Online dating scammers steal millions from Queensland lonely

[duckhunter]

Here's an interesting one:

QUEENSLANDERS who go online in search of love are being fleeced of $1.4 million a month by online scammers, often left shattered and financially destitute.

The $16 million a year sent to phony "suitors" in Nigeria and Ghana by vulnerable Queenslanders represents a fifth of all the money extorted from Australian romance scam victims, a state cyber crime fighter has claimed.

State Fraud and Corporate Crime Group head Detective Superintendent Brian Hay said post office workers acting as cash transmission agents could become the "frontline" for stopping misguided lonely hearts sending millions of dollars overseas.

Supt Hay said Australia Post was the biggest agent for the largest overseas cash transmission company, Western Union.

Cash remittance agents, including post office workers, were at the "critical intervention point" and had a broader responsibility to try to prevent victims from losing life savings.

"The cash remittance industry, I feel, has a responsibility to step up and do more than is occurring to protect the community of Australia," said Supt Hay.

"Seventy per cent of all the money going to Nigeria is romance-fraud related and we're talking millions of dollars.

"In some instances romance scam victims are even being directed by the fraudsters to their nearest post office, so they can send them money."

Supt Hay said a Queensland romance scam victim recently sent more than $200,000 in cash to Nigeria - several thousand dollars at a time - through the same post office.

The woman, a widow with a daughter, was left destitute, having exhausted all her savings and assets. She is now considering moving from a regional city to look for a job.

Supt Hay said post office staff were in a position to have most success in warning people they could be victims of a scam and could urge them to seek independent advice before sending money to Nigeria or Ghana.

"They are in the prime position to intervene at the earliest opportunity," Supt Hay said. "We are seeing hundreds of thousands of dollars getting lost out of small country towns as a result of these scams."

Supt Hay said fighting these types of "insidious offences" was everybody's responsibility.

"One thing criminals do is isolate the intended victim from their families and support groups as soon as possible," he said. "So the next intervention is trying to stop the money leaving the country.

"Just raising the issue, expressing their concern and encouraging people to seek independent advice may be sufficient to get them to do that and stop the victimisation process."

Australia Post has denied scams are a common occurrence through Australia Post channels and outlets, but said staff were trained to be vigilant in relation to this activity.

A spokeswoman said it was not Australia Post's role to investigate scams but it acted on information from police and worked with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to alert customers to scams.

Victims can contact a support group through the police fraud and corporate crime group on 3364 6622.

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/sund ... 6353807999