Latest news with #romancescam
ABC News
6 days ago
- ABC News
Donna Nelson launches appeal against Japan drug conviction using romance scam expert
Lawyers for Perth grandmother Donna Nelson, who is serving six years in jail in Japan for smuggling methamphetamine, are hoping new expert evidence will prove she could not have known she was smuggling drugs. Nelson, 58, alleged a love scammer tricked her into carrying a bag with two kilograms of the drug hidden inside, after she was caught at Tokyo's Narita Airport in January 2023. An appeal will begin today at the Tokyo High Court. Nelson had travelled to Japan to meet a man she had been in an online romance with for two years. The man, known as Kelly, paid to fly her to Japan via Laos, and asked her to collect a bag during her layover he claimed was for his clothing business. Nelson checked the bag, but upon arrival at Narita Airport, luggage scanners found the drugs hidden in the suitcase lining. Nelson's daughters are hoping an appeal will bring their mum home, after a taxing two-and-a-half years. "It's kind of just like survival mode," daughter Ashlee Charles told the ABC. "You're not really given any other choice but to cope." In finding her guilty, the China District Court did not rule that Nelson knew she was smuggling drugs. Rather, it determined the story of Kelly should have raised enough suspicions for Nelson to refuse carrying the bag. Lawyers for Nelson argue this is 'hindsight bias' and have submitted evidence from Monash University romance scam expert Monica Whitty. "Ms Donna Rose Nelson was a blind mule," the submitted evidence says. "The criminals used sophisticated techniques to manipulate her, ensuring she was unaware of their plans to exploit her in this way. In the submitted evidence, Professor Whitty points out numerous cases where romance scam victims have been duped into carrying drugs. It argues love scam victims are often at a low point of their lives, such as after divorce, being widowed, or in a loveless marriage. 'Kelly spent two years grooming Nelson and convincing her he had a successful fashion business in Japan. "Donna's profile matched the typical profile of a romance scam victim," Professor Whitty argues. "She was lonely and at a vulnerable moment in her life, but she was prepared to find the 'ideal' relationship. The submitted evidence demonstrates the many techniques love scammers use to confuse their victims and cloud their judgement. This includes injecting a sense of urgency, where something must be done quickly or the opportunity will pass. Nelson's trip to Japan was only organised a few days before her flight after multiple efforts to meet up had fallen through. When she was in Laos, an associate of Kelly delivered the bag just as she left the hotel for the airport. This sudden change of plans is known as the "discombobulation stage", Dr Whitty argues. Inside the bag were clothing samples. Defence lawyer Nishie Rie told the ABC this further assured Nelson that nothing was amiss. "That was another way of distracting her from the true problem," she said. "If you just get the suitcase empty, maybe she weighs it and maybe she'd check it even more. But her attention was towards the clothing and she thought, 'oh there's only clothing and that's it'." Nelson is optimistic the appeal will succeed, her daughters said. "She's really positive, in my opinion," Ms Charles said. "It's scarily positive. She is feeling really optimistic where she says, 'I won't respond to your letter because I hope to tell you in person'." Sister Kristal Hilaire is in Tokyo for the appeal, while the rest of the family are in Perth. "I don't know why, but I don't really feel stressed out," she said. The family are trying to prepare for any outcome, including a prisoner transfer to Australia should the appeal fail. "We've had a conversation with our foreign minister, Penny Wong," Ms Charles said. "She's reassured us that that would be something that she can help with." The first hearing at the Tokyo High Court is expected to be brief, with a verdict to be set on another date. "There's so much evidence that speaks to my mum being someone who didn't do this knowingly, especially," Mrs Charles said. "It would be really unjust for her to have a negative result."
