Fake Russian Astronaut Duped Woman Of Rs 24 Lakh, Said He Needed Money To 'Return To Earth'

Thanks to the internet and new social media portals, it is extremely easy to hide one's identity. One can be anything they want to be and that is leading to an increase in cybercrime and people scamming others.

Woman scammed by fake Russian astronaut, loses Rs 24 lakh

Another such case has come to light where a man claiming to be a Russian astronaut scammed a woman into paying more than ?27,000 (Rs 24,61,500). The reason? The man asked this woman to pay for his rocket so he could land back on Earth, meet her and then marry her.

The 65-year-old woman from Japan started chatting with this apparent astronaut on Instagram in June where the man's profile was filled with photos of space. The man said he was based on the International Space Station, according to TV Asahi.

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After some time had passed, the man told this unnamed Japanese woman that he was in love with her and wanted to marry her. Not just that, he even said that he wanted to move to Japan so they could start their new life together.

Between the period of August 19 and September 5, the woman sent 4.4 million yen (?27,350) to the man who was going to be her husband. He had said he needed the money to cover the cost of a rocket and landing fees to return to Earth so the pair could tie the knot.

Woman complained to cops after getting suspicious

The 'astronaut' claimed he needed the cash for one week of holiday expenses, rocket fees from the space station, and to cover the cost of landing in Japan. After the man continued to ask for more money, she eventually got suspicious of his motives, and she reported the "astronaut" to the cops.

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Now, the police are investigating this man under the 'romance scam' bracket.

It is not the first time romance scams have come to light. Romance scams are basically when a fraudster makes a fake social media profile and online persona and tricks their victims into thinking they're in a romantic relationship in order to gain their trust.

This has not only been on the rise in Japan but it is the case in different parts of the world. This became more serious during the lockdown period of the pandemic when many victims fell prey to scamsters who extracted money from them.

Reuters

One of the major cases is of Brazen Leviev, who has been accused of conning ?7.4million worldwide out of women he met on Tinder.

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