Nigera Scam moves to Dating Websites and Personal Ads
January 23, 2009 by Linda Lee
Filed under Articles, Internet Dating Scams, Online Safety, Recent Posts, Recent Topics, Rip Off Scams Target Personal Ads, Scams
I was able to experience this firsthand. I recently put my profile up on Yahoo Personals and I had a few people who contacted me. One person sent me his email and I emailed him at r.hall@yahoo.com ( if any of you want to send nasty emails to this scammer, feel free.) I was very suspicious when the profile of this so called guy named “Randy Hall” was suddenly removed from Yahoo. He said he had a daughter and was widowed.
I got an email back later that seemed a bit weird, especially when the guy did not talk about anything in his profile and
was calling me “dear”. That is weird, my hackles were up and I was highly suspicious.
Note to all women, that is so Nigerian scammer lingo. In all their scammy emails (you won the lotto, bank fake email in dire need, I am a solicitor…etc..) they talk like some British Baron from the 19th Century!
I sent him a curt and very short reply back asking for more details like where he lived and what did he do for a living and why did he take his profile down in only 2 days, and OMG, check out the phony idiotic email that came back.
I started laughing when I read it and immediately knew my instincts were correct-SCAMMER!- I will post his scam email here so hopefully when other 13 year olds or disgusting old crooks sitting in a room in Nigeria try to pull this crap on another person , they will know they are being set up by one of the oldest scams in the book.
Read the letter and I will then explain to you how the old Nigeria scam works.
Hi Linda
Wow, what a letter! I wasn’t sure if I’d hear from you. I’m so glad I did. First, thank you for the compliments. I really appreciate all the nice things you said and the fact that you’re still willing to give me a try.It’s really hard to find a person that is interested in a possible long term relationship and not just a one night stand. I am looking for a best friend and partner. I don’t hang out in bars or date just anyone. I never thought I’d try online dating but here I am. ..Linda , I already let you know that you’re a truly genuine and open person…I am very open, honest and caring….My late Mom was from Kansas and My dad was from, West Africa cos he was brought up from Nigeria … they both meet in Rome , ITALY , where i grow up and they instilled many wonderful values in me.My Late mom raised me to be fighter and always come out on top and that is what i plan on doing.I would be 39 years by Jan 28th . My Dear Linda , am still having Difficult with my laptop for me to send more Pictures of me to you , hope this wont stop us from talking here and carrying the conversation to High level ..I am also a happy, outgoing person..I love to laugh and spend time with friends..Can you tell me how your day went?? what do you normally do at your Leisure time ??? .my favorite activities are basically anything to do with being outdoors..camping is one of my favorite things to do and also trying my hand at new things and I want you to know more about me ..first of all,I have now lost my mother and only have my father. my Late mother and father were married for 43 years and I think that is truly wonderful thing and I want to let you Know that i relocate from Elsmore ,Kansas to Powell St, San Francisco anytime from now which I let you know that i just got a 1story 10 home yesterday .I want this also very much..although my life is full of love , there is the most important element of life that is missing from mine..my life companion.this person must be sincere, honest, understanding and family oriented.I also want someone that is always serious all the time…that is able to just “have fun” and balance this with responsibility..someone that is adventurous,loves the outdoors and laughing…I want someone that can appreciate quality in life but also the most simplistic things in life., but I want to share my life with someone..I do not date a lot because I do not enjoy going out with so many different people….when I do go out on a date it is only because I am quite attracted to that person (in all aspects…not just physically), I think it is of extreme importance to be on the same levels with someone you are to share your life with.i.e intellect, sense of humor and also similar goals in life.these things all add up to admiration, loyalty and friendship..I would like to find this so that I may begin the second journey of my life in which i let you know i my profile so please ask me whatever you would like…I think you are someone that is seeking the same as I and so I would love to pursue this friendship with you to see what happens…only if, at the very least, we would both have gained a great love.of course, hopefully more…;-)..Linda , Let’s I forget , I wanna let you Know That I would be Living the state for Now cos i heard a Called from The Dr that’s in charge of My dad sickness from The Hospital there In Nigeria That My dad is not really good that he want to see me ..I was so shock when I heard That My dad is not good and Been The Only child of My dad i think i need to see Him cos he’s the one left for me now ..To cut this short ,I am On My way to Nigeria Probably In the next 8 – 12hrs cos I have book my plane . so don’t hesitate to mail me and I will reply you back …..But Most especially i will soon be back to state soon I look forward to hearing from you again soon..Please feel free to say anything and I would Like to know know thing about you like :
What are you doing for Living ??
What do you seek for in a relationship?
What sort of relationship you seek for?
What are the basic qualities you seek for in a man?
What interests you to me ?
What do you do for fun?
Do you like public intimacy?
How long have you been single?
What’s being single like?
How do you treat your man?
Why do you need a man?
Can you love this me even though you continue talking to me ???
What is love to you?Would you hit your man for any reasons?
Got to go now and Hope to read from you soon
Randy
YUCK!!! Here are the people who are talking to you.
Nigerian Romeo Boiler Room Rip Off Scam
There are tons of “tells” in this email.
Bad grammar and spelling are usually the first giveaway in all scammer emails.
For instance the scammers often misspell stupid words. A good example of this is the fake bank alerts email I recently got that had in the subject line this, ” your accuont will be locked.”
I delete about at least 10 fake Paypal, eBay and bank alerts a day. A popular one recently has been “buyer dispute” from eBay, since I have not used eBay in about 3 years that was an obvious one for me to catch.
Here is the Nigerian Scam in a nutshell. It is called 419 or Advanced Fee Fraud.
I have included some information about some other common online scams for your protection.
Please never send any money to strangers, never login to any place through an email, always find the real bank online or login to eBay or Paypal at their own websites.
Most companies now accept these fake emails by forwarding them to “spoof@—–” ebay, paypal, Citibank, whatever place you supposedly got the fake email from. This helps them keep track of them too.
Be careful out there. The internet is literally open to the entire world and there are many evil people waiting to prey on you and this latest personal scam is a new low of these disgusting crooks!
1. Nigerian Letter Scam
This is probably one of the best known online scams but it still manages to get people to part with their hard earned money. Invariably you receive an e-mail, usually written in capital letters and starts out like this:
“DEAR SIR/MADAM: I REPRESENT THE RECENTLY DEPOSED MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE FOR NIGERIA, WHO HAS EMBEZZLED 30 MILLION DOLLARS FROM HIS STARVING COUNTRYMEN AND NOW NEEDS TO GET IT OUT OF THE COUNTRY…”
The letter says the scammers are seeking an accomplice who will transfer the funds into their account for a cut of the total–usually around 30 percent. You will be asked to travel overseas to meet with the scammers and complete the necessary paperwork. But before the transaction can be finalized, you must pay thousands of dollars in “taxes,” “attorney costs,” “bribes,” or other advance fees.
However, there is no minister or money other than the money you paid in advance. Victims who travel overseas may find themselves physically threatened and not allowed to leave until they cough up the cash. This online scam is also referred as Nigerian 419 Letter, where the 419 stands for the section of Nigeria’s penal code that this online scam violates.
2. Lottery Scams
In this online scam you will receive an email informing you that you have won a lottery or that the XYZ lottery company went into a draw for the distribution of unclaimed money and your email address was selected. You will be asked to make a payment, often in cash, for the money to be released and sent to you. Unfortunately, there is no money and you never hear from the XYZ company again.
Remember, if you have not purchased a lottery ticket it is unlikely that you could have won anything specially if you need to pay to claim it. Lottery companies and agencies do not work that way.
3. Online Auctions
Unfortunately, as online auctions sites have increased in popularity so have the online scams associated with auction sites. Here the scammers place fictitious products for sale and once the auction is over, the highest bidder pays for the product which he/she never receives it. These online scammers are extremely difficult to trace. However, most auction sites have a strict rule and once a scammer is identified, they can no longer use the site.
Another form of this online scam is seek out potential buyers through auction sites. The scammers then send them an email informing them that they can offer them the product the buyer is trying to buy on the auction site for less money. If you fall prey to this online scam, you can say bye to your money and you will never see the product.
4. Online Investments
This is one of the most high risk, high return and popular scheme on the internet. Most of these are scam where you’ll have the operator running away with you investment before you knew it.
A lot of these schemes are also what is commonly known as “Ponzi scheme” where early investors are paid high returns to entice more funds to flow in. Basically, in this scheme investors are paid using the funds that it is attracting until such time it collapse under its out flow of funds. The victims are usually the later investors.