ABC News
20-07-2025
- ABC News
Perth grandmother Donna Nelson to appear in Japanese court in drug smuggling appeal bid
A Japanese court is set to decide this week whether it will re-examine the case of an Australian woman convicted of smuggling almost two kilograms of methamphetamine into the country. Perth grandmother Donna Nelson has always maintained her innocence, saying she was duped by an elaborate romance scam into carrying a bag with drugs concealed inside. Ms Nelson, a former Greens candidate who chaired a city-wide Indigenous health service and ran a charity for disadvantaged youths, was sentenced to six years in jail in December by a Japanese court. On Thursday the court will hear an application for an appeal that will include new evidence from an expert on romance scams. "When you talk to the experts, they can talk about the victimology side of it, the psychology, and how they're groomed," Ms Nelson's daughter, Ashlee Charles, told the ABC. During her trial, Ms Nelson gave evidence she was in an online long-distance relationship with a man known as Kelly for around two years before he offered to fly her to Japan. The flight included a stop in Laos where she said an associate of Kelly's gave her a bag which he claimed was a sample for Kelly's supposed fashion business. Japanese authorities found methamphetamine concealed in a false bottom. Mrs Charles said she and her four sisters had always believed in her mother's innocence. "I know that my mum is innocent because of the way she raised us," she said. Her sister Kristal has this week travelled with her family and nephew, Donna's grandson, to Japan in this latest bid to secure her freedom. Mrs Charles said navigating Japan's legal system from abroad had taken its toll on the Perth family. "We didn't know how long it would take for the appeal to get to the first hearing," Mrs Charles said. "It's really hard to navigate all of this, but also navigate day- to-day life without our mum. "It's really hard if you get sick, or something happens in your life you can't wait to tell mum… you can't because obviously we don't have direct contact with her." She said they could only exchange letters with their mum, unless they flew to Japan and applied to see her in person in prison. "It would be nice if there was a phone system, even once a month, that we could talk to her," she said.
The Sun
19-07-2025
- The Sun
Lovestruck man travels 500 miles to meet beauty queen ‘he believed was his ‘future wife'… to be greeted by her husband
A LOVESTRUCK man travelled nearly 500 miles to meet a beauty queen he had been talking to online - only to be greeted by her husband. Unlucky Belgian man Michel had turned up at Sophie Vouzeland's home in Saint-Julien, France, and announced he was her "future husband". 6 6 6 But Sophie's actual husband Fabien emerged from the home and quipped: "Well, I'm the current one." Stunning Sophie is a former Miss Limousin and 2007 Miss France runner-up. She boasts nearly 300,000 followers on Instagram alone and often posts her life on social media. 76-year-old Michel thought he had been speaking on WhatsApp to the beauty queen for weeks - and had even transferred an eye-watering £25,000 which he thought was just a loan. Michel is heard saying: "I think she played a dirty trick on me." The shocked man then shows Sophie's husband the many messages he and, who he thought was the French model, had exchanged. Fabien responded: "My wife, no, it's the fake accounts. "You have to be very careful." It didn't take long before Michel realised he had sadly been scammed, telling the couple: "I am an imbecile." Husband Fabien videoed some of the exchange and posted it to social media where it has garnered thousands of views. My boy, 14, thought he was innocently flirting with a girl online – 35-minutes later he was dead He also wrote a warning on the post about the dangers of romance scams. This is where someone is deceived into sending cash to a criminal who convinces them they're in an actual relationship. Fabien said in the post: "I feel so sorry for this man. "Watch out for fake accounts, I'm sharing this video to show you it's real and to be vigilant! Take care of yourself." Belgian man Michel is thought to be a widower of four years and was looking for love - but was heinously scammed. Sophie urged the deceived man to go to the cops to lodge a complaint. It remains unclear whether he has or not. The beauty queen expressed her sympathy for Michel and said the incident "hurts my heart". 6
Telegraph
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Scam victim travels 500 miles to find French beauty Queen ‘lover' is married
A Belgian man travelled nearly 500 miles to meet a French beauty queen who he thought was his future wife – only to find out that he had been the victim of a romance scam. The man, who called himself Michel, turned up at the home of Sophie Vouzelaud, in Saint-Julien and announced: 'I am the future husband of Sophie Vouzelaud.' Her husband, Fabien, came out and said to Michel: 'Well, I'm the current one.' Ms Vouzelaud is a former Miss Limousin and Miss France 2007 runner-up. She has nearly 300,000 followers on Instagram and posts frequently about her life on social media. Michel, 76, believed that he had been speaking on WhatsApp to the French model for weeks and had even sent £25,000 – which he thought was going to be paid back. 'I think she played a dirty trick on me,' Michel said. In desperation, Michel showed the husband his phone, and the string of messages exchanged between himself and the person he believed to be Ms Vouzelaud. 'My wife, no, it's the fake accounts,' Fabien replied. 'You have to be very careful.' Soon, Michel realised that he had been swindled, and told the couple: 'I am an imbecile.'
