Good advice needed - scammer ? or not ? - Russian Ukrainian Belarus Travel Music Woman Dating News

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Good advice needed - scammer ? or not ?
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Posted by: aeromike

I was contacted by a young Russian woman, named Anna, through my yahoo personals account just 2 weeks ago. She claims to be using a special program in Russia called "work & travel" for young people that wish to work abroad. There is a considerable age difference between us - I am 50 years old, she is 25 years old. I wrote to her that I am past the age of considering having more children but she in pushing ahead with a self-directed visit to the USA. After only 4 emails in which I told her that I would be glad to spend a considerable amount of time with her during her stay, she claims to have just traveled on a plane from Osinniki to Moscow to process her travel documents and secure her temporary work VISA. She lured me by stating that she is looking for a man to spend time with while working over here. I was open to this arrangement because it would be temporary and probably quite fun for both of us. But, it became quickly apparent that she is seeking a life mate and has been wooing me. She did back off slightly when I brought up the concern about our age difference.

Anna has secured her VISA and travel documents but now she has asked me for $950 to be wired because she underestimated her expenses and also didn't realize that she would have to purchase a round-trip ticket. Even though we have been emailing everyday and she has sent me numerous pictures of her and her family, she still doesn't answer my questions or directly respond to my emails. And, she has not called me or even responded to my request that she call me. I have provided her with my cell phone number and told her to call me anytime of the day.

I am not sure what to do here. I am worried that I am being set up for a continuous scam where more 'expenses' will just pop up. But, if she really is being honest, I feel that I have encouraged her and now she is in a bad situation and I am the only one that can provide the funds to keep her much anticipated trip moving forward. Although I do not have any intentions of marrying her due to our age difference and positions in life, I am thrilled at the idea of showing her our culture for the period of time that she is here.

Any comments will be appreciated. Does this "Work & Travel" program really exist ? And if so, is it really possible for her to drive the whole effort herself from her end in such a short period of time. Thank you very much !! I don't want her to be hurt but I don't want to look like an idiot either.

Posted by: sidney

Quote:

Does this "Work & Travel" program really exist ?

Yes it does but goes by another name SCAM. (s)he is looking to lighten your wallet and you can find many similar stories here and on the net. Google a peculiar sentence from one of his/her letters and see what you come up with. The old rule applies of never sending $ to someone you've never met. Don't spend another second thinking this could be for real.
Sid

Posted by: French_Misha

Quote:

Originally Posted by aeromike

I was contacted by a young Russian woman, named Anna, through my yahoo personals account just 2 weeks ago. She claims to be using a special program in Russia called "work & travel" for young people that wish to work abroad. There is a considerable age difference between us - I am 50 years old, she is 25 years old. I wrote to her that I am past the age of considering having more children but she in pushing ahead with a self-directed visit to the USA. After only 4 emails in which I told her that I would be glad to spend a considerable amount of time with her during her stay, she claims to have just traveled on a plane from Osinniki to Moscow to process her travel documents and secure her temporary work VISA. She lured me by stating that she is looking for a man to spend time with while working over here. I was open to this arrangement because it would be temporary and probably quite fun for both of us. But, it became quickly apparent that she is seeking a life mate and has been wooing me. She did back off slightly when I brought up the concern about our age difference.

Anna has secured her VISA and travel documents but now she has asked me for $950 to be wired because she underestimated her expenses and also didn't realize that she would have to purchase a round-trip ticket. Even though we have been emailing everyday and she has sent me numerous pictures of her and her family, she still doesn't answer my questions or directly respond to my emails. And, she has not called me or even responded to my request that she call me. I have provided her with my cell phone number and told her to call me anytime of the day.

I am not sure what to do here. I am worried that I am being set up for a continuous scam where more 'expenses' will just pop up. But, if she really is being honest, I feel that I have encouraged her and now she is in a bad situation and I am the only one that can provide the funds to keep her much anticipated trip moving forward. Although I do not have any intentions of marrying her due to our age difference and positions in life, I am thrilled at the idea of showing her our culture for the period of time that she is here.

Any comments will be appreciated. Does this "Work & Travel" program really exist ? And if so, is it really possible for her to drive the whole effort herself from her end in such a short period of time. Thank you very much !! I don't want her to be hurt but I don't want to look like an idiot either.

How does the saying go: "If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it's probably a duck."

