‘We Were Victims of Britain’s Most Prolific Romance Scammer’ | This Morning

Research shows that this is the busiest sign-up time of the year for dating apps, but if you’re looking for love, it’s important to stay vigilant. Last year in the UK, a staggering £92m was lost to romance scams - with an average loss of £11,500 per victim. We’re joined today by two women who know the pain and financial turmoil romance fraud can bring. Lise and Sharon both separately fell for Britain’s most prolific romance scammer David Checkley - who spent years defrauding at least ten women of around £100,000. United by heartbreak and betrayal, they join us today to tell us how they fell for his lies and share a warning they wished they’d heard before.
Broadcast on 08/01/2024
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[@Doors-and-Crosscheck]

I must be the most paranoid person in the world coz 2 weeks into dating if a man asked me for money I’d LAUGH in his face and kick him out lol

[@Lynthari]

You'd be living with them before you knew them for longer than two weeks? Seriously that's what what you said looks like.

[@1fan689]

Lol Covid made people lonely ​@@Lynthari

[@Greg-fl4cb]

Lending serious money after only 3 weeks of knowing someone.....Behave!

[@lisagray1326]

Scammers made £92m last year alone! I am flabbergasted that women fall for these losers time and time again. If a man asks for money 2 weeks after meeting you, it's a red flag! It doesn't even sound like he was a considerate partner. At least this one got caught. Sarly, there are still thousands more out there. If people didn't give money to them, they would have to work for a living and pay tax!.

[@MM-qp4pd]

Reminds me of the bad surgeon on Netflix. Real life doctor who conned nbc producer and used humans as lab rats. So scary. And he's still out of prison.

[@samuelcraig]

This is what I'll never understand. Perhaps love really is blind but there have been thousands of stories like this, you think people will learn from other's experiences

[@MM-qp4pd]

​@@samuelcraigscammers choose good people who assume most people are good like them.

[@samuelcraig]

@@MM-qp4pd true, they prey on their good nature and vulnerabilities

[@fionagregory9147]

I have been asked to speak to someone on Facebook who said he liked my profile but I put nothing on my profile. I did not contact him.

[@gabrielletanner5339]

I'm seventy and have been approached by three men (not interested) after my husband passed a year ago.. on Facebook campaigning for animals and approached by 58 single men from all over the world, like many on Facebook, no details of our lives printed. It's all psychological they are very clever...NEVER GIVE DETAILS OF YOUR LIFE, NEVER NEVER GIVE MONEY, IN FACT DONT USE DATING SIGHTS.

[@fionagregory9147]

Dating sites.

[@elipotter369]

​@@fionagregory9147I've got my sights on dating sites, like lol.

[@Francis-xl2gu]

Get rid of Facebook, the end

[@SUSYQ509]

Too right.

[@francesgillotti1378]

Sites 😂

[@Krookavan]

She said he was handsome? 😂

[@lizroberts1569]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. My two husbands have been younger and in my view better looking than me, but I’ve aged really well and have a great figure! But I’d be into a scamming charmer in a second.

[@Omar-kl3xp]

They are not young ,what’s handsome for older people is different from what is considered handsome for young people .

[@ELEKTRARE]

They look the perfect targets for scammers & look so desperate literally 😱😱

[@kindnessalwayswins]

That's not a very kind thing to say. Scammers like this are extremely skilled at what they do. Love, or the promise of love can make people do desperate things. But it doesn't make them desperate people. They are just women, in hope for love and closeness and they made some bad decisions.

[@Barbara-yj5tl]

@@kindnessalwayswinsI can’t feel sorry for these women. They’re deluded. There has been no end of publicity about scammers targeting desperately lonely women. Nobody in their right mind should tell a stranger, man or woman, about themselves.

[@gillianredfearn8367]

@@kindnessalwayswins no they are not skilled at what they do. I have been approached by a few and have no idea how they convince anyone. One told me I had won the post code lottery and he had seen my name on a list. I don't do it but played along and suggested it might not be me so what was the winner's poist code. Apparently it wasn't printed.

[@ester-cs2uo]

Handsome ? Really? Where?

