IWATE (TR) – An Iwate Prefecture man in his 60s narrowly avoided falling victim to a “romance scam” after receiving unsolicited messages — and increasingly revealing photos — from the hijacked Line account of a deceased relative, reports Iwate Menkoi TV (Sep. 29).
“To be honest, it would be a lie to say I didn’t have ulterior motives, but I was messaging her with a healthy dose of skepticism,” the man admitted regarding the bizarre correspondence.
The incident began in July when the man received a sudden message from the Line account of a relative who had already passed away. The message read: “I contacted you because you were on my friends list. Have we met somewhere before?”
The sender did not claim to be his relative, but rather introduced herself as “Yuzuki,” a 34-year-old woman.
“I wondered what it was and figured it was sent by mistake,” the man recalled. “But then she started saying things like she had developed feelings for me. Honestly, it didn’t feel bad to hear that, so I told her, ‘If it’s just on Line, we can talk.'”
Though the man felt a growing sense of distrust as the woman attempted to pry for personal information such as his home address, she kept his attention by sending photos of herself working out at a gym and posing in a swimsuit at a pool.
“The images were getting more and more revealing, and I started thinking, ‘Something isn’t right here,'” he said.
The trap was finally sprung approximately one week into their correspondence. Out of nowhere, “Yuzuki” sent a message asking, “Why don’t we study investing together at my uncle’s place?”
Sensing danger, the man firmly rejected the offer.
“I thought, ‘This is getting sketchy,'” the man said. “When I turned down the investment talk, her attitude completely flipped. I knew for sure it was a scam.”
He sent the scammer one final message: “The photos you’ve been sending are of someone else, aren’t they?”
All communication immediately ceased.
According to prefectural police, the incident is a textbook example of a romance scam. Perpetrators illicitly gain access to existing social media accounts — even those belonging to the deceased — and send out mass messages to random contacts in hopes of ensnaring a victim.
Authorities are urging the public to remain highly vigilant when receiving unsolicited messages, even if they appear to originate from a familiar account.