Posted by: Pin Boy

welcome aeromike,

think about it: what woman would travel halfway around the world to a country she has never visited to stay with a man (twice her age) that she has never met????

it's a classic scam!!!!! and she probably is a he. and if "she" does call, it may be a man running the whole operation and a woman will be put on the phone to try to make it sound legit.

rule #1 - NEVER, EVER, EVER SEND MONEY TO SOMEONE YOU HAVE NEVER MET.

her not answering your questions is also a big red flag. she may also claim she's at the airport and "the authorities" won't let her leave the country without X amount of money (total BS by the way) and if you just send X amount of money right away, you'll have a beautiful 25 yr old russian girl on your doorstep within 24 hours. how lucky can a guy get???

women from russia who contact men on yahoo personals are almost always scammers.

aren't you glad you asked here first?

welcome again and good luck finding a real and sincere woman

pin boy

Posted by: joelunchbox

Keep in mind that the scammer wants to make you feel guilty...this has guilt written all over it. You didn't even ask her to come..if it is even a she. I had one of these about 9 months ago...they at least waited more than 4 emails to start it up. I was even calling the airline to see if she was on it...I am too nice that way..haha
write it off, and learn from it. It is a tightrope walk trying to stay open minded enough to look and keep a tough skin on for the scammers..

Posted by: aeromike

I just want to thank those of you who responded to my post. Wow !! I feel like I have just been slapped upside of the head with 2 X 4, but it looks like I needed it. I have no qualms about dropping her (his ?) email address into my spam folder and just walking away from this like it never happened without a second thought..........Aeromike

Posted by: azamuner

Yes these scammers try to take advantage of a person's good will and trust.
A lot of times it works too. Just be thankful that you knew early something was a miss. Just like everyone above stated, never send money, and always make sure that in your correspondence that she answers your questions specifically. Also take the time out to check on what sites are reputable so you don't waste your hard-earned money and time on a person who doesn't exist.

Welcome to the RMP forums!

Posted by: Kievmarriage

Hello, I'm new to this forum but very much familiar with the topic.

I would like to address to men:

PLEASE NEVER SEND MONEY TO ANY LADIES YOU MET ON THE INTERNET. If she is decent and serious she would never ask you for money. In fact, serious girls rarely engage in long correspondence - most of them know it is a waste of time and usually they exchange couple of e-mail and insist on a real meeting. And scammers continue writing long "love letters" to men they have never met, using their sweet hopefullness to milk them...

Posted by: AkMike

Welcome to RMP Kievmarriage..
My wife and I spent several months writing til I traveled to meet her. So it does happen. Scammers can also drop their egg after just a few notes.

Posted by: Kievmarriage

Thank you

I'm happy for you and your wife. Unfortunately, it happens so rare - nowadays not only women scam, but men too. Which is why women prefer to exchange few letters and then see the man. Plus, sometimes you can totally in love with someone on the email but then be very disappointed in real life. From my own experience

Posted by: freebird

BEWARE SCAMMERS!
Aeromike, the it is very, very difficult for a Russian/Ukrainian girl to get a visa to visit the US, UK, Australia or Canada. (unless she has family here) She could not get a work visa without some company to sponsor her. So if you ask her what company sponsored her I bet she won't tell you. (because its a scam!)

Posted by: GentleGiant

Aeromike, care to post the pictures she sent??
There are sites dedicated to naming and shaming scammers and posting details to stop them conning anyone else; some of them even like to string the scammers along and waste their time.
As said earlier the chances of a genuine Russian woman turning up on a non Russian Dating Site are extremely low.
I have run into a least a dozen scammers ( the first nearly caught me out, so don't feel too bad), and all but one of them approached me through UK or US sites; the other was via Elena's and she got kicked off before I realised she even WAS a scammer ( although I was starting to suspect).

Posted by: freebird

Quote:

Originally Posted by GentleGiant2

Aeromike, care to post the pictures she sent??
There are sites dedicated to naming and shaming scammers and posting details to stop them conning anyone else; some of them even like to string the scammers along and waste their time.
As said earlier the chances of a genuine Russian woman turning up on a non Russian Dating Site are extremely low.
I have run into a least a dozen scammers ( the first nearly caught me out, so don't feel too bad), and all but one of them approached me through UK or US sites; the other was via Elena's and she got kicked off before I realised she even WAS a scammer ( although I was starting to suspect).

GG - Do you really think it will make much difference? I wonder how many guys will check the scam sites BEFORE they get burned?

