How a Myrtle Beach man lost $250K in an online dating scam
A Myrtle Beach man says he lost $250,000 in a scam through a popular online dating site.
The 63-year-old victim spoke to Horry County police on Saturday — the day after Valentine’s Day — and informed them of the situation, according to an incident report.
The victim said he spoke to a person on Match.com for about 18 months, according to the report. The conversations moved to another app and then to email. The victim grew to trust the suspect and started to send money via checks and wire transfers.
Police say the suspect requested the money.
The victim said the money was used for taxes, licensing, fees, shipping and costs associated with transferring $2.4 million worth of gold bars from the United Arab Emirates to the victim.
Eventually, the victim said he grew suspicious when Massachusetts police contacted him during one of its investigations, according to the report. Local police referred the victim to the FBI’s fraud reporting website for further investigation.
