Women Nearly Has Bank Account Cleaned Out In Facebook Scam.
The woman I refer to happens to be a friend of mine. She is not Facebook savvy like most of us, is of a certain age, and by her own admission, does not have much excitement in her life. Out of the blue, a handsome lieutenant, apparently widowed and in need of love, sent her a friend request. Flattered, she responded and for the next three weeks he wrote long messages opening his heart and telling her he’d fallen madly in love with her.
She could not believe her luck. The wealthy widow was stationed in Afghanistan for three more months, at the end of which he wanted to join her in Greece, buy hotels, give her the life of luxury she deserved and devote himself to her forever.
She woke up every morning on cloud nine, waiting to read his outpourings of love and thanking the universe again and again for the blessing it had bestowed on her. Her belief in his words, encouraged her to join a gym, go on a diet, change her hairstyle and update her fashion style. She wanted to be a princess to match her prince. It did cross her mind that it seemed too good to be true but his words were so convincing, she fell prey to the golden illusion he planted in her mind.
Three weeks later, dreaming about their wedding and how it would feel to make love to such a tenderhearted, kind, passionate man, he told her he’d hit a problem and was unable to transfer his million dollars into a bank account in Greece. He said he hated to ask but since they would be spending the rest of their lives together, could she please give him her bank account details, together with a copy of her passport and birth certificate so he could transfer his money into her account.
Alarm bells sounded. She called to ask my opinion. ‘It’s a scam,’ I said. ‘Many women (and men) have fallen prey to it. Why didn’t you ask me earlier?’
‘I wanted it to be true,’ she said in all innocence. ‘What action should I take?’
‘None, delete him, never correspond with him again, do Not befriend anyone who hasn’t had a Facebook account for at least a year – and remember that when we believe something seems too good to be true, 99% of the time this is guaranteed.’ Silence on the other end of the phone. ‘Don’t regret it,’ I said. ‘You fortunately came to no harm and he encouraged you to make changes you’d been putting off for ages.’
‘Yes, you’re right.’ I could feel her smiling down the phone. ‘He made me feel beautiful, confident and loved. Something I hadn’t felt for a long time so even though it was an illusion I don’t regret it – and will use all I learned in ways to help me stay feeling beautiful.’
‘Atta girl, beautiful one,’ I said. ‘Onwards and upwards.’
To the rest of you, stay on your toes. The Mafia are everywhere and these days are intelligent, can speak with the eloquence of poets and know that loneliness makes us gullible. If you feel lonely don’t look to strangers to fill the void. Find ways to fill it yourself before some unscrupulous gangster empties out your bank account.
PS The pic posted is of lieutenant my friend was taken in by. It is most likely a fake profile so if the real person sees this, I suggest he takes action to get it removed.