Headline

‘How I Was Duped By A Nigerian Love Scammer Who stole £200,000 From Me After We Met On Facebook’ – Woman

Published

4 months ago

July 12, 2025

A woman has told of being conned out of £200,000 by a romance scammer who bombarded her with gushing messages every day for two-and-a-half years.

Elizabeth, who is in her sixties and lives in rural England, handed over her life savings, took out a loan and remortgaged her home to meet the man’s ever increasing demands for money.

Sharing her story in public for the first time, she bravely revealed how she fell victim to an elaborate catfishing plot orchestrated by a fraudster posing as an oil industry consultant from Texas. In reality, the criminal was based in Nigeria and had stolen photos of a real man before concocting a string of crisis scenarios to trick the kindhearted mother of two. At one point, he even pretended he had a daughter who had lost her newborn baby.

During the whole period of the scam, he repeatedly promised to pay back the money and even delivered a fake cheque to her home for $1.832 million dollars.

Elizabeth, who did not want to give her real name for privacy reasons, said she ‘can’t believe’ she fell for his evil lies, but was vulnerable at the time after breaking up with a ‘toxic’ partner.

Hers is the latest account of the misery being caused by romance scammers, who conned British victims out of more than £88 million last year. While these have involved individuals from multiple countries, many cases are linked to Nigeria, which is known to host informal academies — known as ‘hustle kingdoms’ — which train individuals in the art of tricking vulnerable victims.

Elizabeth, who is now being assisted by the charity Victim Support, was first targeted in March 2022 while browsing a Facebook page dedicated to dogs. Her long-term relationship with a ‘toxic, gas-lighting partner’ had ended just months before.

‘I got talking to one of the members who asked if we could message each other outside the group on Skype,’ she told MailOnline. ‘He said he was having an issue with rabbits eating some plants he had bought for his daughter. I’m an empath who always wants to help people, so I looked on Amazon and found some mesh that he could use to keep the rabbits out.’

‘Days later, I got a photo showing the mesh being put up and a message saying “thank you so much”!’

After this ‘ordinary’ conversation, the scammer began sending Elizabeth messages several times a day. ‘We started talking about food so he would send recipes and photos of what he was eating,’ she said. ’He said he was divorced, worked as a consultant in the oil industry and had a boxer dog, which he sent me lots of photos of too.

‘At the time I was very vulnerable after coming out of this lengthy toxic relationship, so I guess I was an easy target. Each day he’d be messaging asking how I was and how my night had been. Having someone be kind and asking questions when I was in that frame of mind made me really open up!’

By July — five months after the scammer first approached her — he began ‘love-bombing’ Elizabeth by sending her photos of flowers and hearts. He would also play word games with her and speak about how desperate he was to meet up.

At one point, Elizabeth became suspicious when she noticed his Facebook profile said he had been to college in Nigeria — despite his claim to be American. But he batted away her concerns by claiming his profile had been changed by someone else. She was also confused when the scammer phoned her on Skype one day and she heard his Nigerian accent.

‘I said I was having real difficulty understanding him,’ Elizabeth said. ‘But because in my brain I had thought he was Texan and American I just assumed that was what he sounded like — which is mad with hindsight.’

At the height of the love-bombing campaign, Elizabeth said the man was messaging her several times a day and speaking of his ‘very strong feelings’ for her. She said that by August — after he had subjected her to half a year of relentless grooming — she began to think “gosh, I really like this guy”.

Delighted at what she thought was a budding romance, Elizabeth shared the news with her two best friends and two sons. ‘One of my friends asked me to promise him to never give him any money,’ she said. ‘My eldest son warned me that he sounded like a scammer and to watch Tinder Swindler. But I completely ignored him!’

It was around this time that the scammer began laying the groundwork for two of the stories he would use to squeeze money out of Elizabeth. One related to a new oil rig project the man said he had started in America after taking out a loan and remortgaging his house. The other related to his invented daughter, who he said had just split from her husband and was in desperate need of money. The scammer said he would have given this to her himself had he not just borrowed such a large sum of money.

