Thames Valley Police is continuing its campaign to raise awareness of a romance fraud, a crime that they say cost victims across the UK more than £106million last year.
As part of this, the police have supported the launch of Series 2 of the BBC Sounds podcast ‘Love Bombed: Who is Alex?’ which explores the devastating emotional and financial impact of romance fraud.
Hosted by Vicky Pattison, the story of Sarah, a romance fraud survivor who was manipulated into a relationship with a man she knew as “Alex” from an online dating website – a digital persona created by a scammer operating from overseas. The podcast reveals how Sarah was emotionally groomed, isolated from her support network, and defrauded out of thousands of pounds.
Detective Inspector Duncan Wynn, Head of Central Fraud Unit said: “I am delighted to be supporting World Romance Scam Prevention Day on 3rd of October to highlight the importance of supporting and not shaming those targeted.
“Shame is the ‘master emotion’ which can prevent victims from feeling able to report and confide in their support networks.
“Romance fraudsters employ manipulative tactics and contrary to widely held belief, asking for money is not the first request made of the victim.
“Mentioning money early in the communication normalises talking about it to make later requests seem legitimate and reasonable.
“Fraudsters will also use emotionally fuelled responses such as being in distress, to prompt the victim to act quickly without having time think it through or seek advice.
“Isolation is also a key tactic as fraudsters will cut victims off from sources of emotional support which get framed as ‘romantic’ and later serves as a platform to gain control over the victim.”
