Caveat Emptor
Nguyen Thuong Vu
A 75-year old man was deceived by a thief who portrayed as a 37-year old woman from China. He wanted love (woman); “she” wanted his money. He lost $750K – his life-time savings.
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‘She Hooked Me’: How an Online Scam Cost a Senior Citizen His Life’s Savings
She convinced him she was a rich young Chinese immigrant looking for love. After bleeding him dry, she ghosted him. He still longs for her.
By Feliz Solomon // Appeared in the WSJ June 3, 2024, print edition as ‘How an Online Scam Cost Senior His Life’s Savings’.
It began with a notification: A user wanted to connect on LinkedIn, and sent a note saying she thought the man’s profile was impressive.
She seemed polite and attractive. The man, a 75-year-old professional who lives in the American Midwest, replied.
That was the start of a monthslong nightmare that emptied his retirement fund and drove him to the brink of suicide. He is one of millions of people globally to fall victim to “pig butchering,” a form of fraud in which scammers seduce strangers online, build their trust and convince them to put money into bogus investments.
They take the money and ghost their victims.
[Texting — green: victim, pink: scamer]
Sweetie I am worried now that I wasted my retirement funds on this. Please reply as I want to continue my faith in you
They don’t answer my questions, I need to talk to you
I tried calling you but no answer. Please answer me. I need to know what’s going on here
You told me you would always put priority on my calls and now you don’t answer.
Are you there?
The Wall Street Journal reviewed thousands of messages between the man and the scammer, financial records, photographs and other documents that show how the fraud unfolded. It’s a disturbing glimpse inside the sophisticated psychological manipulation scammers use to prey on vulnerable people, especially those who are elderly and not technologically savvy.
The man, referred to in the story as the victim, lost more than $715,000—virtually everything he had. He declined to be named, but shared with the Journal months of WhatsApp conversations with the scammer, documentation of money transfers and screen grabs of the sham trading platform where he was swindled. He said he hoped the details would save others from his fate by exposing how scammers exploit average people and ruin lives.
The Bait
The scammers often pose as beautiful young women with lots of money and few cares, and convince their victims that they share a special, secret bond. In fact, they are often men contacting their targets from dystopian compounds run by Chinese criminal syndicates in parts of Southeast Asia and West Africa.
These “scam dens” are infamous for abuse. Many scammers are trafficked in, given scripts and smartphones preloaded with fake profiles, and forced to commit fraud under threat of violence.
The victim didn’t know any of that when he first got a LinkedIn message on May 31 of last year. The profile picture showed a young woman dressed in a blue T-shirt and red skirt, striking a demure pose next to a bouquet of flowers. After a few pleasantries, she suggested they migrate to WhatsApp to have a more private conversation and guided the victim through the steps of downloading and installing the app.
She drew him in by portraying a life the man dreamed of but never believed he could have. She said she lived in San Francisco where she worked for her wealthy and well-connected uncle. She sent him pictures of herself trying on designer clothes, dining in fine restaurants and posing next to her luxury car.
He told her his age, that he had a modest retirement fund and still worked full time. He also told her he lived with his partner of 40 years, but said they’d drifted apart.
Scammers specifically seek out the lonely—people living regular lives consisting of doctor’s visits, frozen food and errands. They lure them with the prospect of an exciting life that would otherwise seem out of reach.
His Ideal Woman
Her character was just believable enough.
She said she had moved to the U.S. from China eight years earlier after her divorce. She had difficulty trusting men, she said, but at 37, she was lonely and longed for a companion. She said she didn’t care about age, appearance, money—she had plenty of her own. All she wanted was true love, she said.
She began revealing more about herself through their constant WhatsApp chats. She told him her American friends called her Violaine Chen, but that her real Chinese name was Deng Xinyi.
Yes, when I checked the map you are from Western China
What’s the home town again?
Hometown is the place where I was born, and the place where my father and grandfather grew up. This is my hometown, which is my ancestral home
What is the name of the town?
Chengdu, it’s a city
Violaine’s Chinese persona was intriguing to the victim. It also helped to smooth over inconsistencies in her story. She blamed errors on her imperfect English. Typos were excusable, as were messages that made little sense.
