On the most romantic day of the year, gardaí warn people to be wary of heartless scammers

An Garda Síochána has urged people to be cautious with new relationships and have listed some of the tell-tale signs that something is amiss with people one meets online.

A pensioner duped out of more than €100,000 is just one of 74 victims of romance fraud identified by gardaí last year.

Some €1.9m was lost in all through such crimes, with the true scale of the problem likely to be far greater as gardaí believe many victims do not come forward afterwards.

They are warning people to be wary of investing money on the advice of people they meet online.

• The woman who lost the €100,000 had paid out money in a number of transactions over a 12-month period from mid-2021.
• Another woman lost €4,500 after meeting a person online who persuaded her that he was in a military camp in Yemen and needed money.
• One middle-aged man befriended a woman online who convinced him to invest in cryptocurrency and he lost €20,000.

A total of €5.9m has been stolen from Irish victims since 2019, with the majority of contacts being initially made on dating websites.

Last year, 52 females reported romance fraud, while 22 males were duped.

Detective Superintendent Michael Cryan of the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau said that victims never know who they are talking to online, with culprits following a script.

He said that the majority of victims of such crimes are over 50 years of age.

He added: “They are primarily the people who will be on dating sites and they are also the age group which has money as well.”

According to gardaí, there is an increasing link between romance fraud and investment fraud.

They say that, in many cases, scammers will ask victims to invest in a fraudulent scheme or business.

Gardaí are urging members of the public to be vigilant as there are huge risks involved in investing in cryptocurrencies. They also advise people not to share any money with someone they meet through websites or apps, and to get professional and legal advice before investing.

Fraudsters are using excuses such as needing money to travel to visit the victim, medical bills, and investment opportunities to scam money from their victims.

Gardai say that the typical romance fraudster will:

• Try to move communications away from dating websites. They suggest that you move to instant messaging, text, or phone calls instead.

• Ask you a lot of personal questions.

• Avoid answering personal questions about themselves. The details that they do tell you may seem made up or do not reflect reality.

• Try to establish a bond quickly. For example, they may give you an endearing pet name such as 'baby', or 'darling', etc.

• Ask for financial help. They may tell you about money problems in the hope that you will offer to help.

• Ask you to invest in a fraudulent scheme or business.

• Never meet you in person. They will present obstacles and may go as far as making arrangements and cancelling them at the last minute. They may promise to want to see you but offer excuses which delay this, such as financial troubles.