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Man, 75, shares heartbreaking scam texts that cost him his life savings

Man, 75, shares heartbreaking scam texts that cost him his life savings
Phone scams involving banks on the rise
Fox - Fox 9 / VideoElephant

A 75-year-old pensioner opened up about the gut-wrenching moment he lost all of his life savings as a result of a scam.

The man, who wished to remain anonymous, told The Wall Street Journal how he connected with a woman online who claimed she was a 37-year-old Chinese woman living in San Francisco.

She complimented his LinkedIn profile before creating a bond through food and travel interests.

In text messages obtained by Unilad, the man professed his love for the woman after she promised that the pair would be "very happy in the future".

"Maybe because I've had a few glasses of wine with my friend, that's why I say this," she continued in one of the messages. "But I really thank God for letting me meet you."

As months went by, and the man was led to believe he had found his life partner, she managed to convince him to transfer his entire life savings totalling $715,000.

She seemingly guilt-tripped the man into doing so, with one text reading: "Your distrust of me once again made me feel the fickleness of men."

Another said: "I think all my good intentions and sincerity has been let down. I just want to complete our future goals and plans."

Once the transfer was complete, the pensioner never heard from the woman again.

He has since come to terms with the fact that he won't get his money back and fell victim to a horrible scam. The man has also reported the incident to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Internet Crime Complaint Center which will review the case.

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