Another Woman Raped by Person She Met Online

By Leon Watson

Internet daters have been warned after a legal secretary was raped by a man she met on a popular dating website.

Peter Ramsey, 26, beat the woman to the ground, ripped off her tights and had sex with her when she refused him a goodnight kiss at her front door. Ramsey punched the 27-year-old repeatedly knocking out one of her front teeth and left her with 21 injuries. Her facial wounds were among the most shocking detectives investigating the case had ever seen.

The sex attacker was caught after using the victim's Oyster travelcard to board a nightbus within minutes of the attack in Clapham, south west London.

Ramsey and the woman had spent four days chatting on plentyoffish.com site which claims on its homepage to be 'responsible for more dates and more relationships than any other dating site'. They arranged to meet for drinks in Brixton town centre at 7pm.

She later said: 'He seemed like a nice guy. The date was going very well. I thought we had a lot in common.' In the early hours of August 27 last year they went for something to eat before climbing into a cab to her flat near Clapham Common. She believed he was going to walk her to her front door but when he lent in for a kiss and she pulled back, he 'switched'.

In the communal entrance to the block, he pinned her against the wall and rained down punches on her face until she slumped to the ground. When she screamed for help he used one hand to cover her mouth and pinch her nose shut, while continuing to hit her with the other fist. 'I thought I was going to die,' she told Inner London Crown Court.


A 'SEVERE RISK' TO WOMEN

Outside court DC Huggins praised the SOIT role which was crucial in securing the conviction. He said of the result: 'I feel relieved that somebody like Ramsey who had access via the internet to so many women, is now safely behind bars.

'He posed a severe risk to other women on that internet site, which he had been using for a number of years. I would urge people using dating websites to thoroughly vet the people they meet and before they spend time alone. I would also like to thank my SOIT officer, who had the initial contact with the victim. I would like to reassure other potential victims that there are people who are willing to listen to them and take their allegations very seriously in order to bring the perpetrator to justice.

'The victim in this case is relieved about the verdict. She was also concerned for other women and that if he had walked free, there would have been other victims. This woman was unrecognisable after the attack, compared to the woman who gave evidence. Fortunately she has recovered from her physical injuries. I have been in the police for 14 years and these were some of the most shocking facial injuries I have ever seen.'

Ramsey, who has several previous convictions for shoplifting and assaulting police officers, but none for violence or sexual offences against women, then stole the bleeding woman's bag.

As he left she staggered to her feet and called to a passing man, a Muslim on his way to Ramadan prayers, and he came to her aid. The victim's mother, who had heard the screams, also rushed out to find her disfigured and traumatised daughter.

In a further insult, before Ramsey fled, he said to the pedestrian of the two women: 'Don't worry about them - they're crazy.' The rapist then used the woman's stolen Oyster card on a passing N35 bus.

The following day he left two voicemails on the victim's mobile telling her he was sorry and had now sobered up. He said he was left feeling something had happened that 'wasn't good'.

Soon after her ordeal the woman was interviewed by a specialist SOIT (Sexual Offences Interview Technique) officer from Lambeth's Sapphire Unit. PC Damien Hutton-Baber worked closely with the victim to get her detailed account, an interview which was filmed and played to the jury to reduce her time in the witness box.

Ramsey was arrested a week after the attack when a DNA match appeared to have snared him. But when he lied he had not even met the woman on that day, officers were forced to dig deeper. DC Richard Huggins, the officer in charge of the investigation, examined CCTV footage from the bus which showed him on board near the scene.

Ramsey continued to deny the rape, changing his story at trial. He put forward the defence he had consensual sex with the woman but left her rowing with another man who must have beat her.

Ramsey boasted said he had been out with 'hundreds of women' and did not need to rape because he could get anyone he wanted. But he was found unanimously guilty following a trial.

Ramsey, of no fixed address but who had been staying with friends in Forest Hill, south east London, was convicted of rape, wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and theft.

Following the verdicts Judge Patricia Lees said: 'I would like an assessment of the defendant's future risk that he may pose to women. It seems to me the violence meted out was frankly horrific and wholly unnecessary to commit the offence of rape.'

Remanding him in custody ahead of sentence on April 27, Judge Lees warned him: 'You face an extremely lengthy sentence of imprisonment.' The court heard Ramsey has been diagnosed as biopolar while on remand.

original article here

Married Con Man Uses PlentyofFish for Affair

By Patricia Kane

(U.K.) As Victoria Fraenzel logged on to the internet dating site for the first time, she was uncertain what response she would receive to her request for a man who would offer her ‘truth and honesty’. Yet within hours of keying her details into the popular website Plenty Of Fish, the 35-year-old was not disappointed with the response.

Darren Upton, a wealthy accountant in his late 30s, quickly got in touch and within days had charmed his way into her life and, soon after, her bed. They had an 18-month affair as he lavished expensive gifts on her, including a £3,000 Cartier watch, designer dresses by film-star favourite Amanda Wakeley and a Mercedes sports car.

Last week, however, Upton was finally exposed as a conman and jailed for six years for stealing hundreds of thousands of pounds from his clients so he could live a life of luxury.