I want to learn more about your culture
Yes, I will take you through it all slowly, they are very interesting
China has made significant progress
Yes, rapid development
A miraculous country that amazes the whole world
They bonded over their shared interest in things that were more or less universally liked: food, travel, fitness, pets.
I like oatmeal. You can put fruit in it
yes it is delicious
Violaine sent him daily descriptions of her meals and workouts. She showed him pictures of Chinese dishes and explained their benefits. She said she never wasted food because she felt guilty about world hunger, and that she gave to charities that feed poor children in rural China.
Early on, they had a few brief voice calls and one video call, just a few seconds each. She was in a nondescript room and told him she was in a hurry, he said in interviews with the Journal.
It was enough to convince him she was real. He also didn’t want to spend much time on the phone because he worried his partner would catch him. And he didn’t like video calls because he was self-conscious about his looks and his messy house.
Nonprofits that rescue scammers who are forced to work in fraud dens say it’s common for the compounds to have models nearby for brief cameos. Sometimes these are the same models who pose for photographs used in fake profiles. Sometimes they just look similar.
To the victim, Violaine was his ideal woman: wealthy but also down-to-earth, virtuous yet sexy.
“She hooked me,” he said.
The Romantic Plan
Within two days, Violaine began implementing the next phase of the scam: getting him to put money on the table.
She started by explaining how she’d become so rich. She said she’d made a fortune trading gold futures—contracts that lock in commodities at a predetermined price. Her uncle, she said, owned a stake in a trading platform called FX6, and had a team of expert analysts who could predict when values were about to jump.
She said they watched for “nodes,” which the victim understood to be price fluctuations signaling an imminent move, and gave her uncle inside tips on when to buy and sell.
Using her uncle’s intel, she would buy the dip just before the break and sell a few minutes later. Her explanation didn’t fully make sense to the victim, but he trusted her and followed her lead.
Tomorrow may not necessarily have a node, because a node is a good opportunity, it does not always exist, so we must cherish every node.
She said she used an app called Fuex to trade on the FX6 market. Fuex was a registered company in the U.K. at the time, but has since been delisted. Fuex didn’t respond to an email, and the website the victim used to download the app no longer exists. Attempts by the Journal to contact “Violaine” went unanswered.
Erin West, a California prosecutor who specializes in cyber fraud, said there are so many websites like this one that regulators can’t keep up. These fraudulent online trading sites are modeled after real ones, but are developed by and controlled by the scammers.
They funnel money into a sprawling global network of shell corporations, West said, adding: “We’re talking about billions and billions and billions of dollars being expertly moved in a manner that we can’t catch it.”
The victim wasn’t tech savvy, which worked in Violaine’s favor. She walked him through the steps of setting up an account on Fuex and explained the unusual process of adding funds to his digital wallet.
First, she said, he’d have to initiate a chat with a Fuex customer-service agent and tell them he wanted to top up his balance. The agent would then send him a bank account number in which to deposit funds. Violaine advised the victim to tell his bank he was sending the money to a friend.
Otherwise they will not accept it.
Are you going to help me through
Yes I will
He struggled at every step. Violaine sent him screen grabs of the Fuex interface with circles and arrows scribbled on it to show him what to do and where to click. She was at times controlling, at times condescending. He tried to please her and apologized when he felt like he failed.
With Violaine’s persistent hand holding, he made his first deposit of $1,500 on June 2 to a stranger’s bank account in Hong Kong.
A Shared Future
At this point, romance and finance became inextricably linked. Violaine proposed what she called the “romantic plan”: She and the victim would invest equally in a shared fund on the platform that would earn enough for him to leave his partner. They’d buy a recreational vehicle, or RV, and take a road trip together to California.
We will be very happy in the future, maybe because I had a few glasses of red wine with my friend, that’s why I say this, but I really thank Thank God for letting me meet you
I love you very much
I also thank God for having us come together in such an unusual way. I really believe we are meant for each other
I couldn’t have found a more perfect woman than you. I am the luckiest man on earth to find you
They chatted about places they’d like to stop along the way.
