc). “she” WILL ask for money. it is just a matter of time. do not fall for it. folks….the bottom line is, if it seems too good to be true it is. if you want to screw with “her” do it. but do not send money and do not get wrappd up in the charade. when “she” asks for a money order you could pretend to do it and let them sweat it out and waste their time for a change.
August 2, 2009 at 8:52 am
Beware of a match.comer Mark Thompson. His email on yahoo is Markjust4u@yahoo.com He claims to be working in W. Nigeria and although he is 60+, has a 12 year old daughter, Stephanie. Fortunately I found this site when I first started emailing him, and now am just leading him along in the same fashion he THINKS he is with me. What a scum.
August 8, 2009 at 6:34 am
Guys, I have a new one with the same 20 airport road address but it is now a 26yo woman named Julie Sedgeberg. I know it was a scam from the beginning but kept going until I received a request for money which was for $200 (FOR FOODSTUFFS). Who talks like this? She claims to be in school studying Zoology. When I asked about it she changed the subject and would profess her love for me. It actually took about 15 emails for the monetary request. Thanks for helping find her out beyond a shadow of a doubt. If any one needs more info or pics of her post a comment and I will send it to you.
September 19, 2009 at 10:15 pm
wow i feel so stupid cuz ive been talking to her and she just asked me for that 200 for food stuffs i almost sent it to her but i wanted to check her out through the net first to make sure it wasnt a scam… can u tell me more about her and send me some pics of her? email me at lilmb08@yahoo.com
October 14, 2009 at 3:43 pm
I been speaking to the same girl, But she has her name as Jen Brown, But she sent me pic and the name under them would say Julie Sedgeberg..She said she needed money for food cause she’s in Africa for school, Her mom and dad died, She was tryin to scam me.. I just wanted to see naked pics of her.. SO i can say i got the better deal =) cause i knew it was a scam cause i would ask her question.. And she would just flip it on me… So i played her game… And i have plenty pics of her.. And the address she wanted the money sent too
The Email she was using:
Name: Julie Sedgeberg
Address: 20a Craigt St
City:Ikeja
State:Lagos
Zipcode:23401
Country:Nigeria
August 25, 2009 at 9:09 am
im talking to daniel williams who says he from chicago, found the love of his life in his bed , yep u guessed it his best friend, so she moves to nigeria taking their son 10 yr old son alex, he says he has been to court n won his son back because he was been mistreated,. he rings me from a no number phone, asked me for his support on getting his son back, because he could not pay all the fare. and would i send £600 through {western union} to his travel agent mr adeyemo adekunle.o address 14 ondo st bodij city ibadan, im playing along with him we have only just started talking about 5 instant messages. he soon got to the point. he,s already said he loves me,( well he wud he thinks he,s getting £600 from me} lol i found this site trying to check out ibaddan.. so thanks to you all iv no need to feel guilty, because i wasnt to sure, now im very sure he,s a scammer…. thanks again page….
August 31, 2009 at 10:04 pm
my roomate has been talking to a guy named Steven Moophy along with several other people involved with him. She fell madly in love with him after about 6 weeks of talking he had to go to Nigeria for business to purchase some parts for a construction company. He supposedly has money and will take care of her for the rest of her life but guess what..He couldnt come home because he needed BTA money to leave the country it was refundable but he had to show it to customs so she sent it western union well then dont you know he was robbed of eveything but his international cell phone, and a picture of her. A doctor called her one morning to advise that steve was in the hospital and needed treatment and that she would have to send money to have him treated or it wouldnt be possible to treat him. I begged her not to send the money and gave her the number to the red cross, as he claimed he was a citizen. The red cross told her straight out that this was a scam and got her in touch with the states department who told her no ameican citizen had a passport with that name on it and this once again was a scam. I asked her to get a letter from the Chief of Staff at the hospital, she got one very badly worded with a lot of things mis-spelled. It explained to her that Steve was “shot on the head”(not in the head) but the bullet passes threw and he is in a comma not coma and needs medical treatment. Three days later he is out of his coma and on the phone with her asking her to please pay the hospital. I asked to to get a copy of the doctors medical licence and get a police report. She was told she would get this information as soon as she sent the money. I told her to ask them to take her credit card as she insisted on sending the money under threat that they would just let him lay there and die if she did not. They said they could not take a credit card and the money once again had to be sent western union. The police report was not a standard police report but another poorly written email with the police dept now telling her she had to pay the hospital. She didnt and told them she didnt have the money, well miricale of miricales he got better but they wouldnt let him out of the hospital until he paid part of the bill, what hospital holds you for randsome? She ended up sending them an additonal 1700.00 for his release now he is out but cant leave because he needs 2000.00 BTA money again. Help Please!!!! I know this is a scam but I can not get thru to her. She has seen only one picture of him and I nearly forgot the kind doctor (Jacob) lends him his cell phone and lap top so he can keep in touch with her.
September 1, 2009 at 2:38 pm
… that’s crazy this stuff is still going on. I’m still on eHarmony and haven’t been matched with (or at least communicated with) a scammer since the only one I came across a few months back. I see what I believe are lots of fake profiles on Match.com… I just ignore them.
BE CAREFUL PEOPLE !!! NEVER GIVE OUT MONEY !!!
Especially if you’ve never even met this person face to face. Even then. Heed caution. The scammers prey on your longing to be with someone. It’s really just wrong.
September 18, 2009 at 7:46 pm
Hi, I have just became a member 3 weeks ago on singlesnet and just recieved 20 photos and a sobing story about Julie Sedgeberg, I knew It was a scam. I recieve about 10 to 20 of these a week. Can these scammers just go away and try to find a real job. Thanks
Steven
December 28, 2009 at 10:15 am
Well, I guess I’m not the only one who ran into Williams, curtiswilliams56@ yahoo.com. He also found his wife in bed with another man. Has a 15 year old daughter and is now working in Nigeria. Asked for money and would pay me back when we met on his way back to Illinois. Sounds familar? His website is Lovebirdmaga2 You would think that should have been the first red flag.
In case you are wondering, NO he didn’t get the money. I am concerned about the fact that he has my e-mail ,website ID, cell and landline number. Do you know what kind of damage he can do with that info?
By the way, checked on the zip code, 23401, it is the hottest scam spot in Nigeria right now. Be carefull out-there. Hard way to learn.