With Valentine’s Day around the corner Wexford Gardaí are warning of the dangers of romance scams.
Romance fraud takes place mainly online with the scammer eventually exploiting the victim through manipulation over a period of time.
Most victims of the scam believe they have met their perfect match online, but the other person is in fact a scammer using a fake profile to build the relationship. They slowly gain the victim’s trust with a view to eventually asking them for money.
One Irish woman was showered with expensive gifts, including scarves and perfumes, before she was asked to invest in her suitor’s business. Over a thirteen (13) month period, the woman gave the romance fraudster €48,000. The woman initially delayed reporting the fraud to Gardaí as she was married. In 2022, more than €15,000 was stolen from someone in the New Ross district who fell prey to a romance scam.
The extent of the scam is not fully known because many of the victims are too embarrassed to report the fraud to Gardaí.
Speaking on Morning Mix today, Wexford Sergeatn Niall Maher explained “In the beginning, the amount of money requested will often be small but increases as the scammer becomes more successful in building the ‘relationship’ and tricking the victim.”
Recently, a romance fraudster in the west of Ireland was found guilty of taking nearly €19,000 from a victim. The perpetrator obtained money through deception over a five (5) month period after meeting the victim through a dating website.
An Garda Síochána works closely with Europol to disrupt the activities of romance scammers, particularly organised crime gangs that engage in this type of criminality. Dating websites are often monitored for criminality.