Click on “Ponzi scheme” for more info. One of the example of such scheme that is still operating is the Swiss Cash Fund (1948). Following are some related links:
- Malaysia Central Bank warning
One can still make some good returns in online investments as long as the pay out is not unbelievably high. Usually, a return of between 5% – 7% is a good measurement that it may be a legitimate concern.
The GOLDEN RULE to follow when hunting for opportunity on the internet is to be vigilent and always do your research and due diligence checks to ensure that the opportunity is a sustainable entity. If you are one of those high risk takers — do it with your extra, never, NEVER borrow to take a risk!
UPDATE 11-11-09
Since I wrote this article, so many people have contacted me about this problem.
Many people have fallen prey to these tactics.
This is not just on Yahoo Personals or Match.com or Catholic and Christian Dating Websites, this is happening on all kinds of personal dating ad websites everywhere.
Just read the comments and you can see how large this is.
Please remember, NEVER send money to someone you meet online, never.
This is one of the worst things you can fall for.
These people do not have phone numbers, you can never speak with them, and if you do, make sure you get a call back number, because they may hire someone to call you. This scam takes in MILLIONS of dollars every year.
This scam runs in so many forms it is hard to believe.
Tell your friends and please let the sites you have been betrayed on know what is happening.
Someone needs to guard the gates a bit more carefully. This is a tragic scam that hurts millions of people each year.
UPDATE 12-2-09
Many of you would like to have these bogus photos posted. Please right click and save the images to your desktop and then email them to me also if any of you would like to forward me these fake emails and letters I will post them on this blog. Many of you found me through the fake letter I posted, so lets help other people and bust these scumbags!
Email me at scammerphotos @ askmepc.com
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Out of twelve there must be a Judas Iscariot. not all Nigerians are scammers.you sending money to someone you don’t know or even see you are the biggest fool on earth.if those scammers come out clean and soliciting to you for money or relationship you will took to your heel without looking back because they are Nigerians and they have nothing to offer.for you not to run away they will turn the table round by faking them self.one thing i know for sure is that most ladies fall for lies. by the time you start telling them the truth they will run away.there is this saying that goes use what you have to get what you want.some Nigerians are real for sure.so stop condemning my country.i registered with eharmony with my real profile. everything about me there is real but up still now i get no respond to those sent mail just because i’m from Nigeria.it’s been up to 3yrs now. if i had put the fake profile i will get uncountable mails within the weeks.
that is for the dating stuff but for other fraudulent act i don’t know.
some people are just evil in this world and i wonder what they derive from it
WARNING!!! LADIES PLEASE BE CAREFUL OF THESE SCAMMERS. FOLLOW YOUR GUT! If I can prevent one person from being scammed than justice is served. He goes by the name JOHNNY MCKAY, NICK MCKAY, FEMSON AYINDE. If he ask you for money for anything…REFUSE. He will claim his undying love for you, then ask you for money to come visit you. Once you give him a few dollars for a plane ticket, he disappears. Please keep your hard earned money and save yourself heartache. If he contacts you, run. Remember you do not really know who this person is. Do not fall for his lies or love letters. Keep your money Ladies. Another person wrote about him below as well. Again, BEWARE OF THE NAME JOHNNY MCKAY, NICK MCKAY, FEMSON AYINDE. HE IS A SCAMMER.
WARNING!!!! LADIES PLEASE BE CAREFUL. If I can prevent one person from being scammed than justice will be served. He uses the name JOHNNY MCKAY, NICK MCKAY, FEMSON AYINDE.
Man, I think I was really scammed. The name is Johnny Mckay.
Beware of Peter Bowen from Alpharetta GA-grew up in Spain has a 3 year old daughter-Lilian. He is in Nicaragua on business-self employed contractor and is a scammer!! Got hurt while working in Nicaragua and wanted $ to pay for internet connection. He didn’t get me though-but another almost did…..Wayne Zambruther from Bangor Pa-same story as a few above-just moved here from CA-wife and parents died in a car accident a few years ago-has a 6year old son-Paulo. “Wayne” has only been in PA for a week, but is in FL on business looking for “arts” to open his own Gallery-had to leave to go to the Phillipines to get the arts he wanted for his gallery—scum bag! Oh-and he wrote hmmm i c all the time-weirdo’s!! It’s a shame that good people get sucked into this crap and then give up on the online dating-sad. Good luck to you all out there!
Beware of Lwilliamson89 on Yahoo Personals. The first two e-mails were written by someone that knew how to write english. All subsequest e-mails were full of sweet romantic stuff that almost made me gag. I questioned alot of things that didn’t make sense and he never addressed them. Yes, he was a widower and had a 6 year old named tess. I checked this morning and he took down his profile. All of a sudden he had to go to Nigeria to see his sick father. I knew from the beginning he was a scammer. I guess he figured out I was on to him. Pastyies, please don’t send ANY money! He is a scammer!!!!!
Report him to Yahoo! May not do any good but do it anyway.
Hey all you ladies…I aswell recieved a bunch of emails form a 42 beautiful man form Wisconsin with a 8 yeard old daugheter..his dad was sick went to Nigera to be with his sick dad…wife past away..has asked for NOTHING yet!! anyone want to share photos of this loser??
jetcitywoman22@yahoo.com
theresalopez46@yahoo.com scammer goes by “theresa lopez” please mess with this scammer i was gonna enter her/his? e mail into those “win a free laptop” spam sites but i think it will be better if people waste there time to keep then from scamming others.
what i read on this site saved me from being scammed! she talked to me for a week before writing about a story of getting robbed and stuck in nigeria while there to buy “suitable” artworks to market in US. she even sent a fake police report, which i looked up and the station didnt exist. thanks people who posted all this helpful info. she was very convincing but there where way too many grammar errors and alot of repetitiveness, and also a weird old british type of english.
Oh boy, I have one like this on the line right now! He took down his yahoo ad right after I responded to his inquiry. He is a good looking white American guy, widowed, with a small daughter, with a sick father in Nigeria. He goes by the name of Larry Williamson. The photo in the ad is not the same as the ones he sent afterward. The wording, misspellings, everything is the same! He has not asked for money yet, and there is no way in hell I would send any. The initial photo shows him, in a red snuggie, holding a cat on his lap. The second batch shows him holding a birthday cake with a number ‘8′ candle, one of him and his daughter Tess, one of him in a chair with red slippers on, and a head shot. He looks russian or eastern european. I have all the photos and email exchanges for comparison.
He gave me a cell phone number with a nigerian exchange, and let me know he has a heavy accent. If someone was born here in the USA and spent most of their life here why would they have a heavy foreign accent? I never even came close to falling for this, by now it is almost amusing and I am curious to see where it will go..LOL
Kim, Please realize this person is fake. Watch my video where I discuss this with the hosts of a local talk show, and your story is almost textbook.
The good news is you discovered it before you sent any large amounts of money.
Many people do not realize it until they have lost thousands of dollars.
Warn your friends and follow my advice next time on how to avoid these situation online. My tips are listed here.
I believe that I am being scammed by one of these people. He is supposed to be a petroleum engineer working a contract in Lagos Nigeria. Drop dead gorgeous – has a 10 year old daughter, wife was killed 5 years ago in a car accident. Is madly in love with me – has called several times, needs money to pay his expenses because his money is tied up… Found me on Yahoo personal ad – deleted his account as soon as we started chatting. Has been very attentive…chats all the time – avoids direct questions. I would like to share the photos that I have and also see the photos that yu have if you believe we have the same guy. I did break dwon and send him a little bit of money… now he wants more and says that I do not trust him if I don’t sent him the money and that maybe our laptops are the ones in love. Has written poetry to me always calls me baby. Please e-mail me if you think you know who this guy is… and also send pictures so that we can track him down since he is breaking girls hearts!!