He asked her to send £1,500 using iTunes gift cards, which can be transferred between people using a code. This is a popular method used by scammers, who then sell on the cards online at a discount.

‘It started in Autumn 2022 with me sending money for his daughter,’ Elizabeth said. ‘He then told me that a really expensive part of the rig had broken and he needed £10,000. I tried to send that via my bank but a man from the fraud department blocked it.’

‘The scammer said I should forget about all the money if it was causing me hassle. So for a few days I felt relieved, but then he came back and said I should use PayPal instead. He eventually got the money and said he was eternally grateful!’

The man invented a string of other scenarios to persuade Elizabeth to send him cash. By December 2022 she had pawned her late mother’s jewellery in a bid to help him — something that she said now makes her ‘sick to the pit of my stomach.’

The scammer’s behaviour showed a keen awareness of human psychology. He demonstrated this in March 2023, when he showered Elizabeth with sympathy and affection after one of her close relatives died. ‘The scammer appeared to be so kind and supportive — and the “empathy” he showed was unbelievable,’ she said.

‘He actually Facetimed me when I was driving but the call only lasted for two minutes. My sons now believe that was AI rather than him. I was in love with an image of someone who had been tailored to my specific needs. So I was totally brainwashed.’

Showing the depths he was prepared to plumb, the scammer even posed the death of his imaginary daughter’s baby. Elizabeth was subsequently sent emails from the ‘heartbroken mother’ asking for money. Another time, he posed as a doctor who wanted Elizabeth to help pay his medical bills after he had supposedly fallen seriously ill. Desperate to help, she would go on to take out a loan and remortgage her home.

Ironically, the documents relating to these transactions would prove crucial to extricating Elizabeth from the scam after one of her sons found them in her bedroom and staged an ‘intervention’ with his brother in August 2024.

Recalling the moment they confronted her, Elizabeth says: ‘They asked “what is this, what has gone on?” but I was very defensive initially.’

In an experience that was remarkably similar to Elizabeth’s, the scammer posed as a charming American oil-rig worker named ‘David West’. In reality, this photo shows an American doctor whose photo had been stolen.

Recalling the moment they confronted her, Elizabeth says: ‘They asked “what is this, what has gone on?” but I was very defensive initially.’

The man had repeatedly promised to pay Elizabeth back and went as far as forging a cheque for $1.832 million and having it delivered to her home via FedEx in October 2023. She said she presented this cheque to her sons as that the man was genuine, but they quickly realised it was a forgery.

‘My eldest Googled the address and saw it was a funeral home — it was also covered with biblical quotes,’ she said. ‘When the reality hit, I just went to pieces. I realised that I meant nothing to this man — if he even was a man — and I was just a means to an end. I was so blinkered and sucked in. You believe someone because you want to believe them and completely lose touch of reality.’

After realising she was the victim of a heartless scam, Elizabeth contacted the police and Action Fraud, the UK’s national fraud reporting centre for cyber-crime. Aided by her sons, a ‘fantastic’ Action Fraud caseworker and the charity Victim Support — which she described as a ‘life line’ — she was able to persuade her bank to pay her back two-thirds of the £200,000 she had lost.

Elizabeth was visited by a policewoman and gave a full account of what happened, but was told her case could not be pursued because the scammer lived outside the UK. She confronted the criminal on Skype, but he denied everything. Skype eventually agreed to block him and she has now deleted all the messages he sent her.

Looking back on the experience, Elizabeth says she ‘can’t believe’ she was taken in by the scam but urged onlookers not to judge.

‘You reflect on it and you can’t believe it was all a lie,’ she said. ‘I can’t believe that I did what I did. But if you’re not in that situation you won’t be able to relate to. If you haven’t walked my path then you can’t judge.’
(MailOnline/TRIBUNE)

Headline

Trump Orders Tougher Visa Screening Regime

Published

4 days ago

November 10, 2025

Editor

The Donald Trump administration has reinstated a sweeping global visa policy that can make it harder for many foreign nationals—including Nigerians—to obtain U.S. visas, as Washington revives its controversial “public charge” rule targeting those deemed likely to depend on public benefits.

