The mail order bride takes many for a ride

e-mail females

Hundreds have been taken for a ride with such e-mails being circulated. All their dreams are shattered the moment money is deposited in the ‘proposer’s’ account. Interestingly, many in an attempt to pick their girlfriend have landed at airports and returned dejected and cheated.

Prakash (name changed), son of a senior officer from the uniformed service, is fuming at the dating sites, where he bumped into a girl and lost his precious time and money.

“It’s just that I feel like a piece of s__t. Now, I have my own doubts whether I was communicating with a woman or a man,” he said.

“Out of inquisitiveness, I registered myself with the site and started surfing. I happened to meet a good-looking girl and got impressed by her profile. And after knowing she was from Kabbur, Karnataka, I was on cloud nine. After exchanging mails, I got hooked to her, waited endlessly for her mails and I was virtually in a flight of fancy. By then, we had exchanged personal e-mail IDs.

“Later, she revealed she holds a diplomatic passport and is working for a Charity Foundation, affiliated to the UN and working for the underprivileged at a refugee camp in Oru, Ogun State in Nigeria, West Africa. My respect for her increased leaps and bounds. And she had the gift of gab to express her love and passion. She promised to come down to Bangalore and stay for some time and even hinted at settling down here,” he recounted.

“While I started daydreaming, her sweet e-mails laced with seductive talks made me burn a deep hole in my pocket. In the first installment, I sent $490 through Western Money transfer and to the specified address: Name: Keisha Syd Cannon, Country: Nigeria, State: Lagos, City: Ikeja, Zip code: 23401, Text Question: Favourite color, Text answer: Blue,” he added.

“Later, I was duped again but I realised it when my friend discussed e-mails he had been receiving from girls overseas,” he said. Another victim Sandeep Sharma was also duped similarly. His only consolation being that he lost money only once.

Police version

“Many people land up at the police station and complained. But we are helpless and refer them to the cyber crime cell. The complainants get angry if we cross question them.

Interestingly, all the duped are educated,” said Rajesh, a police inspector. The police inspector chuckles and continues while referring to Prakash's case. “Initially, the girl identified herself as from Kabbur in Karnataka. And Prakash was asked to send money to Nigeria. Prakash should have realised at this point that he was being taken for a ride.

But Prakash says he was smitten by love and her seductive snaps. What a price he had to pay!,” he observed.