Anybody Can get Scammed
WYFF4 ran a story on May 10 describing a classic scam that I’m seeing lots of reports of out of Nigeria. See the Nigerian connection pieces I have written.
Ben Coleman contacted Aileen Califano through a dating site. After spending some time to gain Califano’s trust, Coleman asked for money, which Califano rightly refused. Then Coleman sent her $3,800 in money orders, which he asked her to deposit in her bank account, then wire the money to Colorado.
Califano was not fooled. She was sure they were a fraud, and checked. They were.
Sending phony money orders and asking the receiver to deposit the fake checks and then forward the money to another address is a common scam technique. In the May 15, 2006, issue of the New Yorker, author Mitchell Zuckoff wrote about how John W. Worley, a Christian psychotherapist, was suckered into a classic Nigerian scam. If you want to see how a perfectly normal, bright man gets suckered, take a look.
From Your Romance Coach, Kathryn Lord
Thank you for your story. I have been talking with Ben Coleman for a few weeks now and he asked me for money today. I had searched for something on him on the internet for weeks now and found absolutely nothing. Then today I found your story. He is on singleparentmeet.com. He says he lives in Florida. There has to be some way to make this more public.
Posted by Julie on 02/05 at 08:59 PM