Your Check is in the Mail

Only a few days after I set up my dating profile, I got an interesting message from Tony.  He told me he loved my profile and was very interested in getting to know me better.  I noticed his spelling, grammar, and punctuation all left something to be desired but I attributed that to the fact that he had lived the first twenty five years of his life in Spain.  He told me he had lost his father to cancer when he was a boy and that his mother had died of shock immediately afterward.  He had been married but his wife died in childbirth.  He was parenting a ten year old son by himself.

Tony told me that he was a design engineer from Tacoma, WA, but he and his son were currently in Malaysia where he was doing interior design for a client there.  We corresponded back and forth daily and he seemed very excited to get to know all about me.  After a week he announced that he thought he was in love with me.  Hmmm.  We hadn't even talked on the phone yet. 

Still, I was willing to give him benefit of the doubt.  After all, poor guy, he was typing in a second language, was overseas, was all alone with his only motherless son.  What a saint!  AND he idolized me!  He kept telling me how beautiful I looked and how he was praying for  a "God-fearing woman."  I did think that was a little odd, seeing as how his profile listed him as an Atheist. 

One morning after sending off a bubbly good morning email to this sweet, innocent man who adored me, I received an almost immediate response.  I cannot do it justice so I'm going to copy the message here, complete with typos.

Hello, Angie
first I really want you to know that im really sorry for not responding on time just have a terrible day here and im thinking of you too and i don't think i will  seek for any other woman well Angie i want you to know that i like you so much and im ready to spend the rest of my life with you.  Richard is here with i find a private teacher for him while i work at the site the private teacher will keep him busy i work from 9am to 5pm Malaysia time. see i want you to know that ive been thinking of you so much and i cant wait to meet you but Angie im not really happy at all i lost my wallet this morning containing on the money i met to use to get some materials today for the site right now i cant work further bcos i need the materials my wallet contain the funds for it and my credit card is there too.  i tried to see if i can use my bank of America acct or my business acct they i always use when i need money i found out that i cant even access that here in Malasia they have a low banking system and i have been paid for the contract deposit the money already in my bank of America acct but i cant access anything cant even find card to get the little fund i need to get those materials Angie im really sorry to tell you this and i believe if you do care you can do something about itwell i will send you another email shortly and i will show you my other business account which have online banking and i will show you my home page that i have money but i can't access here im sorry asking you this but i will be gald if you can jst lend this little funds i need for this materials whien i get home net week i will refund back your money to you all you need to do it to tell me how you want back your money maybe cashier check or send it via western union pls dont be harsh but if you are i will understand due to the fact that we haven't know each other long but i will be very much happy that this can happen to anybody and pls remember this is not my country let me know what you can do for me till im home.  Tony

He did, indeed, send me a very legitimate-looking bank statement from the Banco Gulf Online Banking system, with a disclaimer at the bottom of the page saying "we have taken every steps to ensure security."  Every steps.  Wow.

So, still trying very hard to give him the benefit of the doubt I Googled the name of the bank.  Try it.  First thing that comes up has the word "scams" in it.

I wrote back to "Tony" with the subject line reading "your check is in the mail."  I then proceeded to let him know exactly what I thought of him.  I called him a predator and told him that I had let the webmaster know what he was doing.  What a creep! 
I felt like such a sucker!  I should have seen it coming but I was new and willing to overlook what should have been warning signs.  I really thought he was just innocent and a bit naieve.  It didn't dawn on me prior to this last email that he might have been a scam artist.  I consider myself fairly intelligent but I was drawn in by his sweetness and charm, and hooked by his status as a widower with a young child to raise on his own. 

Later that day I got this short, terse email:
 Why you be so mean i told you not so harsh and not be mean so bye.


Have I lost my one chance at true love?  Have I carelessly tossed back a sweet little sunfish just because of a low banking system?  We may never know.

Let's reel it in and call it a day, shall we? 

Love,
Angie