Reports :

---Original Message---
Initial contact via Instagram, then suggests that he continue the chat process via Skype. He says he lives in Albany, NY; is divorced, no children, has one dog (Pit Bull called Betty, 4 yo), is electrical engineer, best friend Matty - who is his mentor/father figure. Matty's wife is Patience ("Patty"). Matty has brain tumour & has to go to Utah for emergency operation.
Michael wins a contract with Shell to implement and operate a short-term maintenance operation on the Perdido Oil Platform in the Gulf of Mexico. Takes a crew of 8 labourers with him for 21-day project.
Terms of employment are that no mobile phones are permitted on oil platform (security issues) but, as he is the boss and is required to analyse the project, he has access to an onboard computer, on which he installs Skype so that he can continue personal chats.
No camera on this computer, of course. Back story: only son of single mum, was raised on small farm in Denmark, home-schooled.
Was born as result of affair between his mother and American man who was married and had family in USA.
The "dad" went back to USA, no contact with Michael throughout childhood. Mother dies of cancer, Michael goes to USA to make contact with father & extended family. Father now in aged person's home & Michael is footing the bills. Unhappy / resentful relationship with step siblings. Is very intelligent, charming and perceptive.
Persistent but respectful. If there were grades for scammers, I would give him an A++. A few holes in his story, but I won't reveal those here.
As detailed by the previous reporter, he wins my confidence by asking me (trusting me) to log onto his bank account to conduct financial transfers on his behalf (which he cannot do because he does not have his mobile phone to obtain SMS for ID verification, so has to rely on email verification which he reads to you while you are doing transfer).
When you log onto his bank account, the balance is substantial - millions - so the trust and obligation equation is established quickly.
Then a problem develops - his bank account is frozen because two people are logged on at the same time. Frozen for 21 days. Disaster!! Because I was the one who was logged on from an IP address on the other side of the planet, contravening the bank's T&Cs, (bank is TrustMark, if anyone is interested), a sense of responsibility and guilt is established. Of course the problem requires money to be paid, using crypto. At first around $5,000 USD.
Then another problem arises after his bank is unfrozen by his attorney. Premise: he has seen a house that he really wants to buy in Australia, but cannot complete the Foreign Investor requirements because he is stuck out on that darn oil rig. However, if he could transfer the money into my account, could I go and place a holding deposit on the house if I like it? Of course, I must deduct the amount he owes me!
So once again, I am logged into his bank account, and transferring $140,000 USD to my bank account. The next morning: guess what? His bank account is frozen again, this time by Federal Investigators because the large amount, (any amount over $100,000 being transferred internationally) was automatically flagged as potentially being involved in Money Laundering.
Now, the only option available is to try to circumvent the legal process by having his attorney negotiate a backroom deal involving a $25,000 USD fee, (read bribe), and this is where the techniques become very emotional and persuasive. Fear of courts, of not being able to leave the country, being tied up on legal processes for years, not that he has anything to hide, of course. He is charming, persuasive and lethal. He managed to persuade me that he found me utterly captivating and beautiful despite a 12-year age gap. No, age was no barrier. NO, he did not want children. He has never felt like this about anyone before in his life - he trusts me, the first person he has been able to trust in six years. Etc etc His method was almost identical to the previous person's report: Initial contact via Instagram, then suggests that he continue the chat process via Skype. He says he lives in Albany, NY; is divorced, no children, has one dog (Pit Bull called Betty, 4 yo), is electrical engineer, best friend Matty - who is his mentor/father figure. Matty's wife is Patience ("Patty"). Matty has brain tumour & has to go to Iowa for emergency operation. Michael wins a contract with Shell to implement and operate a short-term maintenance operation on the Perdito Oil Platform in the Gulf of Mexico. Takes a crew of 8 labourers with him for 21-day project. Terms of employment are that no mobile phones are permitted on oil platform (security issues) but, as he is the boss and is required to analyse the project, he has access to an onboard computer, on which he installs Skype so that he can continue personal chats. No camera on this computer, of course. Back story: only son of single mum, was raised on small farm in Denmark, home-schooled. Was born as result of affair between his mother and American man who was married and had family in USA. The "dad" went back to USA,
no contact with Michael throughout childhood. Mother dies of cancer, Michael goes to USA to make contact with father & extended family.
Father now in aged person's home & Michael is footing the bills. Unhappy / resentful relationship with step siblings. Is very intelligent, charming and perceptive. Persistent but respectful. If there were grades for scammers, I would give him an A++. A few holes in his story, but I won't reveal those here.
As detailed by the previous reporter, he wins my confidence by asking me (trusting me) to log onto his bank account to conduct financial transfers on his behalf (which he cannot do because he does not have his mobile phone to obtain SMS for ID verification, so has to rely on email verification which he reads to you while you are doing transfer). When you log onto his bank account, the balance is substantial - millions - so the trust and obligation equation is established quickly.
Then a problem develops - his bank account is frozen because two people are logged on at the same time. Frozen for 21 days. Disaster!! Because I was the one who was logged on from an IP address on the other side of the planet, contravening the bank's T&Cs, (bank is TrustMark, if anyone is interested), a sense of responsibility and guilt is established. Of course the problem requires money to be paid, using crypto. At first around $5,000 USD.
Then another problem arises after his bank is unfrozen by his attorney. Premise: he has seen a house that he really wants to buy in Australia, but cannot complete the Foreign Investor requirements because he is stuck out on that darn oil rig. However, if he could transfer the money into my account, could I go and place a holding deposit on the house if I like it? Of course, I must deduct the amount he owes me! So once again, I am logged into his bank account, and transferring $150,000 USD to my bank account. The next morning: guess what? His bank account is frozen again, this time by Federal Investigators because the large amount, (any amount over $100,000 being transferred internationally) was automatically flagged as potentially being involved in Money Laundering.
Now, the only option available is to try to circumvent the legal process by having his attorney negotiate a backroom deal involving a $25,000 USD fee, (read bribe), and this is where the techniques become very emotional and persuasive.
Fear of courts, of not being able to leave the country, being tied up on legal processes for years, not that he has anything to hide, of course. He is charming, persuasive and lethal.
He managed to persuade me that he found me utterly captivating and beautiful despite a 12-year age gap. No, age was no barrier. NO, he did not want children. He has never felt like this about anyone before in his life - he trusts me, the first person he has been able to trust in six years. Etc etc images belong to Hugh Howey, an American writer