Today Victoria tells how she foolishly fell for Upton’s lies, of the lifestyle they both enjoyed during their fling and her feelings of betrayal at discovering he was not single, as he had claimed, but married. His wife even had a daughter by him during their affair.

Victoria also reveals her shock at the extent of his fraud and of her anger at being labelled ‘greedy’ as the main beneficiary of his embezzled funds. She said: ‘I’ve been made out to be a terrible hussy who had thousands of pounds lavished on her by a married man. But I am not that sort of person. I’m not grasping or greedy. I didn’t ask him for anything. I just wanted to be with him. It was never about the money or the sex.’

Close to tears, she added: ‘After a series of bad relationships, I just wanted someone who wanted to give me a hug and love me. Darren appeared to be that man. I had finally found someone who seemed to genuinely care about me and made me feel special. He was kind and caring. That’s all I wanted – but it was all a lie.’

In total, the accountant cheated 33 clients by not passing to the taxman £500,000 they had paid him. On Thursday, at Leeds Crown Court, he admitted 15 fraud offences between January 2010 and June last year. He also asked for 23 similar offences to be taken into consideration.

Passing sentence, Judge Sally Cahill QC said the crimes were committed for ‘pure selfish greed’. She told him: ‘You were thoroughly dishonest and motivated by greed. This was a gross breach of trust, it was planned from the offset and fraudulent from the offset. I consider this to be professional offending at a high level.’

For Victoria, now 36, the last eight months since discovering the truth have been filled with remorse and self-reproach at being duped so easily. She thought she was going to spend the rest of her life with Upton, with plans to ‘retire’ to the Bahamas in October, where he claimed to have a beachside property.

‘He told me we would get married and we would be happy there together,’ said Victoria. ‘I had no idea he already had a wife and a daughter who had been born during our relationship. I was shocked beyond words when I finally discovered the truth. I’m still struggling to take in the extent of his lies. Nothing in his behaviour ever made me suspicious. I feel very stupid now but I believed everything he said.’

This was not Victoria’s first ‘bad experience’ with men. One of her former partners was Bryan Garvey – who had shared an £18.5 million National Lottery jackpot with four other winners before she met him. ‘My relationship with Bryan ended acrimoniously and it took nearly four years before I thought of looking for someone else,’ she said.

‘Once bitten, twice shy, so it was a really big decision for me to start dating again, and I thought an internet site might help me find someone more compatible. It was my first time on the site and on my posting, I remember saying I was looking for “truth, honesty… a real person”.

‘I cringe now looking back because hindsight is a wonderful thing. Darren got in touch within hours and after a couple of days of online chat, we agreed to meet in a pub in Preston. I remember him sending me a photograph at one point and I saw a wedding ring on his finger. When I said, “That looks like you’re married,” he replied that he’d been engaged but it was now over.’

Meeting him for the first time, however, was a shock for 6ft Victoria – who was a model in her teenage years. She explained: ‘I’m not unattractive and I’m used to dating good-looking men, so it was a bit of a shock to meet Darren in the flesh. My first impression was that he was ugly but his banter and charm made me see him in a different light and in the end I agreed to meet him again.’

They met a few days later, again in Preston, and this time, keen to impress, he picked her up in his Bentley with personalised number plates DJU. The court would hear that Upton had also already bought his wife, Tina, a Maserati. He had also splashed out on a £10,000 box at Leeds United Football Club and even spent £3,000 on a model railway.

Within a few dates, Upton would whisk Victoria off to his £500,000 penthouse flat in an upmarket area of Leeds, overlooking the River Aire and the city skyline. Exquisitely decorated with white leather sofas and state-of-the-art home-entertainment equipment, including a large plasma TV, Upton told her he lived there alone.

As the relationship became more intimate, Upton’s gifts became more lavish. He bought her a Cartier watch, as well as diamond earrings, and several thousands of pounds worth of designer clothes and accessories from Harvey Nichols, including a number of Mulberry handbags. In one shopping spree alone, he blew more than £2,000 on two dresses by Amanda Wakeley – a favourite of Charlize Theron, Scarlett Johansson and Kate Winslet.

From October 2010, he also began paying £800-a-month rent on another apartment in Salford, Greater Manchester, where Victoria would sometimes stay with him when she was not at her own home in nearby Altrincham. He gave her a bank card with a £500 limit to buy anything for the flat.

The couple ate at the best restaurants in Manchester, such as San Carlo and Rosso, favourites of Premier League footballers. They had been dating for about six months when a smitten Upton bought Victoria a black Mercedes sports car.

She said: ‘He had been talking about it for some time. I was gobsmacked at his generosity but if he said he would get me something, he always did. He had the car delivered to my home. I just jumped into the car in excitement and went for a drive. Now I know he was a conman but at that time I loved him more than ever.’ For Victoria it was not an entirely new lifestyle, having grown up with indulgent, wealthy parents on a sprawling farm near Blackburn.

At an early age, she had learned to ride horses and was a competitive showjumper before turning her back on the sport in her teens. When her father committed suicide eight years ago, he left Victoria independently wealthy and with no need to rely on Upton’s generosity. She said: ‘It really angers me that people might think I was desperate for him to spend all this money on me and that I was in the relationship to gain financially. I didn’t need him to buy me any of those things. It was nice, of course, and he wanted to do it. But if I’d known it was all paid for with stolen money, I would never have touched him or his gifts.’