The border of Montana and Idaho is one of the most famous national parks in the United States, known for its fascinating geological landscapes and wildlife. This can also be one of our along the way
I am thinking about retiring if we can do well in the market between now and then
I just would feel bad about not honoring my contract
The capital of Utah, the Salt Lake Valley, is a city full of energy and history. We could visit a Mormon church, tour Compton’s Prophetic City Park, or experience buoyancy near the Great Salt Lake
You
I am thinking about retiring if we can do well in the market between now and then
It must show you great performance, I believe you can retire early
The more they chatted, the more their plans felt real to him.
I was also thinking about Reno. I think there’s lots to do there
We can also go to Mount Rushmore and the Badlands which is a mountainous area in western South Dakota
Honey, we can slowly plan all this and refine many details of our trip, but first we need to do it next week to raise funds to make a profit and buy an RV My first step of our plan is to take our romantic steps
What a beautiful way to spend time together by ourselves
I love you
The Pushback
Former scammers interviewed by the Journal said they’re trained for weeks and armed with scripts that help them respond to pushback. Violaine used several tactics they described when the victim showed unease.
At first, she simply played down the victim’s concerns.
Yes but don’t understand Fx6 and international transfers well enough
I will guide you, you just need to remember how to make an international transfer
I’m the one at risk not you. I would lose $1500 for you but I don’t want to expose the rest of my assets.
You are almost a billionaire and expose nothing, while I am a modest man exposing everything
Does that seem right to you?
When that didn’t work, she made him feel guilty for not trusting her.
Got it, got it, I got it all, you still don’t trust me, so you think you’re in danger
Another time, she said:
When your funds are in the account, I will take you to complete the income and then you will transfer the funds back to your bank card. After that, we will stop talking about everything about XF6
And then:
I don’t want to worry about these things anymore. I think all my good intentions and sincerity have been let down. What you have to understand is that all your gains have nothing to do with me. I just want to complete our future goals and plans
She told him she was tired after having had a drink and didn’t want to argue.
What do you want to do, please just say all your thoughts
I’ve had a drink, don’t let me use my brain, I’ll be tired
Then she ended the conversation.
Your distrust of me once again made me feel the fickleness of men. Don’t worry, your 1500 will not change in any way. It will return to your account safely with your profits and returns. Good night
Violaine’s persona was at times sweet and innocent, at others ruthlessly domineering. When he showed hesitation or asked too many questions, she’d either change the subject or berate him.
So what I’m doing for you right now is it wrong? I let you grow, let you earn more wealth, and share with you the relationship I have managed for some many years and the powerful relationship network of my uncle
She talked down to him when he made mistakes or didn’t understand instructions, and acted like she was too busy hanging out with friends, or shopping, or exercising, to deal with him–like he was lucky that she bothered with him at all.
Why do your emotions go back and forth so much? Can’t you be a little more settled like me?
You mentioned some things last night that got under my skin like your many suitors again
That’s because you said I love money more, what I told you is if I love money more, I wouldn’t choose you
I have been trying. You are very smart but you get mad very easily
If it’s all about the money, I think it’s easy to find someone rich
So I’m telling you how wrong your opinion is, not showing you how many suitors I have
The Fattening
It was time to show the victim how much money he could make.
In early June, Violaine guided him through the process of using the $1,500 in his Fuex account to buy and sell on FX6. She made it seem exciting, like watching a horse race. She told him to open the app at a certain time and wait for her instructions.
The node is coming soon!
They watched as a graph showed values floating up and down. She told him to hover over a button at the bottom that said “confirm,” but warned him not to click it until she said to.
now! ! ! Now! ! click
The balance in his digital wallet appeared to grow before their eyes. Excited by the results, he told Violaine he wanted to invest more.
I was thinking about the return on our investment yesterday and in fact even though the dollar amount wasn’t huge the return is much higher than that because that is only the return for a day.
He said he wanted to add $5,000 to his account. She pressed him for more.
But I really don’t recommend the investment of 5K. I suggest a higher amount, because we must use every opportunity as the last time to maximize our own interests. This is the correct way to invest
He ended up investing another $15,000.
