How A Montana Woman Lost $90,000 To A Romance Scam

Missoula, MT (KGVO-AM News) - A Montana woman, identified simply as ‘Rita’, shared a heartbreaking story through the FBI of how she was victimized by an online romance scam in which she lost over $90,000.

FBI spokesperson Sandra Barker shared Rita’s story.

A Montana Woman Shares Her Story of Being the Victim of a Romance Scam

“June 15 was World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, and so we sent out a press release to help raise awareness about these scams targeting our seniors, specifically romance scams,” began Barker. “Because when it comes to confidence or romance scams, that results in one of the highest amounts of financial losses compared to other cyber-enabled crimes, and unfortunately, a lot of seniors are very vulnerable to this type of scam, and losses really are pretty staggering.”

Rita shared her story through a video produced by the Salt Lake City office of the FBI, stating that the scammer refused to meet in person and the relationship had to be online only.

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Rita was Alone and Vulnerable to the Online Scammer

“It hit me at the right time,” she said. “I was very vulnerable at that time, going through a divorce. For me, these texts were like a drug. They were like a drug, like I needed them to live with. Now, I read these texts, and it makes me sick that I fell for this. I lost about $90,000, which is a big chunk.”

Rita decided, after she had been taken advantage of online by this scammer, to share her story and possibly keep other senior citizens from being defrauded.

“Hindsight is always 2020; you know, 'what was I thinking'?” she said. “But I wasn't thinking with my brain. I was thinking with my heart. If I can save just one person from this folly, if I can make one person realize that this is not real, I've done my job.”

The FBI’s Sandra Barker shared the devastating impact on romance scam victims from Montana alone.

The FBI Says Montanans were Scammed Online for over $44 Million in 2024

“In 2024, our internet crime report shows that in Montana, there were 44 victims reporting losses of over $2.2 million just on romance scams alone, so that will indicate just how prevalent the scam is,” she said. “Some of the signs include, they're rushing to profess their love for you, or they're trying to isolate you from family and friends. They say that they're working or living far away, and they're not able to meet, and really just delaying that face-to-face meeting is a red flag sign, and then, of course, asking for money before they've even met.”

The FBI listed several warning signs of confidence or romance scams, including first, be careful what you post online about yourself, because scammers will use that against you, and if the individual asks for money, you know you’re being scammed.