Online Romance Scams Affecting Elder Persons

  • February 13, 2019
  • Brittany Sud, Faskens

In 2018, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre cited romance scams as the top reported scams based on total dollar loss.[1] Elderly persons are particularly susceptible to these types of scams. Unfortunately, the late Robert Hogg fell victim to a romance scam, which was not discovered until after his death.

Mr. Hogg, a widower in his mid-60s, decided to join an online dating site. It was on the dating site that he formed an online relationship with a woman, known as “Sophia Goldstein”. Within just one month, “Sophia Goldstein” expressed her love for Mr. Hogg although they never met in person. Not long after, she started asking Mr. Hogg to transfer her money, as she claimed she was having difficulty accessing her own funds while she was in Australia for business.