Romance fraud, like the crimes featured in the Netflix documentary Tinder Swindler, is costing Leicestershire people nearly a million pounds a year.
And that’s just counting the victims who actually turn to police after falling for the lies of their online loves.
In one recent case, a 43-year-old Leicestershire woman fell in love with a man she met online only to have her heart broken when he took £40,000 she lent him and disappeared.
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The woman lost her entire life savings, as well as much of her self-respect.
After having to take early retirement on health grounds, she began looking for a relationship on the internet.
About 18 months ago she met a man who said his name was Mike and that he was originally from Leicester but was currently in the army and serving abroad in Nigeria.
The woman, who did not want to be named, said: “He made the first move and of course I was flattered.
“We spoke via Messenger or WhatsApp mainly and it felt like we had something.
“He told me he wanted to be with me and he dropped in familiar place names so I felt like he was telling the truth and we had things in common.
“He complimented me all the time and made me feel good about myself.
“We would message a normal amount – sometimes three or four messages a day. He didn’t bombard me.
“He told me he was waiting for some kind of inheritance but that he was struggling for money and in debt until he received it. Eventually he…
