Crypto
A Manitoba man is warning others after he fell victim to an elaborate online scam over the summer.
In a matter of months, 62-year-old Ernie Kiss lost $185,000 in what experts describe as a cryptocurrency romance scam.
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The incident has forced Kiss, a retired pilot and airplane mechanic, back into the workforce.
“You know, it starts off innocent,” Kiss told CTV News Wednesday. “It starts off with a little bit of money here and there, and it’s all good – and it’s not.”
In April, Kiss said he received an Instagram message from a woman named Angela, who said she was a plastic surgeon in California with a keen interest in learning how to fly.
“We seemed to hit off back and forth. We made some phone calls and videos – the whole bit,” Kiss explained. “I was going to go down to see her.”
When Angela started telling him about investing in artificial intelligence, Kiss said he saw it as an opportunity to earn some passive income.
“At first, I put a couple thousand dollars and everything was fine. According to the little thing they have [on the app], it was making money, and I could withdraw money.”
Angela encouraged him to invest more money to boost his profits. So, in went his life savings along with money borrowed from his sons. However, it was all too good to be true.
Kiss said Angela came up with excuses when he booked trips to visit her in California. In one instance, she had to fly to London to care for her sister.
“I had bought my ticket and hotel and everything, so I cancelled that,” he said. “And she sent me pictures from London, or at least I thought they were from London.”
A short time later, he booked a second trip, but Angela came up with another excuse last second.
“That’s when I started realizing this could be a farce. We seemed to be getting along fine, but I was always a little skeptical,” Kiss said. “A friend of mine sat me down and said, ‘You know, this is a scam.’”
Kiss said he confronted Angela about it, and he never heard from her again.
The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) said these types of cyber crimes are common. The scammer gains the victim’s trust, convinces them to invest in fake online platforms, and then disappears with their money.
As of Aug. 31, 167 crypto-romance scams totalling $5.4 million have been reported to the CAFC.
“I know this sounds ridiculous, but we always tell our children not to talk to strangers. Well, I think, you know, just be vigilant and be very careful who you’re speaking to and verify that they are truly that person,” CAFC’s Nancy Cahill told CTV News.
The CFAC said warning signs include:
- Profiles that seem too perfect;
- Someone you haven’t met in person professes their love to you;
- A suspect that tries to move communication to a more private or different method of communication (email, text, social media platform, etc.);
- Any attempts to meet in person get c