OMG I think i was contacted by one threw personal Yahoo goes by the name Johnny Mckay he was a missionary in Nigeria .he email me with a message about how he was looking to settle down and start a family he want to have 2 kids .and that he didn’t care about my being older he seem to say all the right things about how important love was .i added him to my contact and forward my cell number. the following day he email more about himself it quite long in detail he also stated that he would take his profile out of personal because he did not want to be distracted by other women . on the day that we finally chatted on line he contact threw a different email address, i wonder and ask he said it was the name he went by he was really working the i go to church and god stuff said he was very into faith.i fell for his lies at the end of our chat he told me that he had to ask me something but was not sure now i would take it .i ask to tell me and i did expect what he ask he ask me to borrow 370.00 because he had no groceries and had to pay rent and internet i fell upset and bad for him he said he would pay me back that he was not able to cash his check in Nigeria he would pay me back when he move back to the states were he want me to tell him a kind of to start when he came back he also call me babe and that made me feel weird i didn’t really know him that well i ask hem to stop.i was upset and he kept saying he was sorry but he really need the money to for groceries i felt so bad and agree to send it the following day . well i just didn’t trust him so the next day he text me asking me if i was going to send the money threw western union . i decided not to send a complete stranger my hard earn cash i told him this and ask him not email back that was 4 hours ago has not bug me .
hello would you tell me how I would go about contacting the US ARMY about this scammer
I had the same experience, except it was a woman who stated she was an antique dealer in west africa….she kept copying and pasting the same thing over and over from her profile. Kept referring to me as “sweetie” but did send additional pictures…grammer was bad, and the woman’s whose identity she did us lives in Texas, will contact her and let her know. She even game me her phone number in Africa. I have however made one real connection that is real, but overall this has not been a good experience, I wouldn’t continue with Yahoo in the future.
Yahoo personals…..bad….I just deleted my profile…I got a hit from a guy in Austin tx who sais he is an International soccer agent…guess what he is in nigeria……first week all lovey…romantic….then bam needs 10k for his soccer kids…..then he comes up with 8k and only needs 2k….no way….same sob story he is from Hungary found his wife in bed with another guy…..his life is over…….Wants to marry me….blah….blah …
Hi, I’m back with a little more information. I called the guy whose name Stephen used. It was his name, his town & state…but not Stephen’s picture, or profile. He is talking to a couple girls from Nigeria, but says he has not given them his name or town & state, and they haven’t asked for money, yet.
But now he is warned, which is why I looked him up.
I think everyone should look up the name, city & state of the profile, that the Nigerian scam people are using, and warn them. This guy had no clue. We can probably save a lot of people, if we all do it. From what I’m reading, and finding out…nobody else is doing much about it.
I just knew there was something wrong with him. He only knew me less then a month and was falling in love with me. Yet had never met me. Oh, his email and it does still work is jamesbrown4ray@yahoo.com. I have decided personals are not for me. Too many crazy people out there in person much less meeting them online.
I kept getting emails from yahoo personals, and one day decided to check it out. I found him…. I wish I had found you first…last talked to this guy about 1 1/2 hrs ago. I would like to give you some of the emails, and his pictures. He also called himself, a widower. His parents had died when he was young…but he forgot that last night told me he was 37 when they died. Said lived in Melrose, MN, and been married 6 years to wonderful woman, was devastated the last 6 yrs because of her death. Didn’t want to talk about it because the pain of looking back at the past. Had 2 profiles up. Very similar, but each had a different picture, and one said that he was 6′1 and the other said 5′7. May have had a few different interests too. But told me he was a Building Contractor, supervisor/owner…that he is coming back in 6 weeks time, and wants to talk to me on Y Messenger. He tells me that he goes to a different country every month for work contracts. Now today he asks me for money to pay his motel bill. I will see how much I can copy into this message of the emails from him…I have pictures too…please contact for those if I can’t get them into this. Thanks for your information..misery loves company…uhg
Thank you for the email it is really nice to hear from you, i am so Glad to receive a wonderful email from you, And you seems like a very nice and humble woman i will like to know more and i am interested in you and see as thing goes for us, i am originally from Germany But i live in Minnesota melrose and i am into Building Construction Field and due to My Job i am presently out of the country now and i will be coming back to the state very soon
Thank You so Very Much for the nice Note and you seems Like a very nice woman and i can feel that we have allot of Things in common and i will like you to know i am presently in Nigeria Now doing Some construction and i will be coming back to state in 6 weeks time i am originally from Germany and i have lived here in the state for about 12 years now i was married for Six Years and also became a widower six years back and since then Things has really been Hard for me and right now i am Just ready to Move On with My life and find that someone special i can be with and also spend time with i don’t smoke neither do i drink i am just a simple man Looking for someone i can spend the whole and rest of My life with, i am the Only child of My parent i lost My parent very Long time ago in a Car Accident and since then Things has really been hard for me so i had to come back to the state and start Up My life Again Cause at this Present Moment i really want to Forget the past and Try and Face the Future Cause Looking At the past will never bring anything Good i just really want to move on with my life, i like swimming, Hiking, Bowling and Hanging Out with friends and also i am 5.7 tall with black Hair and also with Blues eyes, i like all Kind of Music i like Hip Hop Blues R and
Thank you so much for the nice compliment once again i am just really so happy to receive your email again you re such a wonderful woman i am so Glad to hear that, Tell me do you have a yahoo id so we can chat online and get to know each other more
it is the middle of the day and I was thinking about you, as usual. I want you to know how much I sincerely love the countless hours we spend talking. It means so much to me. It truly seems like I’ve known you forever and I honestly can’t imagine life without you now,miss you. I’m just here thinking about you,The thought of you in my arms right now sounds so good to me. I just want you to know how much i care about you and how much i want to know you more,I miss you every second of my life. I knew I found someone special.I still don’t know what I did to be so lucky to have you in my life, my dream come true… I am so thankful though. In this short time that we’ve been together, we have grown so much and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for us and i want to see as Things goes
i Care about You so much
Stephen Mayers
Thank you so much My heart i really Enjoyed reading Your poem and i am so Glad to hear such a Beautiful words from You And i will really Like you to know You mean allot to me and My feelings for You Keep On getting Stronger Everyday and i am so Glad to have met You and i will Like to know you more My heart You are such a very Loving and romantic Woman i have ever set My eyes on
Thank You so much Sweetie you are such a nice woman and i am so Glad and i really Appreciate you Trust me, So tell me how are you doing This wonderful morning i really miss you so much and i have been Thinking about you, i really want you to know you have my heart and also You have been On my mind and i am so Glad baby and i can’t imagine How it is gonna be when we meet in person Cause i really feel inside me that you are that special someone for me
Thank You Honey for informing me, Actually i don’t work Saturdays and sundays i usually stay at Home and also Relax Myself So i am going to be Online so we can talk Okay
One day without you is like one moment without air, like one day without food and a week without water.,One day without you is like a month without sunshine or shelter.Hey, Honey. I’m missing you so much that you’ve been on my mind all day and night. I awoke hurriedly this morning when the alarm went off,What magic you’ve done, Darling, but I guess my feelings have made their way to you in the form of dreams. Dileep, you are my happiness, Dear, and my adorable darling. I care about you so deeply there are no words to explain the tremendous tidal wave of emotions flowing through me just from the sound of your smile , the mention of your name, the vision of your smile or thoughts of you. i do Care about you so much and you are my heart and you mean allot to me sweetie
Hope to hear from you
Stephen
i miss you more and more every day. I think about the times we had together and the happy days you and I shared, which are all now memories. But, just remember one thing: I will always care for you cause you do own my heart
And you will always remain in My heart Cause i do Care
Hope to hear from you Stephen
Below are my rememberances of a Yahoo Messenger conversation:
Note: We talked on y mess in my mail box. He said that he felt we had a special connection that, seldom comes along and that he was still interested in getting to know me more, and that he thought about me all the time, and couldn’t get me out of his head. That we are only here for a time, and life was short, so we need to make the best of the time that we have. He said that he wants to get to know me more, and that he wants a special life long relationship, and he thinks that God brought us together, and he loves me, and wants me, and that he wants me to love myself, and he would help me. He is still wanting to get to know me more. He thinks we have something special that doesn’t come along very often. He sent me M kisses. And wanted to know my middle name…I told him that my mother had named me, _______because it is French, because she was half French. He asked if I knew how to speak French. Asked me if I would like him to teach me German. I said yes. And told him that my daughter had learned German in school, and that my other daughter was engaged to a boy from a German family. He thought that was good. He wanted to know how old my children were, and who was the oldest. I told him their names, and ages. He wanted to know if my children lived close by. I told him He wants me to get a calling card, said that probably $20 card would give us about an hour to talk, and that he would get one too. I told him that money is tight for me right now, and I had just spent 154. On dog at vet, To get his email address from Y Personals, and 20 for college admission. He asked if I was looking for work…I said yes, but would rather go to school, He asked why I didn‘t go to work day, and take night classes..I told him it would take me forever to get thru school, and I hated my old job, and wanted to change careers, and needed to make enough money when out to pay the bills. He said okay. Also, said that I was glad I hadn’t spent as much as I could have on a house. He just waited, til I responded, saying that maybe I could take 20 from the money to visit , then he asked me if I was going to….I said yes, think it is important that we talk on the phone..good for relationship.