Posted by: Kievmarriage

About work visa: work and travel visa is very easy to get and it is very popular. Only students can get it and a lot of students at my former university went on this program for summer...

besides these days it seems that it is easy to get any kind of visa from Ukraine to the US (not from Russia). I just came back from the US and the day I was at the embassy EVERYBODY got a visa

Posted by: freebird

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kievmarriage

About work visa: work and travel visa is very easy to get and it is very popular. Only students can get it and a lot of students at my former university went on this program for summer...

besides these days it seems that it is easy to get any kind of visa from Ukraine to the US (not from Russia). I just came back from the US and the day I was at the embassy EVERYBODY got a visa

Well its good to hear that Visa situation is easier now in Ukraine! I do think your advice was good about not sending money to people over the internet. What was your disappointment on meeting with someone, if you don't mind the question? Was it misrepresentation or just personal differences?

Posted by: yoshi211

well pretty soon Ukraine is going to join the EU and you dont even need a visa any more, just a passport. i think this is going to happen within the next year or two.

i have read alot of the posts you guys have written, keep up the good work and thz for the info to everyone that post. just wanted to say that.

Posted by: GoeastLJ

I agree Ukraine will soon join the EU, not because it meets the prerequisites, but because it would be a huge political score for Western Europe and America over Russia. Ukraine is still politically immature. The East-West divide looms large and needs to be sorted out, IMO, and Iuschenko needs to have a little bit more clout - or give up and let Tymoschenko take the reins.

Posted by: GoingToRussia

Quote:

Originally Posted by yoshi211

well pretty soon Ukraine is going to join the EU and you dont even need a visa any more, just a passport. i think this is going to happen within the next year or two.

i have read alot of the posts you guys have written, keep up the good work and thz for the info to everyone that post. just wanted to say that.

You don't need a visa to visit the Ukraine now ... if you're from the USA ... not sure about other countries.

Posted by: Seaview

Quote:

Originally Posted by GoingToRussia

You don't need a visa to visit the Ukraine now ... if you're from the USA ... not sure about other countries.

I think, yoshi means that people from Ukrainia won't need a visa to go to EU countries when Ukrainia joins EU.

Posted by: Seaview

Quote:

Originally Posted by GentleGiant2

It's of no use. THose scammer lists are full of Russian B-list stars and third rate models who have no idea they are bait fish. What is even worse, scammers use nice pics stolen from usual Russian non-dating sites (friends reunited and the like).

At the same time, a lot of normal girls are put on scammer lists by psychos for weird reasons. I remember the story when a girl was named a scammer because she refused to send her naked picture to some idiot.

Posted by: JamesB

Mate please never part with money in these circumstances!

Posted by: AkMike

Quote:

Originally Posted by Seaview

I think, yoshi means that people from Ukrainia won't need a visa to go to EU countries when Ukrainia joins EU.

But I've been told on other forums that Ukraine won't be able to be invited to join until things stabilize politically and 2018 was mentioned as the earliest date.

Posted by: TheWongs

Quote:

Originally Posted by AkMike

But I've been told on other forums that Ukraine won't be able to be invited to join until things stabilize politically and 2018 was mentioned as the earliest date.

I wish they would just hurry up and do it! Or, at least make it so they can travel for 90 days, same as we can. This is what annoys me sooooo much. I can go to Ukraine and stay for 90 days, but Larisa needs a visa. The visa decision is left to some "numpty" in Kiev! If he has had a bad day, then she can't travel. It sucks!

Anyway... Back on topic. Someone said "If it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it probably is a duck".

It's a scam!

No! A SCAM, not a SPAM!

Posted by: rk288

Anna the Scamma...I met her once too...great bathing suit picture...

Still in Rostov?

Posted by: kimchik

Quote:

Originally Posted by AkMike

But I've been told on other forums that Ukraine won't be able to be invited to join until things stabilize politically and 2018 was mentioned as the earliest date.

Unlike the ones that have joined or will join, Ukraine, like Belarus, are on good foot with Russia. I think this is a reason for them not to join. For them I imagine it's like choosing between Russia or Europe. And for now, Russia is the more safe and familiar option. Personally I wished Russia would join, would make things a lot easier. But on the other hand I wished my own country, Holland, would step out of that crap....

Posted by: AkMike

Quote:

Originally Posted by rk288

Anna the Scamma...I met her once too...great bathing suit picture...

Still in Rostov?

Huh??? PWD??? or smoking??