Middleton Woman Entangled in Four Dating App Scams, Losing No Money but Confidence
Julie Osgood, 60, from Middleton, sought companionship on dating applications following the death of her partner of nearly four decades. Her experience, however, has left her resolved to "staying single" after all four men she matched with proved to be sophisticated scammers.
Ms Osgood, whose partner Tony Donohue passed away in November 2020, described signing up for a dating application as "a really big step." While she identified the fraudsters' intentions before parting with any money, she stated, "I'll never, ever go on a dating website again. I just don't know where you're meant to meet genuine people."
Ms Osgood aims to alert others to these scams and pressure dating platforms to enhance their protective measures. Figures indicate that money lost to romance fraud cases reported to Action Fraud surpassed £92 million in 2024, a rise from £82 million the previous year.
The Scammers' Playbook
The first three attempts targeting Ms Osgood on one platform followed a consistent pattern. The profiles often featured AI-generated images, identifiable by distorted text in the background. "They all start off with similar stories," she explained. "They've all been widowed except for this one who said he was divorced, but they all seemed to have teenage daughters who tend to live with their mother."
The fraudsters typically cultivate rapport for a week or two before fabricating a crisis. "They've either got to go away on a business trip, while they were out on a business trip he lost his briefcase and he needed help with something," she detailed, noting it took "a few weeks to actually ask for anything."
After a hiatus, Ms Osgood tried a different application aimed at over-50s, Ourtime. There, she matched with 'Franck,' an alleged French architect. He too claimed to be divorced with a teenage daughter. After weeks of WhatsApp communication, Franck abruptly claimed he had to travel to France for a court case regarding his late father's estate, subsequently alleging his bank accounts were frozen. He messaged Ms Osgood that the situation was "destroying me mentally and emotionally."
Ms Osgood feigned cooperation, offering to deliver £20,000 in cash in Paris, which she claimed was for builders. She sent flight details and arranged a meeting, but never travelled. "There was probably someone waiting there to mug me," she speculated. She prolonged the exchange for two hours before Franck gave up, accusing her of "lying" and demanding her location.
Ms Osgood reported the incident to Greater Manchester Police and Ourtime. Ourtime assured Ms Osgood of their commitment to user safety and offered to assist any police investigation. The experience has impacted Ms Osgood's confidence. "I've given up now, I'm just going to stay alone," she stated, reflecting on the difficulty of meeting genuine people offline.
