>> GOOD EVENING. I'M LORI TUCKER. I'M BO WILLIAMS AND I'VE SOME GOOD TO BE WITH YOU AND THANK YOU FOR JOINING EVERY DAY. MEN AND WOMEN MEET SOMEONE SPECIAL ON A DATING WEBSITE. MAYBE AN APP SOON. TH WANT TO EMAIL CALL OR MESSAGE YOU. AND THAT IS WHEN PEOPLE BECOME VULNERABLE HERE IN KNOXVILLE AND 80 YEAR-OLD WIDOW FELL VICTIM TO THE ROMANCE SCAM. TBI RECORDS SHOW MILLIONS OF DOLLARS ARE LOST EVERY YEAR TO THIS. FOLKS. JUST IN TENNESSEE, WATE 6 ON YOUR SIDE. REPORTER DON THERE SAYS THERE IS A LAW AIMED AT PROTECTING VULNERABLE ADULTS. >> WELL, THAT'S RIGHT, BO. BUT THE LAW, UNFORTUNATELY, ISN'T ALWAYS FOLLOWED. AND IT WASN'T FOLLOWED FOR SHARON WHO CALLED US AND ONE OF HER STORY TOLD THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE REPORTING ROMANCE SCAMS. THE FEDERAL AUTHORITIES IN TWENTY-TWENTY SHOW THEIR LOSSES INCREASED BY ABOUT 80% IN 2021. THAT'S HOW PROFITABLE IT IS. ROMANCE SCAMMERS TARGET THE ELDERLY AND THEY'RE GOOD AT IT AS WE FOUND OUT. SHARON LOVES TO READ BOOKS. A WIDOW FOR 27 YEARS. READING FILLS THE EMPTINESS. BUT IN 2020, DURING THOSE BLEAK MONTHS OF THE NDEMIC ON HER FACEBOOK PAGE, SHE SAID A HANDSOME STRANGER. ASKED TO BE YOUR FRIEND. >> SHE ACCEPTED. >> HIS NAME IS DAVID JAY ARMSTRONG. HIS WIFE WAS IN A CAR ACCIDENT ON HE HAD IT DOWN. >> VERBATIM, YOU KNOW, THE WHOLE STORY, ARMSTRONG BUILD UP TRUST WITH SHARON TOLD HER HE WAS WORKING ON AN OIL RIG OFF THE COAST OF ENGLAND AND WAS ATTRACTED TO HER. >> HE WOULD E-MAIL ME OR TEXT ME A NICE LONG LOVE LETTER EVERY NIGHT OR YOU EMBED DARLING. I HOPE YOU'RE COMFORTABLE SLEEP. WELL, SENT ME A ROSE ONCE. YEAH. I MEAN, I'M JUST GOING 2 FOR AND DEEPER INTO THIS. HE'S POURING IT OH, MY SLATHERING AND HE GOT SHARED >> IN 2017, TENNESSEE ENACTED WHAT'S CALLED THE PAUSE LAW. IT GIVES FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS THE AUTHORITY TO DELAY OR REFUSE TRANSACTIONS THAT MAY EXPLOIT AND OLDER OR VULNERABLE ADULT. ERIN BRADLEY IS DIRECTOR OF THE EAST TENNESSEE'S AREA AGENCY ON AGING. IF EVERY BANK AND FINANCIAL INSTITUTION IN THIS STATE WOULD USE THAT LAW. >> THEN WE WOULD BE ABLE TO PROTECT PEOPLE SHARON SAID THROUGH MESSAGESES, ARMSTRG CLAIM THINGS HAVE GONE WRONG IN THE OIL-RICH. COULD SHE SENT HIM MONEY SO THEY COULD BE TOGETHER SOON. SHE DID FOR 6 MONTHS. >> WHAT'S THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF MONEY? HE SAID? >> CLOSE 250, 150,000. >> AS SHE WENT THROUGH A RECORDS, SHARON SAID THE FIRST TIME SHE ASKED FOR A BIG CASHIER'S CHECK OR PRIMARY BANK REFUSED. >> THEY STARTED TO DO IT MENTIONED WITH THE TELLER SAID I NEED MAKE A CALL AND I GUESS SHE CALLED THE MAIN BANK AND THEY SAID IT'S A SCAM. WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO IT. >> SO THEN YOU WENT TO ANOTHER TO ANOTHER BANK. >> AND THEY DID FREELY. THEY DID TWICE FOR ME. NO PROBLEM WHATSOEVER. >> BUT ARE JUST NOT USING THE LAW AS MUCH AS THEY >> AND IF THEY DID. IF THEY DID, FOLKS WOULD NOT SE THEIR MONEY, THEY MAY BE ANGRY. >> BUT THEY'RE STILL HAVE THEIR MONEY IN THE I DON'T KNOW. I DON'T BELIEVE ANYBODY. I WAS SO CAPTURE. I WAS GOING TO GET IT ALL >> YOU KNOW, I MEAN, HE LOVED ME FOR CRYING OUT GO FIGURE. >> THIS $47,000 TRANSACTION WAS SENT TO THE SCAMMER IN AUGUST OFOF 2020. SHE WAS UNAWARE OF THE HOAX, BUT OTHEHERS WHICH SUSPICIOUS MY FRIENDS. >> TOLD ME MY KIDS TOLD WITH THAT YOUR IHOR TOLD ME HE REALLY DID LOVE ME BECAUSE I KEPT SAYING HOW DO YOU KNOW YOU LOVE ME. YOU HAVEN'T EVEN MET ME. I CAN TELL BY THE WAY YOU TALK. I CAN TELL BY YOUR PICTURES AND I'M LIKE. I JUST FOR >> WE ALL COULD FALL PREY TO THIS. THESE CON ARTISTS ARE PROFESSIONALS. THEY ARE PROFESSIONALS. SHARON HAS A DIRECT WARNING. >> NO, DON'T DO IT. WHATEVER DO MATTER WHAT YOU THINK. BOTTOM LINE IS, DON'T DO IT BECAUSE YOU LOSE EVERY DIME. YOU STAND EVERY TIME. >> AND THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION SAYS THE MOST COMMON FAKE OCCUPATION GIVEN BY ROMANCE SCAMMERS IS THAT OF SOMEONE IN THE MILITARY? >> OR OFFSHORE OIL RIG WORKER? >> AND THE SAD STORY SHARON WAS GIVEN IS THE MOST REPEATED. THE SO-CALLED BOYFRIEND IS A WIDOWER WHO WAS STUCK ON THE RIGORS TRYING TO GET OFF THE MILITARY BASE BUT NEEDS MONEY TO DO SO. AND ONCE THE SCAMMER SUCCESSFULLY RECEIVEDTHE FIRST PAYMENT, THEY DON'T GIVE UP. SHERIDAN. SHE KICKS YOURSELF EVERY DAY, DON. >> TIM OWENS: IT'S JUST SAD, ISN'T IF YOU HAVE A CONSUMER QUESTION FOR DON SENT HIM AN E-MAIL TO DEED AIR WATE DOT COM OR GIVE HIM