A newly issued State Department cable, obtained by Fox News Digital, directed American embassies and consulates worldwide to enforce the policy immediately. The directive, which officials say restores a Trump-era standard relaxed under President Joe Biden, instructs U.S. consular officers to deny visas to anyone considered likely to rely on government assistance in the United States of America.

Under the rule, visa applicants will be assessed on a wide range of personal factors—including their health, age, English proficiency, financial stability, and potential need for long-term medical care.

Consular officers are urged to take a holistic approach, considering everything from the applicant’s visa petition and financial affidavit to their medical report and any other information uncovered during background checks.

“You must examine all aspects of the case,” the guidance reads, “including the petition, visa application, medical report, affidavit of support, and any information uncovered in the course of screening and vetting.”

Older applicants, particularly those nearing retirement age, are expected to face extra scrutiny. The cable notes that “long-term institutionalisation (e.g., at a nursing facility) can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars per year and should be considered,” suggesting that age and health will play major roles in visa decisions.

The revived rule follows an executive order signed by President Donald Trump titled “Ending Taxpayer Subsidisation of Open Borders”. The order, according to the State Department memo, aims to ensure “that no taxpayer-funded benefits go to unqualified aliens.”

The cable further stresses that the public charge determination rests solely on the judgment of each consular officer, who must conduct a “comprehensive and thorough vetting” before issuing any visa. “There is no ‘bright line’ test,” the cable adds. “You must consider all aspects of the case and determine whether the applicant’s circumstances… suggest that he is more likely than not to become a public charge at any time.”

A State Department official told Fox News Digital, “For years, the American taxpayer was held hostage by the Biden administration’s disastrous open borders agenda… The Trump administration has brought an end to the era of mass immigration.”

The U.S. State Department controls visa issuance at embassies abroad, while the Department of Homeland Security manages who is ultimately admitted into the country or allowed to adjust status once inside the U.S. Though both agencies operate under the same immigration laws, the new guidance grants wide latitude to consular officers overseas to reject applicants on “public charge” grounds.

Before now, the Biden administration’s 2022 version of the rule had limited the benefits considered under the policy — counting only direct cash assistance and long-term institutional care, while excluding popular social support programmes such as food stamps (SNAP), Medicaid, housing vouchers, and the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) programme.

The Trump administration had expanded that definition in 2019 to include a broader range of public benefits, though several U.S. courts later blocked parts of the policy before it was scrapped by President Biden in 2021.

This week’s cable now marks a full return to that broader interpretation, instructing American consular officials to “conduct a comprehensive and thorough vetting” and to verify all supporting financial documents presented by applicants.

For many Nigerians seeking U.S. visas — from students and workers to elderly immigrants joining family abroad — the revived rule could mean more rejections and lengthier processing times.

Headline

Mexican President Pledges Tougher Sexual‑harassment Laws After Being Groped

Published

1 week ago

November 6, 2025

Editor

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Thursday unveiled proposals to boost reporting and prosecution of sexual abuse after she herself was groped in the street in an attack that caused outrage.

Mexico’s first woman president, 63, was assaulted on Tuesday by a drunken man while walking through the streets of the capital.

The assault made global headlines and focused attention on the dangers and harassment suffered by many women in the Latin American country.

Sheinbaum has pressed charges against her attacker for sexual harassment, a charge that in Mexico City covers lewd behaviour and groping.

She has also ordered a review of the widely diverging laws on sexual harassment and abuse across Mexico’s 32 states.

Sexual harassment in public spaces is so prevalent in Mexico that in the last decade, the authorities have created women-only spaces on the metro.

Other cities with similar arrangements include Mumbai and Rio.

“May what happened serve so that women do not feel alone in situations of harassment or abuse… and for this to happen, there must be institutions and a government that supports them,” Sheinbaum told her regular morning press conference.

The UN says around 70 per cent of Mexican girls and women aged 15 and over will experience at least one incident of sexual harassment in their lives.

Sheinbaum said that 45 per cent had experienced sexual “abuse.”

The man who assaulted her put one arm around her shoulder while she was greeting supporters, and with his other hand touched her hip and chest while attempting to kiss her neck.

