Scammer posing as Ritchie Blackmore cons 81-year-old terminally ill woman out of £140,000
A terminally ill woman has been scammed out of £140,000 by someone posing as guitarist and Deep Purple founder, Ritchie Blackmore.
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81-year-old Valerie Horwood, who lives in Hampshire, UK, went to school with Blackmore, according to reports. The scammer reached out to her via Facebook, and went on to communicate with her through messaging apps. She was talked into buying hundreds of Apple gift cards for the scammer, and was convinced that their conversations needed to be kept secret due to his ‘fame’. She has recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer.
Horwood’s daughter, Debbie – who is her full-time carer – says her mother was lulled into a “false sense of security by the scammer, thinking she had this really good friend who was a famous person” (as shared via the Daily Mail).
“She really did not believe us when we told her that it was a scam. Her world just completely fell apart. She couldn’t comprehend what had happened,” explains Debbie, who found out what had happened when Valerie asked a family friend to borrow £2,000 to pay her bills, as her account was empty.
Horwood had mostly been in touch with the scammer through an app called Signal. They went on to send her threatening messages via WhatsApp after she deleted it. At this point, she sadly tried to take her own life.
“We all went into shock,” explains Debbie. “My mum is not a stupid old lady. She is very streetwise and very switched on. She was probably quite lonely. She was enjoying the chats that they were having.”
She later adds, “We are fighting for justice for my mum and to recoup her money so that she can decide what she wants to do with it in her time left. My mum may need to go to a nursing home soon, and that’s what she could be using her money for. Not for some scammers to go and buy a Rolex watch or a smart car.”
Horwood has since moved in with her daughter, and a former colleague is now raising money to help her get back the money she has lost. You can donate via JustGiving.
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Source: www.guitar-bass.net