As her relationship with Upton deepened, he began to be more careless, even taking her along to his offices – while his wife was off work nursing their baby daughter – for sex sessions during working hours.

She recalled: ‘The staff all knew who I was yet they never said a word to his wife. We had sex pretty much everywhere in his office: on the desk, on the floor, anywhere we could make it exciting. I was so happy to be with someone who was so caring and considerate. He never mentioned a wife and certainly not his new baby daughter. One of the memories that turns my stomach now is when we were out one night at dinner and he produced some photographs of a baby girl. He told me she was his new niece – but in fact it was his own daughter, who was just a few months old. Later he sent more photographs of her to my phone. That makes me really angry now to think that he would deny his own daughter as well as betraying his wife.’

Victoria would remain in ignorance until June last year when, unable to get through to Upton on his mobile phone one day, she rang his office.

‘I asked if Darren was there and a secretary said, “I’ll let you speak to his wife” and transferred the call. I felt numb with shock. Tina Upton [who was also the company secretary] answered and told me Darren was being questioned by police over financial irregularities. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Not only was I having to take in that he had a wife I hadn’t known anything about, but he was in some sort of financial trouble. Then, without asking me outright if I was Darren’s mistress, Tina suddenly said that she’d suspected her husband was having an affair for some time but “had not pursued it”.

‘I felt distraught and hung up. Soon afterwards, I got a visit from police at the apartment in Manchester. They confirmed what I now knew – that Darren was married and had committed fraud. My Mercedes was taken away and the apartment lease terminated. It was a nightmare of unimaginable proportions and the man I had thought better than all the others who had gone before, turned out to be the biggest b*****d of the lot. How could he do this to a woman who had just given birth to his child? I would never have started seeing him if I had known the truth. It’s despicable.’

‘I felt very foolish. How could I have been so hoodwinked? Life had come crashing down and I found out this wonderful man who had made me feel so complete was already married with a child and had cheated those poor people out of hundreds of thousands of pounds. It was horrendous. Not only did I feel sorry for them but I felt very sorry for his wife. She’s the true victim. How could he do this to a woman who had just given birth to his child? I would never have started seeing him if I had known the truth. It’s despicable.’

The subsequent investigation discovered the total value of Upton’s fraud was £532,000. The firm had about 800 clients, mainly small computer companies, and instead of paying his clients’ corporation tax to the taxman, Upton diverted the cash into his own account. His clients even ended up having to pay penalties for unpaid tax when his crimes were exposed.

Upton had previously been investigated and forced to pay compensation for an unauthorised investment scheme but had continued to commit offences when he was on bail.

Victoria did not attend court last week, having now washed her hands of Upton. She said: ‘I couldn’t bear it. It has brought back too many painful memories. But I want people to know I am not to blame for any of this. I didn’t make him do any of it. He lied to me too.’

The prosecution said many of the clients he deceived felt betrayed as they regarded him as a friend. Other victims said their businesses had been left close to collapse and they had suffered ill health.

Upton’s defence team claimed he made a legitimate annual profit of £250,000, but began offending because he was forced to repay £840,000 to the Financial Services Authority in monthly instalments of £10,000 over the earlier investment scheme, which had not led to criminal charges. Not prepared to cut back on his lifestyle, he then started to misappropriate clients’ funds.

Victoria was never investigated by police, who accepted she had no knowledge of where the funds were coming from. Heartbroken by Upton’s deception, she has attempted to move on, and has thrown her energy into building up her own beauty business. She also had brief relationships with two international footballers since her relationship with Upton ended. Despite everything he has put her through, however, Victoria cannot bring herself to hate Upton.

She said: ‘He hasn’t done me any real harm – he was always a true gentleman to me and I will always remember that about him. He has been described as arrogant but I never saw that side of him. But what he did to his clients, as well as his wife and daughter, was unforgivable. He deserves to be in prison for what he did to them.

original article here

Online Dating? Never Again

by Claudia Connell

Tempted by online dating? You won't be after reading CLAUDIA CONNELL'S hilarious (and cautionary) account

(U.K.) Single? Starting to despair of ever meeting Mr Wonderful? Well, don’t — because, ladies, the world is full of handsome, charming men with six-figure salaries, who are all queuing up to commit to ­people just like you.

The virtual world, that is, not the real world — don’t be daft: men like that were all snapped up years ago.

I’m talking about internet dating, of course, where millions of singletons (and quite a few marrieds on the make) line up to be selected and rejected in a process that has become ­Britain’s most popular way for couples to get together.

Over half of all single people turn to the internet in their search for love. Apparently, some of them find it. I never did and I’ve never met anyone it has worked for either. In the long-term, that is. A stream of endless dates is ­guaranteed. But lasting love? I’m not so sure.

It was 14 years ago, when I was 30, that I first tried online dating. I was single and not in bad nick, but working long hours in a female-­dominated environment meant I never got to meet anyone. Too young for the dinner party set, too old to be hanging out at nightclubs, it seemed like a hopeless cause until a friend of a similar age took me out and confessed her dirty little secret: she’d started to meet men online. She imparted this information in hushed tones, without making eye contact, and then, on pain of death, swore me to secrecy. I don’t think she could have been more ashamed if she’d confessed to drowning puppies.

