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goolagang123 goolagang123 is offline
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So there is this guy - did not meet him on e-harmony. Used another service because things were going too slow on eh. This guy says he is from US but works overseas in Africa. He says he keeps an apartment in US to maintain his US Citizen status but he owns two properties in the United Kingdom.

I have my doubts, he says he is self-employed, but I cannot find anything about his business in the state he claims he lives in. He has no business telephone in the US - only a cell phone. He says he is planning to come back to the US and stay for two months. We will be spending time getting to know each other better. I feel he has been very up-front with me so far, yet I do have my concerns.

It has been about three months now and he has not asked me for money or any of the other suspicious things people claim happen with those international dating scams. So I am asking all of you, have any of you met a man (or woman) online that meets this description? Did it work out for you? I am still a little skeptical so any enlightenment will help.

Thank you!
- May 16th, 2009, 05:22 pm
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noseyparker noseyparker is offline
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It is not impossible for there are Americans who work all over the world. Have you ever spoken with him? Does he have an American accent? Have you been able to confirm anything about his identity? Have you been able to call him at a number that is published as his in Africa?

I don't want to burst your bubble, but there's a sc-am going on between West Africa and the USA in which one party (sc - am - mer #1) is based in Africa and scam - mer #2 is based in the USA. To be honest, I have encountered a similar story, and was not comfortable with it. he gave me the number of someone in the USA who could vouch for him. Both parties were really Africans. The one in the USA spoke very poor English, for someone who went to a University in the UK. Many Americans many not be familiar with the nuances of a British accent anyway, so it is easy to pull the wool over your eyes. I suggest that you be careful, until you have proof that he is not using the name and identity of an American, but is just another sc-am-mer from West Africa.
- May 16th, 2009, 06:27 pm
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jayjay jayjay is offline
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goolagang123 wrote :
This guy says he is from US but works overseas in Africa. He says he keeps an apartment in US to maintain his US Citizen status but he owns two properties in the United Kingdom.
FYI: I lived outside the U.S. for 5 years and didn't have to keep a residence within the U.S. to 'keep my citizenship'. Sounds a bit fishy to me.
- May 16th, 2009, 07:43 pm
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neardc neardc is offline
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He doesn't have to do anything to maintain his citizenship. He simply "is" a U.S. citizen. Perhaps he meant residency?

What level of contact have you had with him? Do you talk on the phone? Do you communicate via webcam?

It does seem that you should be able to find some sort of internet trail on him if he has an active business in several countries.

If he is self-employed, it's plausible that he wouldn't have a separate business number in the US, especially given that he doesn't spend a lot of time here. So, that's not a red flag by itself.

He may be exactly what/who he says he is, but you are wise to approach the situation with a bit of skepticism...
- May 16th, 2009, 10:23 pm
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stevex stevex is offline
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Was it Zoosk? My friend ran into a scammer on that site. It is possible he is what he says he is, or he could be lying. Take it slow and see what happens. In the meantime, continue your search just in case he turns out to be a fake.
- May 16th, 2009, 10:57 pm
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Anything too good to be true is a red flag. In business that is a signal to back off and re-evaluate.
- May 16th, 2009, 11:12 pm
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yeoww yeoww is offline
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He's not a diamond broker based in Africa, is he? that seemed to be the occupation of choice when I first joined EH and ran into two scammers, back-to-back. I'm not real gullible so I reported both of them, but it was disconcerting to say the least.

Your contact might be a great guy, and he might be blowing smoke. I do find it interesting that you can't find anything on him. My recommendation: proceed with caution!
- May 17th, 2009, 12:19 am
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noseyparker noseyparker is offline
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I have encountered the exact story on another site. Perhaps we met the same person. I reported him, and his US counterpart (an African) to the site owners, and the profile was removed. I'm nosey and can get to the bottom of any scam in 24 hours. They have now blocked all IP addresses originating from Africa. The income from African clients was not enough to justify the risk to legitimate clients residing in the USA.
***EH take note***
Last edited by noseyparker; May 17th, 2009 at 01:27 am.
- May 17th, 2009, 01:23 am
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Gr8Guyn2008 Gr8Guyn2008 is offline
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While there are real people who live and work in Africa. There are even real Americans who live and work in Africa. But Africa is well known as a hot bed of internet scams.

There is a lot in your OP that looks very fishy to me. If you continue on with this guy be very, very careful. I don't want to read that you became a statistic.

You might want to contact the dating site that you met this guy through and see if they have anyway to verify that he is actually who he signed up as.
Last edited by Gr8Guyn2008; May 17th, 2009 at 08:03 am.
- May 17th, 2009, 08:01 am
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goolagang123 goolagang123 is offline
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Thank you all for your posts. Now you have my wheels spinning even more. I have thought about a few more things he's told me and now I am convinced he needs to be reported.

Something that has bothered me since I met him; we always talk around the same time every night. Usually between 6 PM to 9 PM EST. He says the part of Africa he's in is ahead of me by five hours so that makes it 11 PM to 2 AM in his neck of the woods. He says he works 14 to 16 hour days. He says he is a foreman on an oil rig.


I worked out a schedule based on what he is telling me. If he is working 14 hours a day, he is working from 6 AM to 8 PM. So how is he able to call me every day at 6 or 7 PM EST? He should be working on a NOISY oil rig right? Also, I get up at 6 AM and we talk via i/m in the morning, which is 11 AM his time. So how is he able to keep up living on four hours of sleep doing physical labor in Africa Thanks!
- May 17th, 2009, 06:16 pm
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