Man watches RM119,000, woman disappear in online dating scam, US police say

A Porter County man lost US$25,000 in a scam that started when a woman he met on an online dating site offered to teach him how to invest in cryptocurrency. — Image by freepik

CHESTERTON: A local man lost US$25,000 (RM119,387) in a scheme originating on an online dating site, police said.

The 59-year-old man said he developed a friendship in January with a woman he met on a dating website and she offered to teach him about investing in crypto currency, according to Chesterton police.

The man said he agreed to transfer US$1,000 (RM4,775) into an account created by the woman and after it grew to US$2,500 (RM11,938), he received his investment back and the gain, police said.

The woman then attempted to persuade the man to deposit US$200,000 (RM955,100) in the account, but he agreed to US$25,000 (RM119,387) based on the success of his first investment.

“He continued to watch the account until it reached US$70,000 (RM334,215),” police said. “He logged back in at 5pm Monday, April 8, and saw that the account no longer existed. It had been wiped out along with this US$25,000 (RM119,387).”

The woman’s profile on the dating website was also deleted, police said. – The Times, Munster, Ind./Tribune News Service