Nowadays, the stigma surrounding internet dating has all but gone. So many people partake that it has became an acceptable way to meet the opposite sex.

But when I started it was a bit like train-spotting — you’d heard about it, you knew it went on, but the sort of people who did it were a little bit odd and not the type whose ­company you’d keep.

Today, there are hundreds of ­dating sites to choose from, catering for those with all sorts of criteria: ­vegetarians, Christians, single ­parents, sports fanatics, people who like pets. You name it, there’s a site where you can meet your perfect match who shares the same interest. But, 14 years ago, there were only a handful.

I browsed one site before signing up and handing over my money. I couldn’t believe my eyes when they matched me up with dozens of sexy, ­gorgeous hunks whose ­dazzling smiles beamed out at me from the screen.

Posing by their sports cars, keen to tell any prospective ladies that while they had two homes and earned a salary that could single-handedly pay off the national debt, they were still ­sensitive souls who liked to strum their guitars and do parachute jumps for charity.

They seemed too good to be true. They were.

After submitting my credit card details, the millionaire Brad Pitt lookalikes all mysteriously disappeared and no amount of searching ever uncovered them again.

They were, of course, plants, who were there to lure in naive punters. A man signing up for the first time (and I know this because I tried it) would have been greeted with ­pictures of ­Scarlett Johansson ­lookalikes, ­boasting about their ­cooking skills while posing in bikinis.

The first step when joining a dating site is to complete a profile. As I learned, this is a complete waste of time — especially for women. It doesn’t matter if you have climbed ­Everest in your lunch break and ­discovered a cure for cancer — no one will read it.

Some of the profiles are ludicrous. Match.com, the world’s biggest ­dating site, asks dozens of pointless questions that go on for pages and pages.

When I’m looking for a partner, there are certain things I’d like to know, but I don’t really care when he last went to the cinema or whether he likes biscuits.

I filled out my first profile questionnaire in painstaking detail. And, like everyone else online, I claimed to like travel, theatre and photography.

The truth is that I have hardly any hobbies or interests, but I’ve never yet seen a box I could tick that says: ‘Likes sitting in front of the TV, bitching about everyone on screen.’

One question some sites do ask is if you’d like to have children. What a mean trick. If you say ‘Yes’, you’ll come across as some baby-hungry bunny boiler, but say ‘No’ and you’re Cruella De Vil.

Any online dater will stand or fall on the strength of their photo.

And as the average person looks, well, average, they have to boost their chances of success by posting totally ­unrealistic images. So it was that on my first date, I found myself ­sitting opposite a very charming man called Patrick.

He’d claimed online he was 35. He certainly was 35, or thereabouts, in the picture he’d posted. But the man sitting opposite me was nudging 50. He had displayed a picture that was at least a decade old — one of the most popular online tricks.

I didn’t fare much better with the next guy. He looked nothing like his photograph — and there was a very good reason for that. It wasn’t him. It was just some ­random stranger whose image he’d scanned. When I questioned him about this, he snapped: ‘Well, I think we look alike.’

I must have had dates with six ­different men before I met someone I clicked with and who appeared to have been reasonably honest. We agreed to meet again and I went home to tell my flatmate, a ­fellow internet dater, that I had a good ­feeling about this one.

She replied cynically: ‘He’s ­probably back online now, lining up the next one.’ I checked his profile online — it was flashing, which meant that he was messaging someone else. She was right.

And that’s the huge stumbling block with internet dating: there’s too much choice.

There are on average seven women to every man, creating the kid in a sweet shop effect.

Why would a man give any woman a ­second chance when they know there’s six others online just ­waiting for his message?

If you’re a man, you can be as fussy as you want. Didn’t like her earlobes? Never mind. NEXT!

I also never made my peace with the fact I was looking for men via my computer. It felt a little bit grubby and, if I’m honest, desperate. Whenever I started to see someone on a regular basis, I could never bring myself to admit where I’d met him to my friends and ­colleagues. So I lied. They couldn’t believe my success in meeting men at the super-
market, the dry cleaners, on the bus, in the park. I even claimed to have met one man at the zoo. The zoo?! Why on earth did I think the idea of a childless woman cruising for men at the zoo was somehow less embarrassing than admitting the truth?

The longest relationship I had as a result of meeting on an internet dating site was seven months. ­During that whole time, I never went to his home; he always came to mine. He insisted this was because he had a flatmate and as I (by then) was living alone, we could have some privacy. It made sense, though I always had a niggling doubt. One day, my suspicions got the better of me. I searched the electoral roll and uncovered the real reason I never went to his home — his wife wouldn’t have liked it very much.

Of course, married men cheated before the internet came along, but online dating is like an adventure playground for philanderers.

Aged 34, I vowed to give up on internet dating for ever and take my chances in the real world. OK, I didn’t have a date every other night, but it was refreshing to meet people without having first to email each other for a week about our favourite films.

