Couple Scammed Gay Men On Dating Sites Out Of $249K – Star Observer
A couple from South London have scammed 80 people, most of whom were gay men, out of over £140,000 ($249,000) in a targeted romance fraud scheme.
Fredrick Diji and his partner, probation officer Raquel Johnson, posed as singles in need of cash on dating sites. The couple used a variety of fake personas to target victims through online dating sites, including Match and Gaydar.
The pair ‘love bombed’, showering their victims with attention and affection in an attempt to gain their trust, before asking them for money for a number of false reasons.
In one instance, the couple had even conned one man out of over £100,000 ($178,000) for a period of 14 years, across the elaborate 16-year fraud operation.
As reported by MyLondon, Diji used fake profiles and contacted single individuals over the phone or through texts, making his victims feel as if they were talking to someone real.
He would also use excuses including being held up by Dutch customs while trying to return to the UK and that he needed financial support to be released from kidnappers, and that his sick mother had died and needed money to help pay for the costs of her funeral and gain access to his inheritance.
In some instances, Diji had sent forged documents (death certificates, travel documentation and ID documents) to prove his identity before forcing victims to transfer money into his account.
Investigation Into Romance Fraud
According to Surrey Live, the investigation into the couple’s romance fraud scheme began after a Surrey victim came forward in 2020 and officers were able to trace bank transfers made by the victim straight to the pair’s door.
Several devices were seized from their home address, and officers found evidence that proved the pair had been sharing account logins and concocting up stories to deceive their latest victims. The fake documents were also found on devices seized by police from the couple’s home in Camberwell, Southeast London, and officers also uncovered evidence of money laundering by tracing bank transfers between multiple accounts.
Surrey Police worked with the City of London Police’s National Fraud Intelligence Bureau and identified a further 179 victims throughout the investigation. Many of those victims were gay men, older people or people suffering from poor health.
Police discovered 80 of these victims were linked to romance fraud, 22 to investment fraud and 77 had their identities or bank details stolen or shared. Evidence of money laundering was also found by tracing bank transfers between multiple accounts.
In total, over £400,000 ($712,000) was found to have been laundered through their bank accounts.
Romance Fraudsters Arrested and Sentenced
Guildford Crown Court sentenced both Diji and Johnson to a combined total of 11 years and nine months imprisonment for their romance fraud scheme.
Diji pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud, concealing criminal property and possession of an identity document for improper means, and was sentenced to eight years. Johnson was sentenced to three years and nine months after pleading guilty to one count of money laundering.
Judge Robert Fraser condemned the couple for executing a “truly callous conspiracy of significant scale.”
Specialist prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service Jane Mitchell, said “Romance fraud is a horrendous crime and the cost to individual victims goes well beyond financial loss. It is despicable that Diji targeted men either because of their sexuality, age, or poor health in order to defraud them.”
“The victims in this case were looking for genuine love and companionship and Diji acted with greed and callousness to take advantage and emotionally manipulate them, persuading them to hand over their money… We will be pursuing the defendants’ criminal gains through the Proceeds of Crime Act,” Mitchell said.