These profits were unbelievable. They were.

Tennessee woman thought she had found love and wealth, but ended up with none.

Niki Hutchinson (24-year-old social media producer) was another victim of the scam. The FBI warned that the number of crypto romance scams is on the rise.

Niki claimed to the New York Times that she was conned of $300K by a man she met on Hinge.

She met a man named Hao while visiting a friend in California. He said he lived near her and was in the clothing industry. When she said she was Chinese, he replied that he was also Chinese and was from the same province.

She said that the couple continued to text after she returned home. They had moved their chat to WhatsApp, which experts warn could be a red flag because messages are encrypted and more difficult to track. It was not something Niki noticed.

They only videochatted once, she said. Hao showed only a small part of his face, and they hung up quickly. She recalled, "I thought that he was shy."

Niki informed her boyfriend that $300K was her inheritance from her mother, who died recently. He suggested that she invest the money in cryptocurrency.

He texted her, "I want you to learn how to invest in cryptocurrency whenever you have the time," he said.

She agreed and sent a small amount of money to his wallet address. He claimed that it was linked to an account on a crypto-exchange called ICAC. She was convinced when her money showed up on the legitimate-looking site. She was impressed by the speed and ease with which her investment was growing. So she sent more money until her entire inheritance was invested in it. She even borrowed money to invest more.

The alarms rang only when she attempted to withdraw the money in December. She was unable to complete the transaction and contacted customer service at ICAC. They told her that her account would be locked unless she paid hundreds of thousands in taxes.

Hao was her first point of contact. He ghosted her.

"I was like, Oh, God, what did I do?" She said.

Niki lives now in an RV with her father. She has been working hard to find the scammer. But she doesn't have much hope of seeing her money ever again.

She said, "You hear all the stories about millionaires." It was like cryptocurrency was the new trend and I needed to get in.

The Times also interviewed Tho Vu about a similar story. Although the charmer's name is Ze Zhao and the cryptocurrency exchange OSL was OSL, the plot points were the same: They met on Hinge and texted for months, discussing crypto investment advice, and he was still waiting on his Covid booster shot.

Tho, who works in customer services for a security firm, said that Tho thought he knew him. "Everything was a liar."

FBI offices across the country warned of the rise in the crypto romance scheme. This scam was exacerbated due to the loneliness of Covid, and the trendiness associated with cryptocurrency.

The Bureau's San Francisco Field Office reported earlier this month that $64 million was lost in 2021 to romance scams, as opposed to just over $35 millions in 2020.

It warned that the FBI San Francisco noticed a rise in romance scammers trying to convince people to send money to trade or invest in cryptocurrency.

After gaining the trust and confidence of the victim, scammers direct the victim to a fake website or application to invest in an opportunity. The scammers let the victim withdraw a small sum of money after the victim has made an initial investment on the platform.

"Eventually, the scammer tells the victim that he wants to make a larger investment. The scammers then create excuses for the victim to not withdraw the funds again. A victim is told that additional fees or taxes must be paid or that the minimum account balance cannot be reached to withdraw funds. Sometimes, a "customer service group" is involved. This is part of the scam.

"Ultimately, victims can't withdraw any money. Scammers will most likely stop communicating with victims after they stop sending additional funds.

These tips are:

• Never trade or send money to someone you've only met online.
• Don't reveal your financial situation to untrusted people.
• Don't give out your bank information, Social Security Number, copies or passports, or any other sensitive information online to anyone.
• It is very likely that an online trading or investment site will offer incredible profits.
• Do not be tempted to invest with people who claim to have investment opportunities that are exclusive.

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Title: 24-Year-Old Loses $300K Inheritance to Crypto Romance Scam
Sourced From: toofab.com/2022/02/22/24-year-old-loses-300k-inheritance-to-crypto-romance-scam/
Published Date: Tue, 22 Feb 2022 16:58:24 +0000

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