A member of Sheinbaum’s security detail pulled him away.

Citlalli Hernandez, Secretary for Women, said more than 25,000 complaints of sexual harassment have been filed so far this year.

Headline

US Lawmakers Urge Sanctions On Miyetti Allah, Others Over Alleged Religious Violations

Published

1 week ago

November 6, 2025

Editor

The United States House of Representatives has urged the Departments of State and Treasury to impose targeted sanctions on individuals and organisations, including Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria and Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, over alleged violations of religious freedom in Nigeria.

This was contained in a resolution introduced before the House on Tuesday and cited by The PUNCH from the US Congress website on Wednesday.

Recall that Trump, in a post on Truth over the weekend, declared Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern” and threatened to take military action if the country did not stem the alleged killings of Christians.

Filed as H. Res. 860 in the 119th Congress, the resolution, submitted by Rep. Christopher Smith with Rep. Paul Huizenga as a co-sponsor, commends President Donald Trump for redesignating Nigeria as a CPC.

The sponsors decried the alleged worsening persecution of Christians and other religious minorities.

They cited a catalogue of findings and reports that informed the measure, including media accounts and NGO data alleging large-scale attacks on civilians, destruction of places of worship, and a pattern of impunity.

The resolution reads in parts, “For over a decade, Islamic terror organisations have carried out mass murder, rape, kidnappings, and other atrocities targeting mostly Nigerian Christians and non-Fulani moderate Muslim populations, resulting in mass displacement and destruction of places of worship

“Prominent Christian and Muslim leaders have been kidnapped or assassinated, including priests, pastors, and imams who advocate for religious tolerance;

“Religious leaders, such as Father Remigius Iyhula and Bishop Wilfred Anagbe, who testified on March 12, 2025, at a hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee about the persecution and targeted killings of Christians in the Diocese of Makurdi, have faced intimidation, threats, and harassment from both extremist groups and government authorities.”

Supporters of the measure argued that the CPC redesignation would strengthen diplomatic leverage to press Nigeria for accountability and protection of religious minorities.

“The designation of Nigeria as a CPC will enhance diplomatic efforts to encourage the Nigerian government to take necessary actions to protect religious minorities and uphold fundamental human rights,” they said.

They therefore moved that “President Donald Trump acted appropriately and decisively to redesignate Nigeria as a CPC and hold the Nigerian government accountable for its complicity in religious persecution by radical Islamists, such as Boko Haram and Fulani terrorists.”

They further recommended conditioning US foreign assistance on demonstrable steps by Nigeria to prevent persecution, prosecute alleged perpetrators, and care for displaced populations.

“The State Department should provide immediate humanitarian assistance directly to faith-based groups to support internally displaced people in Nigeria’s middle belt states.

“The United States, through the Department of State and Department of Treasury, should impose targeted sanctions, including visa bans and asset freezes under the Global Magnitsky framework and other restrictive measures, on individuals and entities responsible for severe violations of religious freedom in Nigeria, including sanctions against Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) and Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, and should place Fulani-Ethnic Militias operating in Benue and Plateau States on the Entities of Particular Concern List under the International Religious Freedom Act,” the resolution read.

The resolution also asked the US to justify the purposes and amounts of recent security and development assistance to Nigeria and to tie future support to improved human-rights outcomes.

The resolution was referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Judiciary Committee for further consideration.

If it advances out of committee, the resolution would mark a clear congressional signal backing Trump’s CPC decision and could open the door to further legislative or executive actions.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government had said the United States’ designation of Nigeria as a “country of particular concern” over alleged violations of religious freedom is based on a wrong perception of the country’s security challenges.

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, stated this on Wednesday in Abuja while addressing journalists.

Idris said the US position stemmed from “misrepresentation and misinformation” about Nigeria’s internal security situation.

According to him, terrorism and violent crimes in Nigeria do not target any particular religious group.

“Nigeria faces long-standing security challenges that have impacted Christians and Muslims alike.

“Any narrative suggesting that the Nigerian state is failing to take action against religious attacks is based on misinformation or faulty data,” Idris said.