[@melinmove]

How can they say they were in love? After 2 weeks you're giving him money, and after however long he is controlling who you see and where you go, but you're in love? 😂😂😂

[@usernameheda]

infatuation

[@melinmove]

@@usernameheda Yes of course

[@aurora6920]

He is probably very good at manipulation and praying on vulnerable women. One of the women said they were feeling depressed. The feeling of "Love" can be different for everyone, they may just mean infatuation, but it's easy to feel strong feelings when you first date someone who seems amazing. He seems to be very good at gaining trust, it's hard to understand unless you've been through it. Same with any abusive relationship.

[@melinmove]

@@aurora6920 Yes I'm well aware of this actually, but she said it after the fact. It's the fact that she doesn't even realise now that she wasn't in love, and that her feelings were inflation and limerence that scares me. After all that has happened how can you say you actually loved him, it's like they have no intelligence to self reflect on what the situation actually was.

[@aurora6920]

@@melinmove because maybe she did love him? that's why they said they loved him? love can happen quickly in relationships too, because love/relationships are different for everyone

[@melanie1784]

Hes a narcissist. When you first encounter one you are taken in by the love bombing as its such an exciting and addictive feeling. Then you fall fast and think because theyve told you intimate details of their lives you know them. Then the devaluation starts and when they are back to their other self its wonderful. They make you feel like your going crazy and you're the problem. You never get closur or anything that makes sense from them.

[@talbino7821]

From my experience dealing with scammers and watching how they work online... the public need to get smarter. It's not about watching out for dodgy people - it's about how they work. The no. 1 thing theyre looking for is your complete faith and trust in them, no questions asked. They will be prepared to break you down in order to make this happen. Once you agree to that, they have you easily in their hands. You've got to be strong, confident and careful around strangers - and always tell someone or let them know if you're being abused in any way. But in our world today, where everyone keeps their information hidden away instead of sharing, its no wonder more of these kinds of problems keep happening. It's not just about being aware - but about being open with others.

[@lindanoble7047]

He's not that handsome, and there are red flags all over this.... They're both intelligent women but this was really obvious

[@samuelcraig]

Right?! I'll never forget that lady who was on the BBC about 3 years ago. She was an ex-policewoman and she was also conned. You wonder how can an intelligent person not see these things.

[@Omar-kl3xp]

@@samuelcraigthere was on the news I believe in the US where a woman lost over $1 million on romance scam ,it is pretty insane how much people are willing to give to strangers

[@angelwings3128]

Best not to trust anyone these days. Far too many con artists out there, and it’s only getting worse. Better to stay on your own, than deal with deceitful people. Unfortunately this approach can impact finding the right person, however, it’s better to remain vigilant & not expose yourself to risk. Avoid dating sites too.

[@user-hi2pz6lj6s]

These poor woman were abused psychologically.. Victims of a a narcissist!! Unfortunately the apple does not fall far from the tree!! his som Shane Checkley a famous London DJ is doing the same thing with a number of young women .. the police do nothing about it.

[@frollockinthemeadow]

They are thick.

[@MM-qp4pd]

Reminds me of the bad surgeon on Netflix. Real life doctor who conned nbc producer and used humans as lab rats. So scary. And he's still out of prison.

[@idoman9119]

Or the tinder swindler

[@hannahhughes4801]

Narcissists are very convincing

[@bobjames6622]

Only if you're a total mug.

[@sundayjames-kq4yu]

I LOVE the fact that the victims were able to leave that message to the assistance team. They were ables to tell that guy, they are no longer victims! you are such an awesome force *VortexTrace* be reckoned and that is why I watch you!! Keep up the good work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@CatsJP]

Trying to find love is not worse this heartache…..I can never get my head around how people do not adhere to the warnings about online dating, dating apps, socials or whatever…whatever happened to using your gut instinct and intuition…surely people realise a person who is full of BS and trying to put on the charm are trying to dupe them….charmers have only one reason for putting on the charm and that is to get their own way….have these women not heard of coercive control…that’s what control freaks do…

[@MM-qp4pd]

Reminds me of the bad surgeon on Netflix. Real life doctor who conned nbc producer and used humans as lab rats. So scary. And he's still out of prison.