Then, a few years ago, I was lamenting my single status with a younger friend who suggested I join an online dating site. When I regaled her with my horror stories, she insisted that times had changed and I should give it another go. After nearly a decade away, she was right: things had changed. There were hundreds of sites to choose from, all with really ­positive, bouncy names that it must have taken marketing executives hours of brainstorming to come up with.

Names such as Soul Mates, Plenty More Fish, Love And Friends. I suppose Oddballs And Social ­Misfits is never going to attract too many customers, is it? The tedious questions were still there and all the men had user names such as Stud4U or Adonis82.

This time around I noticed that the pictures people had posted had taken a worrying turn.

WHO KNEW?

Around 4.7 million people visit dating websites each year in Britain — and one third of online daters admit to lying in their profile Rather than just smiling into the camera, all the men felt compelled to display images of themselves performing some Action Man-like task. Rock climbing and marathon running were particularly popular.

Meanwhile, the women have decided they must all be fun, feisty Sex And The City type gals and post pictures of themselves in little black dresses sipping brightly ­coloured cocktails with a ­coquettish look on their face. Don’t get me wrong — I don’t want to see pictures of men in their pants, picking their teeth with a takeaway menu. But surely a little bit of reality wouldn’t go amiss?

But no one on an internet dating site is ever allowed to be just an ordinary Joe (or Josephine). The impressive sounding ‘psychological and compatibility matching’ is something that’s become big in internet dating since my time away.

It’s particularly favoured by newcomers eHarmony, who vow that their unique formula will match you with your ideal partner. But given that no one online ever tells the truth, how is that going to work? You might as well match up Pollyanna with ­Hannibal Lecter. In the end, none of these changes mattered because I was breaking one of the cardinal sins of internet dating. I was over 40.

In my younger days, an average 70 men would look at my profile in a day. And that was before online dating was massively popular. Aged 42, I was lucky if I got two. Even men ten years older than me clearly stated in their profile that 39 was their cut-off age.

As I’ve already said, they could afford to be selective. If the same man tried to approach a girl in her 20s in the real world, he’d probably be sent packing but, online, well, he might just be in with a chance.

I quickly realised that when it comes to online dating, there are three age brackets: 18 to 29; 30 to 39; and 40 to 110. During my three months online, I didn’t go on a single date and the only interest I had was from men over 60. I did briefly flirt with the idea of signing up to a site that targeted the more mature dater, but something in me balked at the idea.

I am no spring chicken, but I’m not ready for a life of early-bird ­suppers and cosy nights in watching re-runs of Murder She Wrote. So I logged off and I haven’t looked back.

And unless I hear that George Clooney has joined Match.com and is looking to shack up with a ­British woman over 40 with ­absolutely no hobbies or interests, then I doubt I’ll be tempted back.


original article found here

Husband stole $200,000 from Women met Online Dating

(Boston, U.S.) A married man met four other women online, romanced them over several years and then stole more than $200,000 from them by feigning financial and medical problems, authorities said.

Albert Lovering, of Waltham, Massachusetts, was indicted Tuesday on 23 counts of larceny, pleading not guilty on Wednesday.

Lovering, 54, met the women through various dating websites and deceived them into believing he was romantically attached to them, Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone said.

The women loaned Lovering money – including one who gave him more than $100,000 after meeting him just once – with the expectation he would repay them, but he never did, Mr Leone said.

'These allegations are extremely troubling and the defendant's lies spanned several years, targeting numerous victims who were conned into believing the defendant cared for them,' Leone said in a statement.

Lovering's lawyer, Daniel Flaherty, revealed his marital status as he asked a judge to release his client on personal recognizance as he awaits trial. He said Lovering has lived with his wife in Waltham since 1999.

The judge rejected the request and set bail at $10,000 cash.

Mr Flaherty did not immediately return a call seeking comment on the accusations, the Associated Press reports.

Lovering allegedly met the first woman in 2006 after they both placed dating ads on Yahoo.com.

The woman agreed to loan him $1,000 after he told her he had placed a bid on eBay on an item he had to purchase immediately, prosecutors said. He allegedly then told the woman he needed more money for several purchases and that he needed her to co-sign a loan.

When the loan was approved, he used the money for himself and did not repay the woman, Mr Leone said.

Lovering met the second woman in 2008 through a personal ad on Craigslist and courted her with 'romantic dinners and professions of warmth, affection and physical attraction,' Mr Leone said.

He also convinced her that he needed $28,000 to complete an eBay purchase, authorities said.

The woman never saw Lovering again, but he continued to communicate with her electronically, telling her he had to stay in hospital in New Hampshire for a serious medical condition, Leone said.

He allegedly told her that his health insurer would not pay several of his medical bills and that the hospital would not release him until those bills were paid.

'Based on his need, her affection for him and his promises of repayment, she sent a series of checks payable to him to a post office box,' Leone said. In total, the woman loaned him more than $70,000, he said.

Prosecutors said Lovering met a third woman in 2009 through Craigslist.

When they met for the first time, Lovering allegedly told the woman he owed the Internal Revenue Service back taxes and asked for a loan.

The woman loaned Lovering $7,200 and never saw him again, Mr Leone said. Lovering met the fourth woman through Plentyoffish.com, authorities said.

