Victim Reflects on £34,000 Bitcoin Scam by Charismatic Man
In January 2017, a woman met a charming man who presented himself as a bitcoin expert and promised to include her in his investment portfolio. He deceived her about his whereabouts, asserting he lived in London while actually residing in Wales. By September 2017, after the summer, he pressured her for additional investment, suggesting that she could access earnings to fund her spending. This strategy exploited her inheritance and income from her interior-design business.
She ended up investing £34,000, motivated by the belief that the growing value of bitcoin would assist in paying off her mortgage. However, on New Year's Eve 2017, the man suddenly disappeared, leaving her to realize she had been scammed and had lost all her money.
A police investigation revealed the man had defrauded several others as well, but by December 2023, the case was closed due to insufficient evidence. This experience caused her significant distress and concern for her two sons, and it left her grappling with trust issues regarding someone she barely knew.