[@puclopuclik4108]

there are genuine people who are looking for a partner online. I know many married couples who met via dating apps. Let's be honest, those scamers are good manipulators. what we should learn from this story is, NEVER borrow money to anyone. Doesn't matter if it's family or partner or a friend, never lent money.

[@gillianredfearn8367]

@@puclopuclik4108 it is 'never lend money to' not 'borrow money to' and 'never lend money' not 'never lent money'

[@julielawlor5482]

Come on its been out there for years about these men and yet women still dont learn

[@aurora6920]

Don't judge victims of abuse, criminals always find new tactics to trick older people into giving them money and make them feel loved.

[@gillianredfearn8367]

@@aurora6920 I would judge the if they went out and left their purse next to an open window so why not?

[@aurora6920]

@@gillianredfearn8367 because that's not the same as abusive manipulation in relationships

[@gillianredfearn8367]

@@aurora6920 we were talking about blaming the victim. Sadly this is not a good world and we have to be responsible for our own safety.

[@catlady6938]

This is exactly how narcissists work.

[@Challenger2A7]

A lethal combination of vanity and gullibility with money burning a hole in their pockets.

[@jhem2616]

The one character trait these news segments always leave out is that of DESPERATION. Most of us, if not all of us need companionship and if one finds themselves lonely in one way or another, this leaves the door wide open for love scammers. Why describe these women as ‘smart’ and ‘intelligent’ when clearly both women lacked a sense of emotional intelligence, common sense and self-esteem which lead them to bee conned out of thousands? Too much focus on the ‘red flags’ to look out for but not enough focus on the work one must do on themselves to avoid getting caught out be these scammers!

[@Challenger2A7]

Agree. I get tired of hearing how smart and intelligent these people are. No, no they are not. Why is it so difficult to remember one thing? That is, do not send money to anyone. Personally I think they have a fatal combination of vanity and dopeyness, add desperation to that and you have a recipe for disaster.

[@jhem2616]

Right! There are far more sophisticated scams out there right now such as ‘Smishing’ which most people still haven’t heard of….

[@sundayjames-kq4yu]

Well done, *VortexTrace* - I’m grateful that you are actively combatting these individuals of low moral character. It is crucial that we take every possible action to protect the elderly and the general public from these detestable scammers! Congratulations to you!! You deserve the highest recognition for ensuring our safety, my friend.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@liliacastellanos921]

On universal credit and has savings?🤔

[@fionagregory9147]

That could be true for some people.

[@Cheeky-FE-Kerry]

You’ll be sanctioned if you manage to save too much :)

[@liscatcat8756]

Apparently you can have under £16 .000 that's why so are on benefits its such easy money

[@joannedibben2352]

You can have savings on universal credit you don't need to be broke and destitute to get benefit

[@phina8392]

Oh these ones walk, thought was the internet ones 😂

[@Twin_peaks93]

I have heard nothing good about POF, stay off it likes. I am always wary of someone that wants to know feckin everything about you right away, take your time to get to know someone peeps!! And nobody can love you in a matter of weeks.

[@fionagregory9147]

It's dating sites not sights by the way.

[@donnabuttery9316]

😂

[@zeenazeena2428]

Looool

[@streaming5332]

These women are unfortunately not manbait. So why would unknown men be interested in them...

[@URFUTUREUK]

Theres insurance for this now its such a prevalent crime and yet women still fall for it.

[@Lynthari]

The problem with showing his picture is that by the time he does get out most people will have forgotten either what he did, what he looks like or a combination of both. Unless you're going to run the show again closer to the time he will be getting out.

[@agyvonne]

The commentator said they’re both smart, bright women. Really?? The first one tells her whole life story to the scammer within a hour or so. Is that smart? Who does that?

[@janetbrown6409]

I wouldnt say handsome and im just ordinary

[@Charlotte66666]

Watch out for narcissists.

[@gailpool4042]

These two are totally naive.

[@agyvonne]

I have no sympathy. They willingly give their $$$$$$ away ….