They met only once, but Mr Leone said Lovering led the woman to believe he was romantically interested in her and told her he needed a loan to pay back taxes. The woman gave him two checks totalling $1,500 on the promise that he would repay her, authorities said.

Mr Leone said Lovering told the woman in January 2009 that he was hospitalized in New Hampshire and unable to get discharged until all his medical bills were paid.

The woman repeatedly sent money to him through a post office box, investigators said. All told, she loaned him more than $100,000, they said.

original article found here

Online Dater Threatens to Rape Women

Cyberbully Nigel Wilson has been jailed for abusing women he met on a dating website.

A court heard Wilson identified vulnerable women, including several from the city and East Devon who cannot be named for legal reasons, who he then intimidated and abused over the internet and by phone.

Wilson had met and had brief flings with some of the five women and when they split up he poured "venom into their wounds" said a judge.

Wilson started a two-year jail term yesterday after he admitted one charge of harassment and four counts of sending grossly offensive, obscene, indecent or menacing messages.

Prosecutor Ann Hampshire submitted a report to Exeter Crown Court which said Wilson "desired to have sex with the women" and felt jealous and possessive towards them, and that turned to "nastiness".

David Evans, in mitigation, said: "He went on the website, Plenty of Fish, searching for love and a relationship but found the reality fell far short of the picture he allowed himself to paint in his mind."

Wilson, from Winkebury, Hampshire, pestered the women and then "put them in fear" by making vile comments about "raping them, hoping their children would die" and describing the women using offensive terms. He asked a young victim if she had a "high sex drive" and whether she "liked a lot of sex". When she rejected his advances, he used a racially offensive term to describe her. The victim was in court and was in tears as she gave evidence.

He also abused another woman when their "fling" came to an end, threatening to "stab her" and "rape her" which left her extremely frightened.

Mrs Hampshire said all the victims were members of the Plenty of Fish dating website and Wilson used different usernames to dish out "appalling abuse".

Judge Stephen Wildblood QC jailed Wilson and also made a Sexual Offences Prevention Order and Restraining Order for an unlimited period.

original article here

Online Dater Threatens to Rape Women

Cyberbully Nigel Wilson has been jailed for abusing women he met on a dating website.

A court heard Wilson identified vulnerable women, including several from the city and East Devon who cannot be named for legal reasons, who he then intimidated and abused over the internet and by phone.

Wilson had met and had brief flings with some of the five women and when they split up he poured "venom into their wounds" said a judge.

Wilson started a two-year jail term yesterday after he admitted one charge of harassment and four counts of sending grossly offensive, obscene, indecent or menacing messages.

Prosecutor Ann Hampshire submitted a report to Exeter Crown Court which said Wilson "desired to have sex with the women" and felt jealous and possessive towards them, and that turned to "nastiness".

David Evans, in mitigation, said: "He went on the website, Plenty of Fish, searching for love and a relationship but found the reality fell far short of the picture he allowed himself to paint in his mind."

Wilson, from Winkebury, Hampshire, pestered the women and then "put them in fear" by making vile comments about "raping them, hoping their children would die" and describing the women using offensive terms. He asked a young victim if she had a "high sex drive" and whether she "liked a lot of sex". When she rejected his advances, he used a racially offensive term to describe her. The victim was in court and was in tears as she gave evidence.

He also abused another woman when their "fling" came to an end, threatening to "stab her" and "rape her" which left her extremely frightened.

Mrs Hampshire said all the victims were members of the Plenty of Fish dating website and Wilson used different usernames to dish out "appalling abuse".

Judge Stephen Wildblood QC jailed Wilson and also made a Sexual Offences Prevention Order and Restraining Order for an unlimited period.

original article here

N.H. Sexual Predator Uses Online Dating to Find Victims

Information sought on Hampton, New Hampshire sex-assault suspect
(from 2008) Following a probable cause hearing involving sex assault suspect Thomas Currier on Wednesday, prosecutors involved in the case are urging anyone who may have had contact with the Hampton Falls resident to contact police as soon as possible.

Currier, 34, of 6 Marsh Lane, is currently being held without bail at the Rockingham County House of Corrections and has been charged with aggravated felonious sexual assault.

The charge alleges that Currier drugged a female dinner guest and then sexually assaulted her at his home Aug. 3.

At his Wednesday hearing held in Hampton District Court, Currier waived probable cause through his attorney, Olivier Sakellarios.

Sakellarios argued the issue of bail during the hearing, stating his client should have the right to post some type of cash bail and not be held without even the possibility of release.

Deputy County Attorney Tom Reid petitioned the court to maintain Currier's bail status during the hearing and told the court the alleged sex assault may not necessarily be an isolated incident.

Reid said that according to several women who have come forward since his arrest, Currier has displayed a course of conduct over the past several months that leads Reid to believe Currier is a danger to the community.

Currier is alleged to have met the women through various online dating services, such as Match.com and PlentyofFish.com, and allegedly made attempts to get women to meet him at his residence.

Reid also revealed Currier is currently being investigated on another outstanding charge of criminal threatening and theft.

According to the deputy county attorney, on Aug. 7, Currier is alleged to have invited another woman over to his house and after she refused to engage in some type of relations with him, he threatened to shoot her and then stole her purse and money that was inside of it.