I did not get the phone card, but did end up talking to him briefly on the phone this morning…he wanted me to get off phone (my dime), and go to Y Messenger…that’s when he asked for money…because I told him I wanted to meet him, not talk anymore until then…he was trying to persuade me..called me, I ignored and started to look on internet for scam info. and found this site.
This is what his profiles said:
“Me and My Ideal Match”
i am a Very easy going, good sense of humour, considerate.Looking for a lady that is loyal, honest, loving, not deceiving, caring, who has good family values also, cares for her personal appearance and the hygiene for a serious relationship.Someone who fills the missing parts of me.simple and happy people are my favorite. Someone should be content at the symphony or walking in the woods. A person who is able to enjoy and share life with someone else.I’m very honest, communicative, hardworking, very cheerful character, I live life with great joy, I am an independent person, very positive in my life, with conservative family values, I think that the family is very important, much respect to The woman, I am very romantic, a faithful person, I like to travel and difrutar of life in a healthy way.It’s kind of hard to describe my self with out using the same old cliché’s that every one else uses. But I’ll start off by saying clearly that I am a good man. No man is ever perfect. But I strive to be a good man, and to improve myself. I am fiercely loyal to my loved ones and friends. I take pride in the fact that I am an honest man. I also take pride in being a faithful man. In this day and age way too many men dishonor themselves by cheating. So I take pride in the fact that I have never cheated in my life. I am a strong man both physically and mentally. But I also know when to be soft and demure. I am very well educated and successful. But that is not to say that my career comes before any thing else. It’s quite the opposite, family and love ones come before any thing else (including myself). I work to live NOT, live to work.
The other profile…almost the same, that he had up:
More about me:i am a Very easy going, good sense of humour, considerate.Looking for a lady that is loyal, honest, loving, not deceiving, caring, who has good family values also, cares for her personal appearance and the hygiene for a serious relationship.Someone who fills the missing parts of me.simple and happy people are my favorite. Someone should be content at the symphony or walking in the woods. A person who is able to enjoy and share life with someone else.I’m very honest, communicative, hardworking, very cheerful character, I live life with great joy, I am an independent person, very positive in my life, with conservative family values, I think that the family is very important, much respect to The woman, I am very romantic, a faithful person, I like to travel and difrutar of life in a healthy way.It’s kind of hard to describe my self with out using the same old cliché’s that every one else uses. But I’ll start off by saying clearly that I am a good man. No man is ever perfect. But I strive to be a good man, and to improve myself. I am fiercely loyal to my loved ones and friends. I take pride in the fact that I am an honest man. I also take pride in being a faithful man. In this day and age way too many men dishonor themselves by cheating. So I take pride in the fact that I have never cheated in my life. I am a strong man both physically and mentally. But I also know when to be soft and demure. I am very well educated and successful. But that is not to say that my career comes before any thing else. It’s quite the opposite, family and love ones come before any thing else (including myself). I work to live NOT, live to work.
This is the part of the email that I sent Y Personals that doesn’t give out all personal information, just so you can see a sample response from them. Afer I sent the report, I talked to him, and then emailed later that night to have it come back as failed, and undeliveralble. He contacted me this morning and gave me a new email address: His 1st email was: stephendm101@yahoo.com and his second was: stephendm01…His phone Nigeria International number, (and it works, because I called it and got him…same voice as when he called me) is: 011-234-806-796-8632
Thank you for writing to Yahoo! Personals.
We appreciate you informing us about possible abuse in Yahoo! Personals.
Unfortunately, abuse by various third parties can come in a variety of
forms. Yahoo!’s Terms of Service and Guidelines prevents many of these
methods, and Yahoo! implements several measures to help identify,
reduce, and prevent such abuses by third parties.
Notification by customers like you is vital to our efforts and can
assist us to identify potentially abusive profiles, emails and other
methods by which third parties attempt to abuse the system. Yahoo!
welcomes as much specific information as you can recall or forward
regarding your complaint of abuse. Yahoo! will investigate the
profile/email you informed us above, and will take appropriate action if
warranted.
As you know, certain laws, regulations and policies restrict and govern
Yahoo!’s ability to provide you with information about other Yahoo!
users. If you have additional questions we urge you to review Yahoo!’s
privacy policy.
Please continue to notify us about any conduct you find questionable in
Yahoo! Personals. Yahoo! is concerned about preventing abuse, and will
continue to evaluate any material that violates the Yahoo! Terms of
Service.
Thank you again for contacting Yahoo! Personals.
Regards,
I hope this helps others. I don’t regard myself as stupid, but am a fool for love, as so many others. This time, I was Stupid though…gave way to much personal information..it was the past, and similarities in dead parent, etc. I honestly don’t know if I am going to ever try to find anyone again. I was content. But like everyone else..would love to find a true connection, and love with the right person.
Faye Barnes
A deleated profile on yahoo personals is most definitly a scam. she, A Nigerian woman of 26 wasn’t sure if I was ok with a younger woman. Me being 27 since the first of april was a little tickled that someone would ask that question. This was the first clue to her being a scam artist. the following clues would have to be the excessive gramatical and spelling errors. I’m no english proffesor myself, but if you can’t even have one sentense written so that I’m not having to guess what your trying to say there is something wrong. Things I have noticed the questions they ask. they are copy/pasted from another text.
1)What do you seek for in a relationship?
2)What are the basic qualities you seek for in a lady?
3)What sort of relationship you seek for?
4)What interests you?
5)What do you do for fun?
6)Do you Like Intimate In public?
7)How long have you been single?
8)What’s being single like?
90Do you know I’m 26years old..Does age matters to you??
10)How do you treat your lady?
11)Why do you need a lady?
12)Can you love this lady?
13)What is love to you?
14)Would you hit your lady for any reasons?
15)Do you have a Kids?
16)When do you Start this Online Dating Atmosphere??
17?How Old are you?
18?What do you do for a Living?
If you get any of the following type of emails your probably have a scammer. I feal like such an idiot for actually answering these questions. It took a lot of time and thought.
good luck. never send any body money that you haven’t known for a long time.
I was contacted by a major in the US Army – stationed in Fort Irwin CA. He stated that he was retiring in June and would be returning to my state. I could not figure out why he had a residence in my state if he was stationed in CA and had been in the army for 23 years.
I have found so many similarities! I questioned his grammar once or twice, a major in the army has to be intelligent, right? Well, he was allegedly in Iraq, 7 hours ahead of me, so blamed this on being tired or not looking at his typos.
After 3 weeks, he emailed me a picture of an engagement ring, purchased while on patrols outside of Bagdad and he said he intended to give it to me when he returned to retire and marry me. Freaked me out, but I have never been in Iraq for a year and thought maybe he was just trying to hold onto something from home and he would settle down after he returned.
Well, then a week ago he told me he would not be in touch for a few days while he was away on a mission. In the mission, they saved 8 people, Iraqi diplomats. He was to go to an award ceremony. After the day of the ceremony, he told me that they gave him a medal and he shared a photo of a bag full of US money. I questioned the legality of this, how can a soldier accept this kind of money? He asked me to accept a package from an Iraqi diplomat with the money, my ring, and photos of him. He did send me close to 10 photos at different times. When I questioned why my cousin was unable to find him in the army database (he’s stationed in Kuwait), he sent me photos the next day of “him” in uniform from his younger years, name on uniform. All photos were of the same person. I compared smile lines, a POW bracelet, nose, lips, you name it.
I couldn’t see where the scam was. I contacted investigators from the US Army, thinking this was an embezzlement scam – they took information, researched and called me back to say this is a scam and if this person shows up, to call local authorities. Great.
I refused to go to my local airport and pick up the package.
Then, I got email from a person claiming to be a diplomat from Iraq stating my package had left Bagdad International Airport and would arrive 2 days later in my local airport and the diplomat would be there to hand deliver it to me. I watch 24… I had all sorts of ideas flowing through my brain.
Then it came… the diplomat was in Guam, stuck at the airport because he needed to pay his “stamps” to finish his flight to me. He needed $3,000.00.
Hmmm… no! I refused.
My lovely little army major tried every guilt trip in the book – this money was our security, our future – my ring was with the bag, etc.
