A 71-year-old retired woman in Hong Kong lost nearly HK$2.9 million after becoming involved in an online romance scam in which a man she met on Facebook allegedly persuaded her to invest in a fake business and later send money to help him with a supposed legal emergency.
According to Hong Kong police, the woman met a man who claimed to be 60 years old and said he worked for a power company. The two began communicating regularly on Facebook, with the man gradually gaining her trust through daily messages and expressions of care.
They eventually developed an online romantic relationship, although they never met in person.
After establishing the relationship, the man introduced the woman to what he described as an investment opportunity involving a waste recycling project in Singapore. He allegedly promised her guaranteed returns and persuaded her to download an investment application.
The application appeared to show that her investment was growing. An alleged online customer service representative guided the woman through the registration and deposit process.
When she later attempted to withdraw her money, however, the supposed customer service representative refused to process the withdrawal, giving various explanations.
The fraud then escalated. The man allegedly told the woman that he had been arrested in Singapore on money-laundering charges and needed money for bail and legal expenses.
He also instructed her to visit a cryptocurrency exchange in person and deposit cash into a designated digital wallet.
Believing the emergency was genuine, the woman continued transferring money. She eventually exhausted her savings and borrowed additional funds from friends and a finance company.
Police said she made 17 separate transactions, transferring close to HK$2.9 million in total.
The scam was eventually uncovered after debt collectors began contacting the woman over her debts. She then approached her daughter for financial help, which led to the family realizing that she had been deceived.
The case was reported by CyberDefender, a cybersecurity information platform operated by the Hong Kong Police Force.
The incident was reported amid a broader series of online romance scams in Hong Kong. According to CyberDefender, police received 18 reports of romance scams during the previous week, with total reported losses approaching HK$7.8 million.
