One woman felt the single parent and affluent businessman she met online was the one for her, but it turned out he was a romantic con artist.
Claire Spencer revealed on This Morning that she met “Jack” on the dating app Plenty of Fish in 2021 and was asked for £1,000 within three weeks.
The fraudster purported to be trapped in Cambodia, his wallet stolen, and had become “aggressive” when his victim refused to pay cash.
Jack even recommended she sell her car or take out a loan to help him out.
Claire reluctantly borrowed £500 from a friend to send the money over.
Speaking to This Morning, Claire Spencer (pictured) revealed she met “Jack” on dating app Plenty of Fish in 2021 and was asked for £1,000 within three weeks
“It humbled me even more, I was so devastated,” she told Phillip Schofield and Rochelle Humes.
“I felt really hurt at the time… do you know how gullible one can be?
‘But like people who’ve known me for years said to me, ‘God you of all people, huh?’
Jack had claimed to be a “hotel builder” who had a son and dogs – who had lived in the same town as Claire.
“Kids and dogs, same kind of story as me,” she told the show.
“We frequented the same type of restaurants… I once asked him what his favorite restaurant was and unbeknownst to me, I sent him a picture of my favorite restaurant… and he used it without my giving it a second thought.” .
‘He found that out.’
She admits there were “a few red flags,” but also explained that it’s easy to be reassured.
Consumer affairs expert and presenter Alexis Conran (pictured) urged viewers to stay alert as they search for love online
The scammer had pretended to be stranded in Cambodia – with his wallet stolen – and had become “aggressive” when his victim was reluctant to offer cash
‘They convince you that ‘oh yes, it’s alright…I’ll be right back,” Claire said.
Jack also used photographs of an Italian model to persuade her, but the fairytale romance was only ruined when a mutual acquaintance discovered she had seen him elsewhere.
Alexis Conran, a consumer protection specialist and presenter, advised viewers to be cautious when looking for love online.
“It’s a relationship that starts online through dating apps or a website,” he explained.
“Usually there’s someone posing as someone who doesn’t live in the same country, who isn’t available…ex-military, laborers…businessmen…then that relationship forms and starts.”
“At some point, a fabricated emergency occurs… that forces the victim to send money,” he explains.
He advised avoiding giving money to somebody you haven’t met in person and advised online daters to utilize Google’s reverse image search, which allows you to find a photo if it’s already online.