Finally I told him – there’s cash IN the bag. Have this guy open it up, take the money needed, and put it in a new bag. I knew, of course, that there was no bag of money or package… just the need for my own money.
I read the example emails above – oh goodness –
so so many similarities. Cos, bad grammar, Dear, referencing his son calling me Mommy and my children calling him Daddy (immediately I corrected this.. you never call anyone Mommy or Daddy unless that is who they are!)…
So, I guess now I’ll go on over to my yahoo account and blast the guy and tell him not to contact me again. I have known it was a scam for a week or so… prior to that, I felt so guilt ridden that if I was going to hurt this man who is so proudly serving our country overseas… wow, what a great angle to go with !
Thanks for the info !!
After one of my best friends married the man of her dreams she met online, I decided to give online dating a try. What struck me as odd after I started communicating with this guy who emailed me on Yahoo was that his last name was Smith, but supposedly his father was Nigerian…how many “Smiths” do you know in Nigeria? I even questioned him about it and he said it was his name. The wife dying in the car accident was my next hint that something was not right. But the final clue was the sick father who stayed in the hospital for weeks then suddenly needed an “urgent surgery” to save his life…shouldn’t that have been done weeks ago when he went in the hospital? After he asked me for money and I told him I was referring him to the FBI and CIA and they would track down his sorry ass thru his URL and shoot him his cohorts for trying to scam American citizens (I even referred him to what happened when pirates tried to take over a US cargo ship), I never heard from him again!
Got to be more careful!!! I work in a business where people lie to me all the time but even I was caught off guard at first with this fool! The letter that was published from the author was almost VERBATIM the letter I received from the Nigerian scammer…I mean they did not even take the time to change the story or even the grammer or punctuation! He did add one new twist…his wife died in a car accident on June 16, 2008 and left him to take care of his daughter Stella. He has been SO heartbroken and this is his first time trying to date anyone since that time. Then of course the story he tried to use to reel me into the scam (My father is sick in Nigeria and my flight leaves in 9 hours… bullshit, bullshit, bullshit!!!) I continued to communicate with him just to see how far he would take this, then BAM!!! This morning, I got an email saying that the “father” needs a heart operation and he does not have enough to pay for it (by now he’s “fallen madly in love with me”…over email no less!) but his father needs my help (in the form of cash!) to survive. Looks like he better start planning his Dad’s funeral if he’s depending on me to save him!!!
Why do people fall for these idiots? It is so obvious they are full of crap. Their sentences don’t have punctuation or if it does they don’t capitalize the next letter at the beginning of the next sentence. They are all over match.com too, at least there are tons of men. I get the messages, winks, etc. from them on a DAILY basis..sometimes 5 or more a day. My response to these obvious scammers is always the same. Where do you live? Nigeria, South Africa or Malaysia? Those are the countries that these guys work out of. They are currently changing their routing of their computers so if you do a ping it does sometimes come back to the City or at least the State they say they are in. If you take a close look you will see that it does not originate from there.
It’s sad because online dating, or finding someone who would truly care for you is so hard to start with, and then you have to constantly be on guard if the person sending you a message is real or not. Can nothing be done to catch these people and punish them? Why can yahoo and match not send a ping to the people who sign up to see if they are being honest about their locations? Is that too much to ask? I guess they are just too busy taking our money for nothing.
I have run across a couple of scam sites. C-Date and CDate. The first was sending me letters from women who quickly professed their love for me. Then a couple of profile matches mentioned Nigeria. Either doing business there or family there. The one that caught my suspisioun was a letter writer who had suddenly become stuck in Nigeria and asked for $1000 to get her out of her delema. I pressed her to give me an avenue to check out where I could send the money and questions about her location, hotel address (the hotel was the scorce of her problems)and names and places I would need to help her myself directly. Sheasked for money sent through Western Union and played up the damsel in distress stuff and told me what she was going to do with me when I picked her up at O’Hare in Chicago. I’ll try to post some of the e-mails here:
Thanks for your interest in me ( I’m a Photographer for a living) I have no kids. I am a very personable person and I like to be involved in a lot of things. I have a problem at the moment which is just a minor setback for me. I don’t have anyone in my life (friend or family) at this time and I do get lonely. I am not looking for love, just a companion. If love should find me then I’m open to it, but you must understand I am a package deal. I will like to hook up sometimes but at the moment I am having a big problem Thats is making things hard for me dont know if you care to know what my problems are i am a very outgoing, open minded person. I would love to find friendship first and possibly love? I am a very good girl, but not at all innocent. I love to have fun no matter what the situation be. I’m a very positive person with a good spirit. I really like someone who’s open minded. I don’t like fake people, drugs, or couch potatoes. I love diversity and I enjoy people that are down to earth. I desire to become a better person inside and out.. I’m a music fanatic. I have a hunger to learn new things. One of my hobbies is Traveling. I like positive people and I try to surround myself with people who have an open mind. My interests are camping, swimming, volleyball, having fun. I am seeking mature, stable, focused, monogamous gentlemen to sweep me off my feet, spoil me rotten and embark on a brand shiny new relationship. Don’t be shy, come on down i’m not being the idealistic woman who looks for prince charming but i like real people who knows how to respect their partner. i really like adventurous guys who knows how to please women not just to get into their pants. I have some feelings that something might work out between us. I am mostly lovers not haters at all. dislike people that lie, cheaters. I am a woman of my words and I expect to find the same in the right man.I have a very big heart and I would love to share a part of my life with someone special…
Nancy.
Dear Bob,
Thanks for showing interest in me . I liked everything i have read here about you and I’ve got a feeling that you have the qualities that I am looking for. I want you to know some few details about me. But I must tell you that I am looking for the right man that I am going to spend the rest of life with. I need someone I could trust and get the same unconditional love and trust in return. I have some family issues that I needed to take care of. As I am the only child of my parent, they have loved me unconditionally when I was a kid and till now that death took my mom and my dad missing somewhere in Africa. I have promised to return the same favor and I hope you can understand what I am trying to say at the end of this letter. I lost my mother when I was 12 since then my father was busy taking care of me and his business. He supported me through everything that I needed support with( My Photography career, etc) 2yrs ago he spoke to me that he’s leaving for Africa to sell is coal factory. About 3 months ago he told me the agent that was going to sell it has sold the factory and he had to travel down to the Africa to get his money. and its allot of money. I have not heard from him for over 2month and I had no Idea what happened to him. So that’s why I had to come down here and file a missing person report as I don’t know what might have happened to him. ever since then nothing form the police, and I get stranded to the point that I end up owing the hotel that I am staying at.. Now the hotel am staying seized my return ticket cuz i don’t have money to pay for the bills I owe, and i don’t have no one to help me out. The only person who would have helped me is missing. I hope you can understand what I am going through here. I don’t know if you could help me out of this. I promise if you can help me out that I am going to do everything to pay you back. You have my words.. I do hope you can now understand me allot more better.
Nancy…
Nancy,
You sound like your in a hell of a jam. I don’t know what I can do for you at this time. I may be able to guide you through this but I need some basic information. Please don’t think I’m prying. I’ll list the information I need:
1) What is your citizenship and do you have a passport in your possession?
2) What is your exact location and the name of the hotel you are/were staying at?
Addresses and phone numbers are important.
3) Your fathers name and country of citizenship.
4) The name of the factory and any information on the real estate agent. Who bought it?
Again, names, addresses and phone numbers are important.
5) Where is the closest consult of the country on your passport? Have you contacted them
yet?
6) I need your airline information. Carrier, flight number, itinarary, date of return flight, etc.
7) Where can you be contacted by phone or in person?
OK, now some numbers; what is the amount owed the hotel? And who is the point of contact?Assuming that they still return your ticket and that the ticket is still good do you have a place to stay until the flight date? I’m trying to think of all the avenues of “escape” possible to get you home.
I know a former Marine who has done a few communication contracts in Afrrica and may be able to give me some ideas on the best direction to take getting you home. Time is of the essance so please get the information back to me as soon as possible.
Your father carrying around a large amount of money in Africa is asking for problems. Not a wise move. Life is cheap there and money is power. His dissapearance for so long doesn’t give me a good feeling. A wire transmital to transfer funds should have been used……..