Daily Mail
09-07-2025
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE I was duped by a Nigerian love scammer who stole £200,000 from me after we met on Facebook - these are the red flags to look out for
A woman has told of being conned out of £200,000 by a romance scammer who bombarded her with gushing messages every day for two-and-a-half years. Elizabeth, who is in her sixties and lives in rural England, handed over her life savings, took out a loan and remortgaged her home to meet the man's ever increasing demands for money. Sharing her story in public for the first time, she bravely revealed how she fell victim to an elaborate catfishing plot orchestrated by a fraudster posing as an oil industry consultant from Texas. In reality, the criminal was based in Nigeria and had stolen photos of a real man before concocting a string of crisis scenarios to trick the kindhearted mother of two. At one point, he even pretended he had a daughter who had lost her newborn baby. During the whole period of the scam, he repeatedly promised to pay back the money and even delivered a fake cheque to her home for $1.832million dollars. Elizabeth, who did not want to give her real name for privacy reasons, said she 'can't believe' she fell for his evil lies, but was vulnerable at the time after breaking up with a 'toxic' partner. Hers is the latest account of the misery being caused by romance scammers, who conned British victims out of more than £88million last year. While these have involved individuals from multiple countries, many cases are linked to Nigeria, which is known to host informal academies - known as 'hustle kingdoms' - which train individuals in the art of tricking vulnerable victims. Elizabeth, who is now being assisted by the charity Victim Support, was first targeted in March 2022 while browsing a Facebook page dedicated to dogs. Her long-term relationship with a 'toxic, gas-lighting partner' had ended just months before. 'I got talking to one of the members who asked if we could message each other outside the group on Skype,' she told MailOnline. 'He said he was having an issue with rabbits eating some plants he had bought for his daughter. 'I'm an empath who always wants to help people, so I looked on Amazon and found some mesh that he could use to keep the rabbits out. 'Days later, I got a photo showing the mesh being put up and a message saying ''thank you so much''.' After this 'ordinary' conversation, the scammer began sending Elizabeth messages several times a day. 'We started talking about food so he would send recipes and photos of what he was eating,' she said. 'He said he was divorced, worked as a consultant in the oil industry and had a boxer dog, which he sent me lots of photos of too. 'At the time I was very vulnerable after coming out of this lengthy toxic relationship, so I guess I was an easy target. 'Each day he'd be messaging asking how I was and how my night had been. Having someone be kind and asking questions when I was in that frame of mind made me really open up.' By July - five months after the scammer first approached her - he began 'love-bombing' Elizabeth by sending her photos of flowers and hearts. He would also play word games with her and speak about how desperate he was to meet up. At one point, Elizabeth became suspicious when she noticed his Facebook profile said he had been to college in Nigeria - despite his claim to be American. But he batted away her concerns by claiming his profile had been changed by someone else. She was also confused when the scammer phoned her on Skype one day and she heard his Nigerian accent. 'I said I was having real difficulty understanding him,' Elizabeth said. 'But because in my brain I had thought he was Texan and American I just assumed that was what he sounded like - which is mad with hindsight.' At the height of the love-bombing campaign, Elizabeth said the man was messaging her several times a day and speaking of his 'very strong feelings' for her. She said that by August - after he had subjected her to half a year of relentless grooming - she began to think ''gosh, I really like this guy''. Delighted at what she thought was a budding romance, Elizabeth shared the news with her two best friends and two sons. 'One of my friends asked me to promise him to never give him any money,' she said. 'My eldest son warned me that he sounded like a scammer and to watch Tinder Swindler. But I completely ignored him.' It was around this time that the scammer began laying the groundwork for two of the stories he would use to squeeze money out of Elizabeth. One related to a new oil rig project the man said he had started in America after taking out a loan and remortgaging his house. The other related to his invented daughter, who he said had just split from her husband and was in desperate need of money. The scammer said he would have given this to her himself had he not just borrowed such a large sum of money. He asked her to send £1,500 using iTunes gift cards, which can be transferred between people using a code. This is a popular method used by scammers, who then sell on the cards online at a discount. 