Gardai warn against scammers 'stealing your heart and swindling your money'

The highest reported loss by a female in Ireland was over €450,000

This Valentine’s Day, Gardai are warning against romance scammers who they say will “steal your heart and then swindle your money”.

Over €7M has been stolen from victims of romance fraud over the last five years and Gardai say there are criminals taking advantage of the increase in the popularity of dating apps among those seeking romance.

Of the 245 victims that have come forward to An Garda Síochána since 2020, the majority were female and their average financial loss was €28,500. The highest reported loss by a female in Ireland was over €450,000 stolen in 18 transactions, while one male victim had more than €380,000 taken.

“Typically, fraudsters use someone else’s photos to set up a fake profile on dating apps and online dating sites to scour through profiles to identify potential victims who they will then target and groom over a sustained period in an effort to extract their money,” a spokesperson for An Garda Siochana added.

“Their profile usually depicts a person that has a responsible job but is most often fictitiously based in a location which makes them unable to travel or move freely, and has poor phone network or internet connection i.e. working on an offshore oil rig, an aid worker, a humanitarian doctor or a soldier in a worn-torn country.

“They’ll match or connect on the dating app and quickly encourage their victim to move to a messaging app or email. They’ll say all the right things because they follow prepared scripts.

“Their background may seem legit; they will usually claim to have been married and now widowed or divorced, have grown up children and be seeking a platonic relationship but that is all part of the ploy.

The requests for money start small and in some instances if these initial asks are provided for by the victim, they will be repaid so as to build trust. The fraudster will have more than one victim at any given time.”