Dear Bob,
Thanks for your message and concern about me . i will be happy to meet the right man at last as I have also lived a very rough past, I have mixed up with wrong people thinking they are are good friends. But this is not the best place to explain myself, its something that we will talk about in person when we are together on maybe our first date or later on depends on how this leads us. everything I told you about myself is for real and nothing is secret as I don’t know how to keep secret. If there is anything that you would like to ask me feel free to ask I am very open minded, and down to earth. i really do need your help right now at the moment am really going through hell over here in Nigeria where i am presently since i have been hanging here alone and i have lose a lot money down here for my dad investigation and still yet no good news finding him and now i need you help to come back home because staying here is not helping but getting life worst for me been alone and stuck I will i will need you help with the sum of ($1000.00 USD) to come back home I really feel very uncomfortable asking you since I am a total stranger now and i will be very glad if you can do give me a supporting hand with this and i promise you i will never fail you or make you regret of meeting me because am sure you will like meeting me in person too as i like meeting a kinda of man like you in person too and we can spend somedays together if you can do help me send this money real soon let me know what you feel about this .
Sincerely Nancy…XXXXXXXXX
Dear Bob
Am very happy to see you still keep talking with me despite with the mess i have got myself into you have been surprising me since we start written each other and i believe you and want to believe you more and more till we meet in person as i believe that is happening real soon only if you keep your promise and not changing your word this time it very easy to help me come back home this time as i already have my return plane ticket to fly out of this place back to Illinois if you want to buy me new ticket i dont mind please i dont want this issue to be more than this ok everything is working fine already and about my missing dad now i known and confirm i cant do anything about it until am back to the state to get the investigator more document they will need to trace where he is or the money for the coal factory he came to sold please i will be so glad if you can help me once to come home with money i need i will write you back shortly soon with details and info to send me this money i also added you on my yahoo list if you chat on yahoo messenger i cant wait to meet you…
Nancy…xxxxxxxxxxx
Dear Bob
Am very happy to see you still keep talking with me despite with the mess i have got myself into you have been surprising me since we start written each other and i believe you and want to believe you more and more till we meet in person as i believe that is happening real soon only if you keep your promise and not changing your word this time it very easy to help me come back home this time as i already have my return plane ticket to fly out of this place back to Illinois if you want to buy me new ticket i dont mind please i dont want this issue to be more than this ok everything is working fine already and about my missing dad now i known and confirm i cant do anything about it until am back to the state to get the investigator more document they will need to trace where he is or the money for the coal factory he came to sold please i will be so glad if you can help me once to come home with money i need i will write you back shortly soon with details and info to send me this money i also added you on my yahoo list if you chat on yahoo messenger i cant wait to meet you…
Nancy…xxxxxxxxxxx
Dea Bob,
Thanks so much for your caring and concern about me again i talk to hotel management when i get your previews message and i was told that as soon as the money is paid i will give it to them then the hotel manager will give me back my document then drive me down to the Airport here with their hotel shuttle so i can tender my document at the Airport so then i can get in plane i will be flying Via British Airways and i will be coming down into O’HARE AIRPORT so i can call you as soon as i get there so you can come and pick me up at the Airport don’t know if this can work out for you let me know so i can send you my flight schedule info before i fly out of here for how to get the Money to the Hotel the hotel manager told me that you send the money in my name so i can cash it myself and give it to them the hotel said you can send the money through Western Union Money Transfer Agent Location near you to send the Money because there is also (Western Union ) agent at the hotel premises here where i can use my ID to pick money up and as soon as it sent just E-mail me the Confirmation Receipt i will need to pick money here is My Info to send money.
Receiver Name: Nancy Cole
City: Lagos
Country: Nigeria
Text Question: My Pet
Text Answer: Bird
Amount: $1000 USD
Please i hope you can send the money as you promise helping me and as soon as the money is sent the hotel manager told me to ask you to get me the confirmation receipt you use sending money like the
Senders Info’s Like:
Senders Name:
Senders Address:
(MTCN#) Money Transfer Confirmation Number:
Because i will need that to pick up the money at the (WesternUnion) over here and don’t forget to email me a Phone# to reach you when i arrived am going to email you my flight info so you can know time i will arrive at the airport only if you can come and pick me let me know i will really love to meet you in person after helping me out from this mess and send me airport i can change my destination to fly into i will be flying down straight to you if you like i hope you don’t mind and maybe spend some few days with you before going back to my place because i don’t want to fly home direct from here, and then we will see each other in person face to face and see if things can work out fine for us thanks for your caring waiting to hear a good news back from you sooner than later.
Sincerely
Nancy…XXXXXXX
Scam City if you ask me.
The other site appears to be CDATE, not to be confused with C-DATE.
CDATE has you sign up using your credit card and tells you that you have automatic entry into their sight with your user ID and the Password that they give you through the e-mail. Once you sign up the sight keeps sending you back to the sign up page or tells you that due to inactivity the log on has been closed and to reenter the site through the log on page. It was an endless cycle. There was no response to help inquiries.
Watch of both these sites.
This is excellent info. Too bad most of us didn’t have knowledge or insight
of scammers before getting involved. I guess we thought yahoo was legit!
Got hit from Yahoo Personals – I know something was up after the 1st email, because the email was as if it was pre-written for anyone. Not a response to the email I sent and my 2nd and 3rd responses were one liner want to see when the scam came. When he state he was going to Nigera I didn’t need to know anymore that it was scam. Thing is I sent the information below to yahoo.personals all I got was general reply that without select information there was nothing they could do, funny all that information was in my email. So I total deduct myself from yahoo.personals.
Ethnicity Caucasian (white) Any
Height 6′ 0″ Any
Smoking Doesn’t smoke Any
Has Kids Yes – at home part-time Any
Michael
His Ideal Woman
Age 44 years old 30 to 59
Ethnicity Caucasian (white) Any
Height 6′ 0″ Any
Body Type Average Any
Eye Color Black Any
Hair Color Black Any
Michael
His Ideal Woman
Smoking Doesn’t smoke Any
Alcohol Doesn’t drink Any
Education Some College Any
Employment Status Self-employed Any
Occupation Computer related / Hardware Any
Income Level More than $150,000 Any
Michael
His Ideal Woman
Location Modesto, California Within 50 miles of Modesto, California
Marital Status Widowed Any
Living Situation Alone Any
Has Kids Yes – at home part-time Any
Wants (more) Kids Yes Any
Religion Christian / Catholic Any
Attends Services Weekly Any
Languages Spoken English Any
Michael
His Ideal Woman
Interests Arts, Dancing, Dining, Family, Movies, Listening to Music, Outdoor Activities, Photography, Reading, Watching Sports, Travel, Cooking, Computers / Internet, Television, Gardening, Playing Music, Playing Sports, Health/Fitness Any
Astrological Sign Gemini (May 21 – June 21) Any
Political Views Conservative Any
Sense of Humor Friendly Any
Social Setting Shy at first, but warm up quickly Any
TV Watching Habits News Junkie, Sports Nut, Dramas, Movies, Documentaries Any
1st email:
On 03/24/2010 06:41 pm PDT, Michael wrote:
Hello Jo,How are you doing there and how is life treating you? I am new to this on line dating thing, but I’m giving a try in hopes to finding someone special. So would you like to know about me? I work Monday – Friday (1pm – 10 pm) so I hardly get on the computer during the week, but i try to read my mail at night at home so please kindly mail me on my personal E-mail on ( michael44dunlap (at) y a h o o dot com ).. i believe that we make us get to know each other better cos am on here frequently. So tell me about you and what you looking for ?( I love kids)? Hope to hear from you.
Smile Always,
Michael.
