Posted on Nov 6, 2015
Woman scammed out of $44K by fake 'Army Captain' on Facebook
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From KHOU.com:
HOUSTON - This Watching Out for You story is a warning to anyone who's looking for love in all the wrong places.
It happened to a Houston woman that we'll call "Mary." We're protecting her identity because she's embarrassed and angry.
Mary's story started in May, 2015 when she and her 2-year-old son had moved away from the boy's father. It was a tough and lonely time for the 39-year-old mom.
"It was the moment that I was feeling really miserable," she said. Then came a message on Facebook from an attractive soldier who was stationed in Afghanistan.
His message read that he found her interesting and nice. "That's how it started," she said. After that first message, they chatted all the time and the conversation moved from Facebook to email and texting.
Months went by and Mary started falling for the Army Captain who said his name was "Clark McGarthy."
He talked about moving to Houston, buying Mary her dream home in Bellaire and a BMW. "All I think about is oh wow, that's very nice, someone want to love me and have money." she said.
Four months later, the Captain and Mary started making plans for his move. "I tell people that he is my soul mate," she said. But her "soul mate" had just one small favor.
When returning home to the U.S. to retire, he wanted to travel light; so he asked Mary to sign for a military package filled with his life belongings.
"He just needed your help getting this package?" asked Tiffany Craig. "Yes," she responded. "He wanted it to be in my custody."
She contacted the shipping company called "City Spring Courier Services" and suddenly they needed $980 dollars for "clearance duty."
"And you didn't think twice about it," asked Tiffany.
"Nope," she says,"I didn't because I thought I was in love." She paid it and waited. A few days later, the shipping company had more fees.
In total and in less than a month, Mary sent a whopping $44,550 dollars.
It was all from her life savings but she didn't care because she was preparing for her future!
"He keep saying baby, you know money's nothing," she recalled. "You know I will pay you back double when I come in."
He was supposed to arrive in August but soon September rolled around and there was no soldier and no package.
That's when Mary realized she had been scammed. "I'm very disappointed, I'm upset" she said.
When she contacted the KHOU 11 News Watching Out For You department, we knew that her money was long gone.
A google search will bring up websites with pages and pages of stolen images used as bait.
Facebook even has a page called Military Romance Scams. There, we found the exact pictures that Mary was sent of her "Army Officer."
She admits, she never had any suspicions. He was that smooth.
"I didn't go further to track him," Mary admitted. "I should have done that but I didn't do it"
Since Mary made deposits into an actual bank account, we tracked down the owner.
She lives in Sarasota, Florida and also a victim.
The 52-year old woman fell for the same picture with a different name and transferred all of Mary's cash to Nigeria. Both women have filed police reports but they know that little can be done.
Mary hopes by sharing her story, others will learn for her mistake. "Just stay off Facebook in hopes of meeting any guys," she warned.
Now she has to live with the fact that a scam artist not only broke her heart, but her bank account too.
There are lots of websites that offer tips to avoid becoming a victims.
A few tips:
1. Don't fall for anyone who says "I love you" at warp speed.
2. Watch for grammar and spelling mistakes in letters and messages because the scammer is most likely foreign and not serving our country in the U.S. Military.
3. Don't give money to anyone you have only met online.
HOUSTON - This Watching Out for You story is a warning to anyone who's looking for love in all the wrong places.
It happened to a Houston woman that we'll call "Mary." We're protecting her identity because she's embarrassed and angry.
Mary's story started in May, 2015 when she and her 2-year-old son had moved away from the boy's father. It was a tough and lonely time for the 39-year-old mom.
"It was the moment that I was feeling really miserable," she said. Then came a message on Facebook from an attractive soldier who was stationed in Afghanistan.
His message read that he found her interesting and nice. "That's how it started," she said. After that first message, they chatted all the time and the conversation moved from Facebook to email and texting.
Months went by and Mary started falling for the Army Captain who said his name was "Clark McGarthy."
He talked about moving to Houston, buying Mary her dream home in Bellaire and a BMW. "All I think about is oh wow, that's very nice, someone want to love me and have money." she said.
Four months later, the Captain and Mary started making plans for his move. "I tell people that he is my soul mate," she said. But her "soul mate" had just one small favor.
When returning home to the U.S. to retire, he wanted to travel light; so he asked Mary to sign for a military package filled with his life belongings.
"He just needed your help getting this package?" asked Tiffany Craig. "Yes," she responded. "He wanted it to be in my custody."
She contacted the shipping company called "City Spring Courier Services" and suddenly they needed $980 dollars for "clearance duty."
"And you didn't think twice about it," asked Tiffany.
"Nope," she says,"I didn't because I thought I was in love." She paid it and waited. A few days later, the shipping company had more fees.
In total and in less than a month, Mary sent a whopping $44,550 dollars.
It was all from her life savings but she didn't care because she was preparing for her future!
"He keep saying baby, you know money's nothing," she recalled. "You know I will pay you back double when I come in."
He was supposed to arrive in August but soon September rolled around and there was no soldier and no package.
That's when Mary realized she had been scammed. "I'm very disappointed, I'm upset" she said.
When she contacted the KHOU 11 News Watching Out For You department, we knew that her money was long gone.
A google search will bring up websites with pages and pages of stolen images used as bait.
Facebook even has a page called Military Romance Scams. There, we found the exact pictures that Mary was sent of her "Army Officer."
She admits, she never had any suspicions. He was that smooth.
"I didn't go further to track him," Mary admitted. "I should have done that but I didn't do it"
Since Mary made deposits into an actual bank account, we tracked down the owner.
She lives in Sarasota, Florida and also a victim.
The 52-year old woman fell for the same picture with a different name and transferred all of Mary's cash to Nigeria. Both women have filed police reports but they know that little can be done.
Mary hopes by sharing her story, others will learn for her mistake. "Just stay off Facebook in hopes of meeting any guys," she warned.
Now she has to live with the fact that a scam artist not only broke her heart, but her bank account too.
There are lots of websites that offer tips to avoid becoming a victims.
A few tips:
1. Don't fall for anyone who says "I love you" at warp speed.
2. Watch for grammar and spelling mistakes in letters and messages because the scammer is most likely foreign and not serving our country in the U.S. Military.
3. Don't give money to anyone you have only met online.
Stolen Valor
Internet
Scam
Posted 9 y ago
Responses: 4
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