A Huntington Beach woman who was scammed out of approximately $64,000 by a man she met through an online dating website wanted to make her story public in order to warn other potential victims, police said Tuesday.
The woman, who is in her mid-60s and had not dated in years, met a man on Match.com, according to a post on the Huntington Police Department’s Facebook page.
She said the man swept her off her feet by playing on her emotions and eventually told her he had financial troubles.
Before the two met in person, the victim began sending money to the man and took out several loans, according to the Police Department.
Authorities were contacted after the victim’s bank informed her she was likely the victim of a scam.
The woman was initially believed to have given the man about $50,000, but KTLA later learned the amount was near $64,000. Likewise, police initially said the woman met the man online in September, but a department spokeswoman later clarified that the date was not certain.
Chip Yost reports from Huntington Beach for the KTLA 5 News at 1 on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2014.