2nd
From:
This sender is DomainKeys verified
“Michael Dunlap”
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Hi,
Am really great to get your mail today ……How are you doing there ?? Am kinda cool here .i would like to thank you for your interest in my profile..So I enjoyed reading your profile as well. It looks like you are into a lot of pretty cool things , i would like to say what a beautiful woman you are . I am ready to start the next chapter in my life with someone who is ready for a serious relationship..I dont Like to IM cos at times I do Busy alot and I prefer you email me through my regular email here ..So here I am just one little fish in this big pond seeing what else is swimming around. Could be that you know exactly what this little fish is looking for…. if so you may just cast your line and get a bite…… I am not only looking for my life partner but also my best friend. I believe that every relationship starts with a great friendship.I am an honest and caring person and I hope you would be too. I believe honesty is the best policy. I like to experience new things. I am willing to try anything once.I am here because I am ready to find true love. I am well educated, well traveled, and financially secure; however, I feel like something is missing, and that something is having a relationship with a great woman with whom I can love and be loved…. unconditionally, romantically, intimately.I believe in the old golden rule .. I am not really into the bar/club scene to meet someone for a lasting relationship. They usually never work out. Don’t get me wrong I do enjoy going out to have a good time but not every weekend. I am not looking for someone who plays mind games or is not interested in being in a committed relationship.I enjoy the simplest things in life. I love the outdoors and feel fortunate to be able to experience all four seasons. I like to go camping, gaze at the stars on a clear night, take walks just to enzoy nature and scenic drives to nowhere. I tend to take the road less traveled. I bmlieve that you can have fu~ doing almost anything as long as you0enjoy tle people that you aru with. Life is too short not to enjoy it! i would Like to know what your likms and dislikes are,and more importantly what you are wanting from your future partner,you sound very sincere on your intentions,it would be an$ideal world if everything you want came so easy to get,i know thats wishful thinking,but we all live in hope/.i don’t know what to say. i want to get to know you better . believe it or not,it’s not that easy to be a single dad in the dating scene. i really look forward to meeting you ..i am a single father that is very devoted to my kid,but there is room for another love in my life. i like to do things out, but i also like to be at home. cooking is one of Major thing i like …. i always would rather talk out a problem than hold it in. you will find out that i am much more interested in how your day went. i want to know everything that happened. …I am a self employed ( Computer Sales and Programming ) … I’ve been a mom and dad for 2 years now. I’m not tired of it, but it does get a little old.i guess i am a tad more caring than the average man because of having to be a little more emotional for my Daughter when she needs it. you sound like a very loving and caring person. i understand that you need to know more, Don’t be afraid to ask me anything.I would always welcome you to my Life . i want you to know I’m not doing this dating business to get a cheap frill or a one night stand,I’m a very genuine person and i want to find someone i can share my life with,someone i can love,someone i can trust, someone i can be a friend for,and someone who will accept me for who i am,i can be very romantic,I’m honest, trusting,good listener, caring, healthy,funny at times,and i can sing for my supper if need be and I love to play Guitar and at my Leisure time , I love to play Golf , Bowling and billiard Pool . So dear you have a perfect human being,no seriously I’m not perfect but i want to make someone very happy and i have so much love pent up inside me,it needs to be exposed gently to that special someone.i hope I’ve given you an inkling of my thoughts and needs.–i hope you will reply to this letter,i will send a photo of me and my daughter to you soon .–so for now Dear,i bid you farewell.
Smile Always,
Michael.
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“Michael Dunlap”
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Hi,
Am really great to get your mail today ……How are you doing there ?? Am kinda cool here .i would like to thank you for your interest in my profile..So I enjoyed reading your profile as well. It looks like you are into a lot of pretty cool things , i would like to say what a beautiful woman you are . I am ready to start the next chapter in my life with someone who is ready for a serious relationship..I dont Like to IM cos at times I do Busy alot and I prefer you email me through my regular email here ..So here I am just one little fish in this big pond seeing what else is swimming around. Could be that you know exactly what this little fish is looking for…. if so you may just cast your line and get a bite…… I am not only looking for my life partner but also my best friend. I believe that every relationship starts with a great friendship.I am an honest and caring person and I hope you would be too. I believe honesty is the best policy. I like to experience new things. I am willing to try anything once.I am here because I am ready to find true love. I am well educated, well traveled, and financially secure; however, I feel like something is missing, and that something is having a relationship with a great woman with whom I can love and be loved…. unconditionally, romantically, intimately.I believe in the old golden rule .. I am not really into the bar/club scene to meet someone for a lasting relationship. They usually never work out. Don’t get me wrong I do enjoy going out to have a good time but not every weekend. I am not looking for someone who plays mind games or is not interested in being in a committed relationship.I enjoy the simplest things in life. I love the outdoors and feel fortunate to be able to experience all four seasons. I like to go camping, gaze at the stars on a clear night, take walks just to enzoy nature and scenic drives to nowhere. I tend to take the road less traveled. I bmlieve that you can have fu~ doing almost anything as long as you0enjoy tle people that you aru with. Life is too short not to enjoy it! i would Like to know what your likms and dislikes are,and more importantly what you are wanting from your future partner,you sound very sincere on your intentions,it would be an$ideal world if everything you want came so easy to get,i know thats wishful thinking,but we all live in hope/.i don’t know what to say. i want to get to know you better . believe it or not,it’s not that easy to be a single dad in the dating scene. i really look forward to meeting you ..i am a single father that is very devoted to my kid,but there is room for another love in my life. i like to do things out, but i also like to be at home. cooking is one of Major thing i like …. i always would rather talk out a problem than hold it in. you will find out that i am much more interested in how your day went. i want to know everything that happened. …I am a self employed ( Computer Sales and Programming ) … I’ve been a mom and dad for 2 years now. I’m not tired of it, but it does get a little old.i guess i am a tad more caring than the average man because of having to be a little more emotional for my Daughter when she needs it. you sound like a very loving and caring person. i understand that you need to know more, Don’t be afraid to ask me anything.I would always welcome you to my Life . i want you to know I’m not doing this dating business to get a cheap frill or a one night stand,I’m a very genuine person and i want to find someone i can share my life with,someone i can love,someone i can trust, someone i can be a friend for,and someone who will accept me for who i am,i can be very romantic,I’m honest, trusting,good listener, caring, healthy,funny at times,and i can sing for my supper if need be and I love to play Guitar and at my Leisure time , I love to play Golf , Bowling and billiard Pool . So dear you have a perfect human being,no seriously I’m not perfect but i want to make someone very happy and i have so much love pent up inside me,it needs to be exposed gently to that special someone.i hope I’ve given you an inkling of my thoughts and needs.–i hope you will reply to this letter,i will send a photo of me and my daughter to you soon .–so for now Dear,i bid you farewell.
Smile Always,
Michael.
Here’s a real smooth Yahoo Personals guy: johnniejake1@yahoo.com says his name is JOHN OLYMPIO JACOB…..he and I have been emailing and IM’ing for 3 weeks now. First he said he was on “The East Side” of the city I live in….which is a really bad area.(??) Strange for a guy that’s a self employed IT person who makes 150k per year. and drives a BMW, a Mercedes, and a pickup truck. Says he moved here because he was here on a job and likes it. His Yahoo profile showed a different day/month for his birthday than he told me…hmm I thought. We exchanged photos, he did send me three that weren’t on the profile of the same guy. This guy is super smooth, very romantic and even wrote me (bad) romantic poetry. We chatted about cars, what we did each day (or what I did and what he supposedly did). We discussed our likes in real estate (he offered to buy this over million dollar dream house I showed him a link to so I could “visit” and maybe someday live in it with him.) Huh, I thought. I know I’m cute, but not THAT cute when all he’s seen are pictures.
I went along with him when he said he was in London on business, supposedly getting an inheritance of 1.8 million pounds from his deceased Father’s estate. And “Mum” lives in Spain. Ok….benefit of the doubt here. THEN he’s saying the British Government took his passport because they wanted him to pay taxes on the inheritance and he can’t get out to fly home to me unless “someone” comes up with a miracle $4000 to pay them off. After some subtle hinting around from him to me, eventually he flat out asked me for the money. And after I told him I just “couldn’t” do it….and he kept asking me probing questions about how I might be able to access the money (it’s only for 2 days, when he gets back to my bank in the States his mother lode of money will be transferred!) I used every logical step to suggest to him: The US Embassy was my biggest suggestion. Or having someone proxy for him here in the States…he shut all those down by saying he’s already did that and it wouldn’t work.
Bottom line: This guy had me going for a bit there, until he started getting really affectionate and then started talking about his desperate financial plight. I FEEL DUMB HE ALMOST HAD ME THERE…JUST LOST ME WHEN THE DOLLAR QUESTIONS CAME INTO PLAY. BEWARE! I HAVE PHOTOS IF ANYONE WANTS THEM TO COMPARE!