'It started in Autumn 2022 with me sending money for his daughter,' Elizabeth said. 'He then told me that a really expensive part of the rig had broken and he needed £10,000. I tried to send that via my bank but a man from the fraud department blocked it. 'The scammer said I should forget about all the money if it was causing me hassle. So for a few days I felt relieved, but then he came back and said I should use PayPal instead. 'He eventually got the money and said he was eternally grateful.' The man invented a string of other scenarios to persuade Elizabeth to send him cash. By December 2022 she had pawned her late mother's jewellery in a bid to help him - something that she said now makes her 'sick to the pit of my stomach'. The scammer's behaviour showed a keen awareness of human psychology. He demonstrated this in March 2023, when he showered Elizabeth with sympathy and affection after one of her close relatives died. 'The scammer appeared to be so kind and supportive - and the ''empathy'' he showed was unbelievable,' she said. 'He actually Facetimed me when I was driving but the call only lasted for two minutes. My sons now believe that was AI rather than him. 'I was in love with an image of someone who had been tailored to my specific needs. So I was totally brainwashed.' Showing the depths he was prepared to plumb, the scammer even posed the death of his imaginary daughter's baby. Elizabeth was subsequently sent emails from the 'heartbroken mother' asking for money. Another time, he posed as a doctor who wanted Elizabeth to help pay his medical bills after he had supposedly fallen seriously ill. Desperate to help, she would go on to take out a loan and remortgage her home. Ironically, the documents relating to these transactions would prove crucial to extricating Elizabeth from the scam after one of her sons found them in her bedroom and staged an 'intervention' with his brother in August 2024. Recalling the moment they confronted her, Elizabeth says: 'They asked ''what is this, what has gone on'' but I was very defensive initially.' In an experience that was remarkably similar to Elizabeth's, the scammer posed as a charming American oil-rig worker named 'David West'. In reality, this photo shows an American doctor whose photo had been stolen Ironically, the documents relating to these transactions would prove crucial to extricating Elizabeth from the scam after one of her sons found them in her bedroom and staged an 'intervention' with his brother in August 2024. Recalling the moment they confronted her, Elizabeth says: 'They asked ''what is this, what has gone on'' but I was very defensive initially.' The man had repeatedly promised to pay Elizabeth back and went as far as forging a cheque for $1.832million and having it delivered to her home via FedEx in October 2023. She said she presented this cheque to her sons as proof that the man was genuine, but they quickly realised it was a forgery. 'My eldest Googled the address and saw it was a funeral home - it was also covered with biblical quotes,' she said. 'When the reality hit, I just went to pieces. I realised that I meant nothing to this man - if he even was a man - and I was just a means to an end. 'I was so blinkered and sucked in. You believe someone because you want to believe them and completely lose touch of reality.' After realising she was the victim of a heartless scam, Elizabeth contacted the police and Action Fraud, the UK's national fraud reporting centre for cyber-crime. Aided by her sons, a 'fantastic' Action Fraud caseworker and the charity Victim Support - which she described as a 'life line' - she was able to persuade her bank to pay her back two-thirds of the £200,000 she had lost. Elizabeth was visited by a policewoman and gave a full account of what happened, but was told her case could not be pursued because the scammer lived outside the UK. She confronted the criminal on Skype, but he denied everything. Skype eventually agreed to block him and she has now deleted all the messages he sent her. Looking back on the experience, Elizabeth says she 'can't believe' she was taken in by the scam but urged onlookers not to judge. 'You reflect on it and you can't believe it was all a lie,' she said. 'I can't believe that I did what I did. But If you're not in that situation you won't be able to relate to. If you haven't walked my path then you can't judge. 'If my story helps just one person, then it would have been worth it.'