All of the individuals that have come forward have reported Currier getting angry when they refused to meet him at his home alone, said Reid.

Another disturbing factor, Reid said, is that Currier's 11-year-old daughter was present during some of the encounters.

Reid said that if the court chose to amend bail, he would ask for it to be set at $500,000 cash.

"The community is in too much danger from him," said Reid.

Sakellarios argued Currier is an upstanding citizen and father and should be given the opportunity to work and provide for his children.

The Manchester attorney even presented a witness at the hearing and stated that she was familiar with Currier and he never made any sexual advances toward her when she spent the night at his house.

Since Currier was arrested, two other women contacted Foster's via e-mail with similar stories of having nearly met up with Currier at this home.

The women were directed to police, who later confirmed the woman relayed similar information to law enforcement.

During the hearing, Reid maintained that all of the women that have come forward so far have no relation to each other and no motive to bring forward such allegations.

Ried urged anyone who may have had contact with Currier online or in some other form to notify police.

Following the hearing, Judge Francis Frasier said he would take the bail arguments under advisement and make a ruling at a later date.

Original article

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Two men are in custody in New Hampshire on rape charges, in a case in which police say women were drugged, then raped after meeting the men through an online dating service.

After the arrest of 34-year-old Tom Currier of Hampton Falls this month, authorities said they heard from other women who reported online contacts with Currier. He is being held without bail on two rape charges.

Saturday, police announced another man, 32-year-old Shawn Hutchins, was arrested on two counts of rape and one of acting as an accomplice to Currier. Hutchins is being held on $500,000 bail.

Meanwhile, police want to hear from anyone who has had online contact with Currier or Hutchins. They say Currier met women on Match.com and Plentyoffish.com. They say he went by the name AWalkToRemember08 on Plentyoffish.com.

Second article

N.H. Sexual Predator Uses Online Dating to Find Victims

Information sought on Hampton, New Hampshire sex-assault suspect
(from 2008) Following a probable cause hearing involving sex assault suspect Thomas Currier on Wednesday, prosecutors involved in the case are urging anyone who may have had contact with the Hampton Falls resident to contact police as soon as possible.

Currier, 34, of 6 Marsh Lane, is currently being held without bail at the Rockingham County House of Corrections and has been charged with aggravated felonious sexual assault.

The charge alleges that Currier drugged a female dinner guest and then sexually assaulted her at his home Aug. 3.

At his Wednesday hearing held in Hampton District Court, Currier waived probable cause through his attorney, Olivier Sakellarios.

Sakellarios argued the issue of bail during the hearing, stating his client should have the right to post some type of cash bail and not be held without even the possibility of release.

Deputy County Attorney Tom Reid petitioned the court to maintain Currier's bail status during the hearing and told the court the alleged sex assault may not necessarily be an isolated incident.

Reid said that according to several women who have come forward since his arrest, Currier has displayed a course of conduct over the past several months that leads Reid to believe Currier is a danger to the community.

Currier is alleged to have met the women through various online dating services, such as Match.com and PlentyofFish.com, and allegedly made attempts to get women to meet him at his residence.

Reid also revealed Currier is currently being investigated on another outstanding charge of criminal threatening and theft.

According to the deputy county attorney, on Aug. 7, Currier is alleged to have invited another woman over to his house and after she refused to engage in some type of relations with him, he threatened to shoot her and then stole her purse and money that was inside of it.

All of the individuals that have come forward have reported Currier getting angry when they refused to meet him at his home alone, said Reid.

Another disturbing factor, Reid said, is that Currier's 11-year-old daughter was present during some of the encounters.

Reid said that if the court chose to amend bail, he would ask for it to be set at $500,000 cash.

"The community is in too much danger from him," said Reid.

Sakellarios argued Currier is an upstanding citizen and father and should be given the opportunity to work and provide for his children.

The Manchester attorney even presented a witness at the hearing and stated that she was familiar with Currier and he never made any sexual advances toward her when she spent the night at his house.

Since Currier was arrested, two other women contacted Foster's via e-mail with similar stories of having nearly met up with Currier at this home.

The women were directed to police, who later confirmed the woman relayed similar information to law enforcement.

During the hearing, Reid maintained that all of the women that have come forward so far have no relation to each other and no motive to bring forward such allegations.

Ried urged anyone who may have had contact with Currier online or in some other form to notify police.

Following the hearing, Judge Francis Frasier said he would take the bail arguments under advisement and make a ruling at a later date.

Original article

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Two men are in custody in New Hampshire on rape charges, in a case in which police say women were drugged, then raped after meeting the men through an online dating service.

After the arrest of 34-year-old Tom Currier of Hampton Falls this month, authorities said they heard from other women who reported online contacts with Currier. He is being held without bail on two rape charges.

Saturday, police announced another man, 32-year-old Shawn Hutchins, was arrested on two counts of rape and one of acting as an accomplice to Currier. Hutchins is being held on $500,000 bail.

Meanwhile, police want to hear from anyone who has had online contact with Currier or Hutchins. They say Currier met women on Match.com and Plentyoffish.com. They say he went by the name AWalkToRemember08 on Plentyoffish.com.