She pressured him to call his bank and increase his transfer limit, which was set at $25,000.
They went back and forth on this issue, then she sent him a photo of herself saying she’d finished putting on her makeup. Sometimes when they argued or if he seemed suspicious, she would distract him with flirtatious chatter.
The victim tried to make a small withdrawal, $100, to test the platform. He was told the request would take a few days to process. It did and he received the money.
Red Flags
There were warning signs along the way.
The victim’s bank advised him against making the transfers, and bank staff warned him that they saw the hallmarks of a scam. But he trusted Violaine, who told him exactly what to tell the bank to get them to carry out his requests.
June 20, 2023
I am under interrogation by the bank
Honey, I think you can deal with these superficial jobs they have
Honey, isn’t this call over yet?
No
Ok, I don’t understand why I need to be interrogated by others when I don’t even have the right to use my own money
I think you can ask him this question
I already did. The bank thinks I am being scammed and refuses to do it
There was also reason to doubt that Violaine was real. At times her messages resembled content that had been lifted off the internet or generative-AI platforms. Some contained pieces of code, such as “ ,” suggesting text had been carelessly copied and pasted. Some just seemed like they weren’t written by an actual person, reading like detailed lists of obscure facts.
He brushed off the strangeness of her texts because English was her second language.
I don’t like to eat anything that looks back at me
lol honey what is looking back at you
I’m glad you like it sweetie
I don’t like eating eyes
eyes, i don’t eat either
So how do you avoid them. They could be moving as you swallow them. I guess I’m a little fussy
i didn’t swallow my eyes
If I recall sea urchins have little eyes
Sea urchins don’t have eyes, they just have eyespots and photoreceptor cells. Eyespots are located on the epidermis of their anterior surfaces, and photoreceptor cells are present on spines and tube feet in addition to those on the anterior surface. Their eyespots and photoreceptor cells help them perceive light so that they can respond to changes in their external environment.
The yellow one is the edible part of the sea urchin
Now you sound like a scientist
But the victim was immersed in what seemed to him like a strange and beautiful turn in his life.
Sizing Up the Spoils
The scammers try to figure out exactly how much their victim is worth—liquidity, investments, even how much they might be able to borrow from friends and family.
A week after they’d begun talking, Violaine asked how much cash he had on hand.
You are a beautiful and smart lady
About $25K
My other funds are invested
If this is the case, each of us will invest 25K into your account, so that your position can be increased to 50K
Violaine tested the limits to see how much he would invest, telling him they’d maximize profits if he had $200,000 to trade with.
Now my only problem is your capital restructuring, so that we can better realize the dream between us, because your current life makes me worry for you, but I don’t know your asset status very well, I’m not sure if you Can you raise 200K in the next week, but I believe you have your own plan, you can do it
Two days later, she asked him how much he had in stocks and bonds. He said it was about $460,000. On June 10, he sold $130,000 in stocks.
No sooner had he done that than she urged him to sell his mutual funds, but warned that his portfolio manager might try to stop him. She told him to be firm and act fast.
I think your fund manager will definitely not want you to withdraw the money, but you need to tell him firmly that you want to sell these, and ask him when he can complete the account
I understand
are you going to talk to him now or next week
During the week
Every Last Penny
“One of the key elements is they will take every penny you have,” said West, the prosecutor. “That’s part of the con is to find out how much you have and take everything, it can be equally devastating to the man who loses $5 million as it is to the 22-year-old who loses $50,000—it’s everything they have.”
Toward the end of June, Violaine told the victim her assistant booked her on a United Airlines flight from San Francisco and she was finally going to come meet him in late June. But at the last minute, she said she was urgently needed in Argentina to complete a job for her uncle.
I don’t know what I should do, I told my uncle about my plan to meet you for a trip, but he said I must finish this matter first, I even argued with him, this is the first time I argued with my uncle, I know if our plan is postponed to you is a very deep hurt, but my uncle’s zero notice I have no way to disobey, although I don’t know if you can understand my feelings now, but I share your I’m just as disappointed as you are.
I am disappointed but not not angry.
I will not leave you. I am here for you. What do want from me sweetie?
