SOSMagAprilJune2022

60+ Year Old Woman Scammed by Love Over the Computer & Cell Phone In 2019, a woman in her 60’s contacted the Huron County Sheriff, Todd Corbin. She had been “dating” a love interest by computer and her cell phone. The man she was in love with lived overseas. He told her he was a doctor. She met him on a dating website. Once they connected, however, he told her to use the texting app, “Hang Out,” which is how they would communicate by text. The romance took place by e-mail, telephone calls and text messages. It’s important to note that “Hang Out” is on all android phones. Therefore, an unsuspecting person would assume this normal. The “boyfriend” told his victim that she was going to receive 5 million dollars from him, as soon as he resolved his financial woes. Then he would fly her over to be with him. They were going to get married and live happily ever after. This virtual courtship had been going on for two years. She lost over $100,000.00, before she concluded that this relationship wasn’t going anywhere. She is being scammed. Corbin said, “I talked to her and explained, based on everything she described to me -- this is a scam. Here is where it gets interesting … While I was taking her complaint, she received a phone call. It was that person and he asked her for some more money.” With her cooperation, Sheriff Corbin worked with his Detective Sergeant, Ted Evans. Evans worked with this romance scam victim. Together, the Huron County Sheriff’s Office devised a plan to apprehend this con artist, who was emotionally manipulating her for her money. Instead of wiring the money by Western Union, which was how she sent him money in the past, she told the romantic perpetrator to come to Huron County to get the cash himself. She sent him a picture of her standing with a pile of cash. “This is where the greed, kicked-in,” said Corbin. “He agreed to fly in. That’s when we involved the FBI. This guy flew in from Atlanta, Georgia to Cleveland Hopkins Airport. Then he took a taxi from Cleveland to Norwalk.” Corbin explained the man who showed up, was not the man she had been “dating”. Corbin called him a “middle man,” who was there only to get the money. He went on to say, “These schemes are so elaborate.” The “middle man” saw the woman, who told her virtual boyfriend where she would be and she would be holding the bag of money. Corbin said, “When he saw her, he made a bee-line right toward her.” As he reached for the money, he was apprehended and arrested by the Huron County Sheriff’s Office. His name is Prince A. Young. Corbin explained, “Then, the FBI comes in to interview him. He asserts, ‘I didn’t do anything wrong.’ What this guy doesn’t know is that we have all of the text messages and we have the phone recording saying, ‘Give me $25,000.00 cash.’ Once he was indicted, he passed out in a Toledo Federal Mugshot of Prince A. Young was provided by Huron Co. Sheriff’s Office. Todd Corbin, Huron County Sheriff 13