Second article

PlentyOfFish User to Do Jail Time for False Charges

How many times do we have to tell it? STAY AWAY FROM ONLINE DATING! (Christian, Single Parents, supposedly "safe") - its all BAD NEWS!! - Fighter)


Kellye Stephens, 22, laughed and joked with friends in the Barre District Courthouse Wednesday. She was there to learn when she may be going to trial for felony perjury-- accused of creating false evidence that sent an innocent man to prison.

We gave her a chance to tell her side of the story.

Reporter Brian Joyce: I interviewed Mr. Anderson this morning by phone from Illinois and I'm here to ask you why you did this to him for a story tonight on Channel 3?

Stephens turned away and did not tell us why she allegedly framed 22-year-old Rick Anderson a year ago, sending him to prison for three months.

By telephone Anderson told us he is still uncertain why she did it.

"When I asked my lawyer about that he said, he said irrational hatred. So I'm just gonna stick with that," Anderson said.

Anderson says he met Stephens through the online dating service PlentyofFish.com a year ago. He says they went out four times but it didn't click and he saw her for the last time in April. So he was shocked two days later when she went to Northfield Police and claimed he was stalking her and sending her death threats via the internet. Anderson was arrested, charged with making death threats and stalking, and packed off to the St. Johnsbury prison.

"It was literally living hell... No one knew where I was at so I couldn't get a change of clothes," he said. "Why am I here? I'm innocent. That's what I'm thinking the whole time. I never did anything wrong."

Anderson couldn't afford the $10,000 bail so he languished in prison for 92 days.

That's when police computer investigators finally figured out that Stephens had written the threatening e-mails on her own computer and framed Anderson.

"It's a small unit and their workload is such that it wasn't at the top of their list. They had other items to examine before they got to this one," Washington County Prosecutor Tom Kelly explained.

Anderson was freed immediately.

"I got down on my knees and I thanked God the good Lord above," Anderson said.

Stephens was charged with felony perjury and reporting a false crime. Prosecutors say they will seek a sentence of at least 92 days in prison for her -- equaling Anderson's prison time.

"What she did really hurt my feelings. Especially because all I ever was was nice to her," Anderson said. "That it hurt my feelings. That's all I'd like to say that's all I have to say to that woman."

Now, Anderson resides in Illinois with his grandmother and he is unemployed. He has retained a lawyer and may sue Stephens.

Northfield Police were unavailable for comment Wednesday, but legal experts tell us there is little likelihood of success suing the police because they simply did their job.

No trial date has been set for Stephens, but it appears it would come in May at the earliest.

SOURCE

PlentyOfFish User to Do Jail Time for False Charges

How many times do we have to tell it? STAY AWAY FROM ONLINE DATING! (Christian, Single Parents, supposedly "safe") - its all BAD NEWS!! - Fighter)


Kellye Stephens, 22, laughed and joked with friends in the Barre District Courthouse Wednesday. She was there to learn when she may be going to trial for felony perjury-- accused of creating false evidence that sent an innocent man to prison.

We gave her a chance to tell her side of the story.

Reporter Brian Joyce: I interviewed Mr. Anderson this morning by phone from Illinois and I'm here to ask you why you did this to him for a story tonight on Channel 3?

Stephens turned away and did not tell us why she allegedly framed 22-year-old Rick Anderson a year ago, sending him to prison for three months.

By telephone Anderson told us he is still uncertain why she did it.

"When I asked my lawyer about that he said, he said irrational hatred. So I'm just gonna stick with that," Anderson said.

Anderson says he met Stephens through the online dating service PlentyofFish.com a year ago. He says they went out four times but it didn't click and he saw her for the last time in April. So he was shocked two days later when she went to Northfield Police and claimed he was stalking her and sending her death threats via the internet. Anderson was arrested, charged with making death threats and stalking, and packed off to the St. Johnsbury prison.

"It was literally living hell... No one knew where I was at so I couldn't get a change of clothes," he said. "Why am I here? I'm innocent. That's what I'm thinking the whole time. I never did anything wrong."

Anderson couldn't afford the $10,000 bail so he languished in prison for 92 days.

That's when police computer investigators finally figured out that Stephens had written the threatening e-mails on her own computer and framed Anderson.

"It's a small unit and their workload is such that it wasn't at the top of their list. They had other items to examine before they got to this one," Washington County Prosecutor Tom Kelly explained.

Anderson was freed immediately.

"I got down on my knees and I thanked God the good Lord above," Anderson said.

Stephens was charged with felony perjury and reporting a false crime. Prosecutors say they will seek a sentence of at least 92 days in prison for her -- equaling Anderson's prison time.

"What she did really hurt my feelings. Especially because all I ever was was nice to her," Anderson said. "That it hurt my feelings. That's all I'd like to say that's all I have to say to that woman."

Now, Anderson resides in Illinois with his grandmother and he is unemployed. He has retained a lawyer and may sue Stephens.

Northfield Police were unavailable for comment Wednesday, but legal experts tell us there is little likelihood of success suing the police because they simply did their job.

No trial date has been set for Stephens, but it appears it would come in May at the earliest.

SOURCE