You can see the blood on my eyes, because I just quarreled with my uncle, but in the face of you, I can not show the sad side, because I do not want you to see me sad you also sad
Violaine told him that she longed to be with him. She sent him pictures from Argentina, eating steak at a fine restaurant, lounging in her hotel room, and visiting the famous salt flats of Jujuy in the country’s north. The more they talked about their life together, the more he was willing to spend.
Through June and mid-July, he made three large deposits amounting to a total of more than $300,000 to an account in Hanoi.
Each time he put money in, the app appeared to show another equal or similar deposit that he believed was made by Violaine. By mid-July, their combined investments had grown to almost $1.5 million.
The Butchering
Violaine was ready to go in for the kill.
On July 13, she told him her uncle wanted them to buy a house in his Los Angeles neighborhood, so the family would be close together once they married.
She asked the victim to withdraw about half the funds from their trading account to use as a down payment, promising to pay it back once she returned to the U.S.
What I need you to withdraw is 800K-1M of liquidity to provide me with this help
He tried to withdraw $700,000 from their Fuex account.
This final, savage stage occurs once the scammer thinks they have taken all the victim’s money. They’ll ask the victim to make a withdrawal, which will be blocked by the scammers, who control the back-end of the app. The scammers, acting as customer service agents for the app, then ask the victim to pay a fee to reinstate, or “unfreeze,” their account.
Because it was the scammer who told the victim to make the withdrawal, the victim is unlikely to suspect them. At this point, the victim either abandons their account and loses all their money, or scrounges up even more, sometimes by taking out loans.
It says I have an unprocessed amount when I click done
Go back to the homepage to see if your amount has been reduced
Yes it has
So it looks now like it processed
Yes, now you need to go find customer service and then confirm your identifying information
For the safety of your money, FX6 needs to know that this is your operation!
The next day, the victim sent Violaine several screenshots of his chat with a Fuex support agent. It said the withdrawal request was rejected because his identity couldn’t be verified.
The agent told him to log in to FX6, fill out an authentication form and upload a photo ID. He was told his withdrawal request would be reviewed within 24 hours.
Frozen Out
He was beginning to panic. The 24 hours had passed, but instead of having his withdrawal request approved, he was notified that a freeze was put on his account for security reasons. He was asked to pay almost $640,000 to lift it.
Violaine assured him that everything would be fine as long as he’d done everything correctly. He said he had found people saying on the internet that Fx6 was a scam.
Please help me believe otherwise because right now I am sitting here with a broken heart and no retirement money. Soul mates do not let this happen
She gaslit him into believing that he must have made an error while entering information into the app, and that he was to blame for his predicament.
Dear? It’s not like that, you must have done something wrong yourself to make this happen, first of all, you did not complete the real name verification when you withdrew the money, which you did wrong, so you tried to click on the withdrawal again when you haven’t completed the verification, which in my opinion may have caused the protection mechanism of the account
I believe I filled it all out but I don’t want to argue about it. I just want to fix it
Why can’t you talk me
I’m sure you filled it out, now the problem isn’t that you didn’t fill it out, it’s that it may have triggered the protection mechanism
Please don’t break my heart
He told her he didn’t have the money to pay the fee to lift the freeze. This is how she knew she’d taken everything he had. She needled him to see just how much debt he was willing to take on. She said she’d cover the rest.
And as a joint account, I will contribute 320K to unlock your account together.
And where do expect me to find the balance? I have no more money! I’m broke and have no one to ask
So you’re trying to pile it all on me, right?
Not at all! I have no money to contribute right now.
That’s not a problem-solving attitude.
Around July 22, Violaine told him she borrowed about $485,000 to help him pay the fee to unfreeze his account. He paid the rest: about $155,000 cobbled together by offloading his remaining investments and taking out a $45,000 bank loan.
He was told he’d made a clerical error that would cost another $212,000. He paid by dipping into a home-equity loan, which he shared with his unwitting partner, but it didn’t end there.
There were late fees, and something called a “risk fund amount.”
By this point, in less than two months, he’d sunk a total of $716,212 into the Fuex account.