Two individuals have been handed sentences for their involvement in deceiving a 90-yr-old man out of nearly €25,000 through an online romance scam.
Fifty-year-old Elizabeth Bello, of Creston Avenue in Finglas, and David O’Brien, aged 26, from Farranasa, Emly, Co Tipperary, both admitted to serving as “money mules” by allowing their bank accounts to be used in the fraudulent scheme, reports RTE.
O’Brien was also involved in distributing part of the €40,000 taken from an 80-year-old woman through an invoice redirection scam.
Both defendants received suspended prison sentences today, reports RTE.
The elderly male victim, now 90, believed he was speaking to a woman he met on the dating platform Match.com as part of “a romance”. She claimed to be a chef with the US Navy, said she had a daughter, and that her partner had betrayed her, reports RTE.
She further told him she was set to inherit €31 million from her father, money allegedly held in a Dubai bank, and that she needed his assistance to access it. To add credibility, she sent him a fake will, reports RTE.
The scammer first convinced the man to transfer €2,800 to cover an “anti-money laundering certificate,” which was paid into David O’Brien’s AIB account.
Later, she persuaded him to send €24,516.13 for so-called inheritance storage fees. This money was lodged into Bello’s Bank of Ireland account and then dispersed, reports RTE.
Of the total, €13,400 was withdrawn at a bank branch, €4,000 converted to sterling, and €2,400 taken out from several ATMs.
Bello also purchased a Volvo S60 car for €7,000, reports RTE.
The victim was never able to recover any of the stolen funds.
The second victim, now aged 80, had been renovating a family home in preparation to move in, reports RTE.
She believed she was dealing with a builder when she transferred €50,000 in total, although the bank was able to recover €10,000 of that amount.
€6,300 of the money went into O’Brien’s account in three instalments, and the entire amount was later withdrawn in sums ranging from €600 to €1,500 before he closed the account in 2020, reports RTE.
In a victim impact statement, the woman described feeling deeply isolated, adding that her family still didn’t know what had happened to her, reports RTE.
She ultimately lost €38,000.
Defence Counsel said O’Brien has an “educational background” and completed two years of a sound engineering course. He had also worked in a warehouse and was deeply affected by “an unspeakable tragedy” in his family, leading him to substance abuse, reports RTE.
The court heard he was “not the beneficiary of the money” and was “at the bottom rung of the ladder”. It was stated that others controlled the account while his was used to move the funds, reports RTE.
It was also revealed that Bello withdrew the money from her account and passed it on to “a German named Kelly,” expecting to receive €2,000 in return. She has had no contact with “Kelly” since, reports RTE.
Originally from the Ivory Coast, the mother of six has been living in Ireland for 24 years.
Her defence counsel acknowledged she was “a complicit money mule” and was aware of her role in the scheme, reports RTE.
Judge Crowe remarked that the 90-year-old man had been targeted in “an elaborate romance fraud,” while the 80-year-old woman suffered a major loss of confidence and finances, reports RTE.
The judge added that although neither O’Brien nor Bello orchestrated the scams or knew each other, they both permitted their bank accounts to be used.
She said O’Brien acted recklessly but played a significant role, while Bello now regrets her involvement, which has turned her life upside down, reports RTE.
Judge Crowe sentenced Bello to two years in prison and O’Brien to one year, with both sentences suspended, reports RTE.
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