Fraudsters given almost £200k by victims of romance fraud in Gloucestershire
Police have issued a warning to people in the county to be wary of the scams.
Fraudsters were given almost £200,000 by victims conned in romance frauds in Gloucestershire over a six month period last year.
Police have issued a warning to people in the county to be wary of the scams - as victims often wrongly believe they are helping someone in crisis - but they are actually being groomed to part with their cash.
From July to December last year the Constabulary had 78 reports of it.
The scammers often claim that they live abroad, sometimes with sob stories that they are a struggling single parent, widowed, hungry, homeless or stranded in a foreign country.
Some claim they work in the military or are medical professionals, and make promises to meet up in person, but always have an excuse and cancel.
They often ask for Amazon gift cards, bitcoin or payment transfers to pay for items including rent, bills, medical fees, legal fees or travel fees. In some cases, victims have taken out credit cards or loans for the fraudster.
There can also be an emotional impact for victims who have been scammed, with some feeling embarrassed to have fallen victim which may also discourage them from coming forward to report what has happened.
One Gloucestershire victim lost tens of thousands of pounds after being scammed in a relationship fraud over around a year.
He said: "You feel stupid. You feel guilty. And there's also that confusion of 'is this real or is this false?'
"There is someone who sounded genuinely as if they were in need, as if they were desperate for help. As if there was nobody in the world who was helping them, and could I do this and help them.
"There's a lot of emotional investment because it was a whole year of it."