Information on romance scams and scammers.
#268218 by pjnorth Fri Sep 18, 2015 2:36 am
I started using the gay dating app Scruff (which as far as I can ascertain is only usable on a phone there is no app for PC etc.) and met Larry Banks

The information he provided to me at this point

Name: Larry Banks
Born: June 11 th (he didn't state year but stated he was 38 yrs old)
Parents are dead and his sister is married and living in the UK, he has only one friend and that is his commanding officer as being gay in the military is very tough.
Profile name on Scruff: blessed2015
Email: [email protected]

I did a reverse image search and got nothing at all, so I thought it was possible he was legit. I tried a facebook search and couldn't find anything. I also tried doing a search with his yahoo account and got nothing as well. I copied and pasted what I sent to Scruff support with regards to the profile.

I believe this blessed2015 is using this profile in an attempt to scam people of money and items. He indicates that he is in the military posted in Kabul, Afghanistan. That his name is Larry Banks and is from Killeen, Texas and was born in Jefferson City, Missouri. After getting me to use yahoo messenger we chatted for a few days at which time he indicated he was falling for me?? I told him we don't know each other well. Then he went on to say that he had damaged his phone in a patrol 2 weeks prior to talking to me and couldn't get it fixed in Kabul while also lamenting that he didn't have access to a computer (which also begs the question how did you contact me if your phone was broken? I'm most likely not going to get that answer!). So he contacted me infrequently over the past week only to message me tonight to ask if I could purchase a phone for him to which I responded no that wasn't possible (incidentally he had told me he finished his tour this Nov and would be returning to the states at the beginning of Nov so the phone wouldn't even arrive in time). Once I told him no he signed off.

Copy of our most recent conversation the past conversation is gone I can't seem to retrieve it from yahoo messenger. I outright lied to him about my situation I could afford to do it however something has been tweaking in the back of my mind that he wasn't real. Its been like a seesaw "is he real" "isn't he real". I'm still doing it quite frankly even though I know he's not. sigh :(

I have edited out my details:

larrybanks988: Hello
larrybanks988: <ding>
me: Hey there
larrybanks988: How is it going?
me: Are you off today? I thought you worked Fridays?
me: Good you?
larrybanks988: Good
larrybanks988: Am working
larrybanks988: Doing paper work here
me: Oh didn't expect you thought you were on patrol
larrybanks988: Okay
me: Yay paperwork
larrybanks988: What are you doing now?
me: Not much was going to go online and check some of my characters out on one of my games before bed
larrybanks988: Okay
me: So nothing hugely important
larrybanks988: I want to tell you something but i don't know how it may sound to you
me: OK just tell me. I can't tell you how I'll react without hearing it
larrybanks988: I can't be using the computer anymore for some reasons but i will be glad if you can get me a phone
me: Hmm I wouldn't be able to do that unfortunately I can't afford it. It's why I'm staying with relatives. I can't afford rent.
me: You actually make more money than I do being in the military
me: I'm assuming that since you went offline after that it wasn't the answer you wanted to hear. So I don't know exactly what to make of that. Maybe you can explain the next time you are on?

So can you confirm that I'm correct in that this is of course fake.

Here are the 2 pics he provided however the third was sent to my phone I'd have to figure out how to add it.

In this one he is the one on the right (I hope I add the pic in right):

Image

In this pic he's on the left lounging:

Image
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#302856 by intelligentfool Thu Aug 11, 2016 5:41 pm
So, I have been chatting with David Spearing Josse from Florence AZ. He hit me up on Adam4Adam. We have chatted several times on Skype. Same basic story: in Afghanistan, coming home in November; both parents have passed; no siblings; lived in US all his life, but his english is less than "natural". He hasnt hit me up for money or anything like that, but is has only been a week. Has sent several picuture, including him bottle feeding a fawn, several military pics and one of him and his mom. Thinking something was fishy, i did the "reverse image search" on google. Darn! there was the same picture of him and his friend. I googled the other 6 pics that he sent and only found a hit with the fawn feeding pic. im bummed but had a feeling
#306744 by Idot316 Mon Sep 19, 2016 11:52 am
I have seen this a lot. Its usually a profile with a pic of a super gorgeous guy supposedly in the military and looking for an LTR and the phrase to be suspicious of is "spend the rest of my life with". You will also notice that in many instances, their English is very poor. They will tell you they love you and they know you are the one for them. I have never had one ask me for money or anything because I can detect these fakers and block them before it gets to that point
#332488 by Susan49 Thu Jun 29, 2017 6:59 pm
Hi this guy is still doing it i have been talking to him for 2 weeks same story in us army in afganistan ive had all the same photos as the above posts also said all his family are dead , i knew all along itvwas a scammer just been going along with itvtold him prove to me your guy in photo by writing my name on a piece ofvpaper and have photo done , ohh he did it and was a very good photoshop they are very clever just wantveveryone to be aware he is still doing it going by the name of greg spearing on hangouts and greg spear on facebook

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