MORE than €7 million has been stolen from victims of romance fraud in the past five years, gardai said.
Latest figures show that the majority of the 245 victims that have come forward since 2020 were female.
Gardai said their average loss was €28,500
The highest single loss was by a woman who had over €450,000 stolen in 18 transactions.
And one man had more than €380,000 taken.
Gardai say criminals routinely use fake photos to create a fake profile on a dating app or website before getting to work.
Victims will quickly be encouraged to move to a messaging app or email and then the requests for money begin.
In the early days scammers may repay initial borrowings to establish trust before going further.
Gardai urge people to use reputable dating sites and to carry out Google reverse image searches on pictures.
Detective Superintendent Michael Cryan of the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau said, “A victim will be made believe that they have met their perfect match online, but are in fact being terribly deceived.
“It becomes a huge invasion of privacy and a breach of trust which can impact your whole view of people and the possibility of romance, but it’s important to remember that this fraud and it is a crime.
“It is often the case that a victim’s money is transferred overseas to fund organised criminal activities such as terrorism, human trafficking, people smuggling and even corruption.
‘Can easily happen’
“An Garda Siochana work closely with both Europol and Interpol to disrupt those involved in fraud of this nature as part of our investigations into romance scams.
“If you have previously been or believe that you are a victim of a romance scam, please speak with us at any Garda Station. This can very easily happen and no one should feel embarrassed, we are here to help and will treat every report in confidence.”
Supt Cryan advised people to use a reputable dating site and stay on the messaging function until trust is established.
He said: “Unfortunately, this type of crime goes on for some time, and the money is moved out of the country in the vast majority of cases, and it can take the victim sometime before they realise they have been a victim of fraud.”
He added: “If it sounds too good to be true sometimes it is.”
Best advice
An Garda Síochana’s advice to avoid getting caught out by romance scams including the following:
- Use a reputable dating site and its messaging function to help avoid moving to social media or texting too quickly.
- Take the image(s) they are using on their profile and Google Reverse Image Search.
- Be careful of what personal details you share on your profile and do not give your address, a copy of your passport or driving licence.
- Be wary of anyone asking lots of questions about you but not revealing much about themselves, or anyone asking you to video call but they won’t.
- Never, ever send money or give your bank details including online banking password to someone you have met online.
- Do not make any payment on the pretence that they visit you.
- Do not invest your money in any opportunity offered by a person that you’ve connected with online – always seek independent financial and legal advice.
- Do not download any app that they ask you to i.e. AnyDesk.
- If you become suspicious, save all your correspondence with the individual and immediately make contact with your bank and any Garda Station.
- Look out for inconsistencies like they’re university educated, but their spelling and grammar is below average.
- Act on instinct if you spot gaps in their story which can often occur as the fraudster mixes up which victim they are speaking with.
CASES OF ROMANCE FRUAD LAST YEAR
Victim one: Male, 50s, Eastern Region
This man connected with a female purporting to be living in Asia, on a dating site.
Following much communication by phone, they subsequently agreed to pursue a relationship and began making arrangements for her to travel to Ireland.
He initially transferred the cost to cover a Visa, long-haul flight and transfers to the value of €2,100.
In total, this victim transferred over €36,000 as part of a romance scam.
Victim two: Female, 30s, Southern Region
After matching on a dating app, the victim was led to believe that her match was an online trader.
He added his victim to a messaging app where they spoke for several weeks, and subsequently convinced her to transfer over €20,000 via a neobank.
The victim was falsely made to believe that this money was being invested into a trading app.
Victim three: Female, 40s, Eastern Region
Last year, this victim was added on Facebook by a male who claimed to be a doctor based in a worn-torn country.
After speaking for a number of weeks, the victim was asked for a significant sum of money in order to be able to return home.
In total, €26,300 was stolen from this woman.
Victim four: Female, 40s, Southern Region
They spoke for months, exchanging photos having met online on a dating site and soon they were a couple despite her being based in the south-west of Ireland and he living overseas.
During the course of their online relationship, he claimed that his construction business was failing and he required financial support.
In the course of 100 transactions, €35,000 was stolen from this victim.