I got hit with the same damn thing mike did, a girl named olla smithson from madrid, been sending me long letters about how hse wants to be with me and all that nonsense. I am an untrusting person by nature and am new to this online dating thing so I got suspicious. In my life when anything sounds to good to be true it tends to be be untrue. She hasnt asked me for money yet but did make a comment in the last letter she sent me me about helping out at the airport. Same story to the letter as mikes, parents dead, moved to the states to live with her aunt, working as a nurse with unicef,was drop dead gorgeous in her pics, I knew it was to good to be true. Well lesson learned.
well this sucks really bad, i’ve been talkin to this drop dead gorgeous girl from myspace, just joined, we exchange letters everyday.her name is Olla Demilio..everything sounded great…from madrid,spain both parents dead, in nigeria on business, a nurse with UNICEF, ready to come back to states.talkin about meeting and being together when she comes back, long term, everythings goin good, last night she said that she would be going to airport today to book her flight to be with me, then today i noticed her online on yahoo messanger so i said hey is that you,and she asked who i was..i said its mike, it took probably 10-15 minutes after i said is this olla for her to come…we were talkin about her coming, she asked me for money for the cab, told me she loved me, as we were supposedly getting really close.i told her i couldn’t help, she played it real good. she replied asking that i didn’t wanna speak to her anymore cuz she asked for money. i said that i just didn’t wanna get scammed and she like flipped out, sayin forget about it…if my dad were still alive i wouldn’t need your money, and so on.i got her calmed down, and within a few sentances as we were talking good again she asked me for the money,if i was gonna help again, i replied yes again. then she asked when she would get the money like a 3rd time within minutes,i asked why she kept askin as this was starting to scare me.she said just to make sure..she gave me a number to call her but number didn’t work, although she stated earlier that she didn’t have money or a calling card, she said that she will call me when she wakes up at 6-7 am their time, which was 9-10 here in sacramento, like now no call…but i looked up her name and all this popped up…thanks everybody for your knowledge of this scam and bringing it to everybody’s attention…i was gonna risk sending the money in exchange for love, so it looks like i woulda been screwed big time!i will try to post her pic on here for everybody to see,thanks guys-mike
well, actually i figured this out in like 1 hour.first i received the message from these 2 girls
http://dating.personals.yahoo.com/personals-1266022925-352574
http://mbox.personals.yahoo.com/us/mbox/convs?cid=1124593037&view=1
but when i clicked on “who viewed your profile” in my yahoo personal, i had no views!then i realized there is something fishy going on.i tried to search their e-mails on face-book and i ended up here lol.although they’d never be able to even get a penny from me,and i’m not a type of guy who would be hurt or anything,i still think this is cruel to play with other people’s feeling for money.btw here are their e-mails: passiontiffany01@yahoo.com
and anitabecks39@yahoo.com
i hope this helps:)
I placed my profile on yahoo 1/15/2010 and it appears that I am having the same issues, I already have had 2 scams going on at the same time and both are in Nigeria. Both men are good looking and appears to be educated but both within a couple of emails have asked me for money. The first one finally stopped contacting me and the second keeps tying to contact me but I do not respond. I am now on my 3 contact and after 12 days he has has traveled to Nigeria on business and was attacked and lost everything…. Ok…here we go again… The sad part about this is the first profile was local…. I did delete my profile about a week ago because after 3 scams, I had it..
ive been talking to a man he calls his self LAKE MOON, EMAIL LAKEMOON_4YOU@YAHOO.COM I CAUGHT ON RIGHT AWAY HE IS WORKING IN AFRICA ON A JOB HE IS A PROFESSIONAL ROAD CONSTRUCTOR HE HAS A 7 YR OLD DAAUGHTER , I WAS STUPID GAVE HIM MY # AFTER AWHILE HE CALLED ME AT 4:30 AM CRYING STATED MARY FELL DOWN THE STAIRS AND NEEDED MONEY FOR A OPERATION 350.00 I TOLD HIM NO GOT IN A FIGHT TOLD THEM SCAMMERS OFF HERES THE FUNNY PART . I WROTE HIM A LOVE LETTER TELLING HIM HOW SORRY I DIDNT BELIEVE HIM. IVE BEEN PLAYING HIM NOW ITS UP TO 1000.00 BUT NOW I TOLD HIM I WAS IN THE HOSPITAL . THEY ARE SO STUPID. LONG EMAILS EVERYDAY LOVE LETTERS WE ARE GETTING MARRIED LOLOL KINDA RELIGIOUS, HE HAS HIS DAUGHTER CALLING ME MUMMY ALREADY NOW I READY TO EXLODE ON HIM AGAIN BUT I FIGURE THE LONGER I TALK WITH HIM . HES LEAVING SOME ONE ELSE ALONE ….VERY CUTE MUSCULAR, SENT PICTURES OF DAUGHTER WITH LATE WIFE . NOW HE HAS IN PHONE # AND PICTURE POSTED ON MY MESSENGER OF COURSE HE WANTS THE 1000. BECAREFUL OUT THEIR IM SO GLAD I CAUGHT ON BECAUSE WOW HE WAS DROP DEAD GORGEOUS LOLOL.
oh yeh its on yahoo it just hit me i am woman but i was helpin my brother with talking to girls and one tried that scam on me look out for passiontiffany01@yahoo.com
Got hit with the same crap this week. This time it was a Patric Gracious Zambruther and it was the California story. He is from Italy, came here when he was 10. Married his high school sweetheart. They were married for 16 years. He has a 12 year old named Bob. His wife and parents died in an accident together many years ago. He has dated a few times since then including to a woman that cheated on him with his best friend that he took as a brother. He moved here to Bangor, Pa and has only been here a week. He is currently in Florida on a business trip where he is looking for Arts and “status.” He was quick to answer any question I had of him but never really asked me anything about myself or if he did then he asked me the same question later on as well. His spelling was atrocious for someone interested in the “Arts” and he had no sense of humor whatsoever. I said to him after 2 days of him searching for “status” and him not finding what he was looking for in Florida that I would have to get my kids to sculpt him something out of play-doh. His reply “Hmmm, ok” I got alot of those responses and “hmmm ic” as well. Never any LOL or any jokes back. Not sure what got my hackles up but after 2 days of chatting, including emails back and forth from work, I asked him his last name and googled him. Found the website for the art gallery and then this site. Confronted him with the info and no response back. Will be letting Yahoo personals know as well.
That photo was stolen off the web. None of these images are real. Please people do not fall for the images.
Everything is fake, they steal images and other things. I am so sorry for your situation.
These criminals are cruel and hurting people.
Yes I was scamed by a woman named Joleena she said she lived in England and her father died five years ago she was going to Nigeria to take care of her fathers propertys there , and needed 150.00 for pocket change after she arrived. after she arrived there she said that I was supposed to get ahold of the Barrister and that her father had 4.9 million in a sealed trunk and needed to send it to me and to send her a small portion and that after she would come and live with me in the states. After all this I looked to the town and there I found the news of Ophra and the scammers,
I played sorta sceptical and then she told me to F.O. and she was so hurt and so saddened by all this she was going to hurt herself………………. Bla Bla bla. be carefull not to get scammed and the picture’s were very professional taken of her now I am out of her life and she is GONE
Thanks for your Site
I did receive one from a Tiffany and another, Linda. I exchanged emails with Tiffany I have a hunch this is too good to be true. After a few emails – she has not gone to the stage where she wanted money – the last one she wrote about my mother and she spelt mom, ‘mum’. I realized this right away because I have not mentioned my mother. She died three years ago. Probably this guy gotten mixed up with so many exchanges of email. The word ‘mum’ is not an American word. It is British and most commonwealth countries, and are formerly British colonies. Be careful of scams from Eastern European countries. They produced fake H1B visa pasted on the passport.
My brother was contacted by a scammer and it was really sad. Because even though he didn’t give “her” any money he did get hurt. He has never really done much dating and so he was really trying hard and putting himself out there, just to have the first person he really clicked with turn out to be a scammer. We were able to look up the IP address from her e-mail by using this web site: http://aruljohn.com/info/howtofindipaddress/ and discovered that it was out of Nigeria.
It was the same kind of MO that has been listed by other people here. Both her parents were dead, she was from Spain, but moved to the US when her parents died, but was currently living in the UK working with UNICEF. When suddenly she needed money and had no one else to turn to. She was going by the name Olla Demilio Smithson but her e-mail came through as Olla Own (ollasmith28@yahoo.com – feel free to send her all the junk mail you want). T
My mom has been using Yahoo! Personals and seems to get one new scammer every other day! My favorite thing to do is screw around with them using her profile. I even documented a couple of cases here: http://illustriousauthor.com/conversations-with-yahoo-personal-scam-artists/ I linked to your post in my article since you have more serious information about how to spot these guys.
Iwas contacted by this Keith Anderson from Los Angeles too, at the same time
as the person above…same story everything….I unfortunately sent him money
and have submitted a fraud report to my local police department, Western Union and the FBI…am going to contact the Nigerian Economic and financial
Crimes Commission on Monday to see if they can do something………