SOAS law student loses £4,500 in crypto trading scam
Sam Kerr believed her money was being traded on Forex
Sam Kerr, a 20-year-old law student at the School of Oriental and African Studies lost £4,500 in an elaborate cryptocurrency trading scam. The amount included £1,000 from her student loan, a £2,000 loan from a relative and £1,500 from her own savings which she had been collecting since the age of 11.
Sam sought out an online website to invest her money to help out her mother who was struggling with bills. She believed that the £4,500 she invested had grown to $60,000 in eight weeks.
She said: “When I signed up on the website a woman contacted me and connected me with this man…he showed me a profile that belongs to a guy from a big international financial law firm, so I trusted him- basically he hid behind their name and reputation”.
Sam made her first payment of £4,500 in July and faced issues when she went to withdraw money on 19th September. She was told that she’d have to credit more money to do so. The fake trader instructed her to open additional accounts and move her money before she could access it. The individual stopped responding and eventually blocked her when she asked why she had to do so.
The loss has left Sam both mentally and financially troubled: “It was everything I had-my only hope,” she explained.
The scam was elaborately constructed so the student believed she was taking part in a “short term investment” and all she had to do was invest money after which a team of traders would handle the trading.
She communicated with the scammers mainly through WhatsApp and was blocked as soon as she figured out she had been scammed.
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Sam believed her money was being traded on Forex, the largest global trading market, and tried to make her first withdrawal when she was led to believe she had earned $60,000. However, it was all a ruse.
Talking about the experience she said: “All I wanted to do was make some money, and I’ve been completed ripped off… When he realised I worked out it was a scam, he closed the account.
“I just had to leave it. I feel so cheated”.
Sam Kerr is one of numerous victims in a recent wave of scams that specifically targeted university students. After realising she was scammed, she went on to contact the financial ombudsman and Action Fraud for assistance but was told that there was nothing anyone could do.
Featured image via SWNS
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