[@bp900]

If someone asks you for money and you give it to them after barely knowing them, you scammed or rather tricked yourself.

[@vansf3433]

All of such sorts of scams are material values - motivated, which means what scammers look for is money or material values, but not anything else Here is the most effective way for ladies to detect fake appearances : If a guy cares about what you have, then the guy is a scammer, or at least no a good one for you because if he actually loves you, he would not care about what you have, focusing only on your own true person, nothing else

[@janetbrown6409]

When they brag what they have..thats what they did...it enciurages all scroates to jump on. Best to make out they got nothing at the beginning x

[@raya74]

And people shame women who are gold diggers but at least they dont get scammed they do the scamming😂

[@lisamothersole4484]

Which we could get alot of romance in jail but not affence but everyone that has text me was from nigira

[@gailpool4042]

Why agree to appear on tv, you two, and make such a fool of yourselves?

[@franziskani]

To be fair, a bit self awareness could have helped the lady to the left, she looks like a grandma not offense, and he looked much younger (and then men in his age range typically go for women that look 10 - 20 years younger than them, not 20 years older). Of course this "charming" man was a scammer. I'll give a pass to the second woman, she is a bit overweight, but has a nice face and hair. At least she was not delusional for assuming he could have genuine interst in her. And why would a biz owner tell a stranger everything about themselves within an hour. She is lucky that he only was targeted for a non-violent crime.

[@kindnessalwayswins]

Can we stop commenting on women's looks and bodies, please? These are simply two women who were looking for love and closeness which is a situation where you need to be brave enough to show vulnerability. This is hard for any person to do. They made some bad decisions for sure, but I love that they both know that they are worthy of love and went for it. Self awareness isn't about your looks, it's about how you feel inside.

[@user-kz4ke8mg4r]

​@@kindnessalwayswinsI think he was just being realistic that these women were easy prey.

[@usernameheda]

he's no exactly a looker himself though is he 🤣

[@frollockinthemeadow]

Sorry but these women are 2 sandwiches short of a picnic. Lending someone large sums of money after 2 weeks of dating? Insane. Unless you have a mental aliment which makes you largely gullible and vulnerable, there is just no excuse for such silly behaviour.

[@lizroberts1569]

As they say there’s no fool like an old fool. Any man who asks for money is trouble! Handsome hhhmm a charmer got to be. Plenty of fish is for people looking to hook up for goodness sake. He wasn’t old enough to be in the Vietnam war 😂😂

[@gillianredfearn8367]

That is why a lot of women, especially in the US, get tricked because they lack basic comon sense. On one show the scammer couldn't leave London because of the earthquakes and another couldn't leave Iran because of enemy attacks and sent her a photo of a house that had been in a gas explosion in the North of England. Lush green grass and all. A third was on an oil rig in Rome and one told me he was French living in Cardiff but had never been to Wales.

[@donna25871]

It’s not a relationship if it doesn’t happen in person.

[@sarahrean7174]

But he was in her shop

[@user-ix8xo2lx2j]

It did happen in person.

[@Bebedollie]

Lol

[@donnabaardsen5372]

Sorry, red flags all over the place. First, a genuine, very charming, attractive man only dates very savvy, very attractive women. These two are 100 percent not that, and therefore are very naive and easy targets for any conman. He could see these two women would be easy prey because of this. Beautiful, intelligent, experienced women would have been onto him immediately. Further, they say that he knew everything about them within an extremely short period of time; again, something very attractive, experienced women would also have red flagged immediately. In virtually all such stories I've seen or read about such women, they share these traits. Unattractive, inexperienced, and send signals of being desperate for a man/relationship. Listen, I'm a very attractive, intelligent woman of 68. Even so, if any man approached me as this man did these women, he would've been told to get lost. Someone needs to tell such women the truth about themselves, and about being easy targets for conmen.

[@notaclue822]

He's not much to look at.

[@notaclue822]

You know these two are ordinary women who were cruelly conned. The blame belongs on the perpetrator. Not only that, but I think you've got it wrong, and that successful, attractive women do get conned. There's nothing to suggest these two here were desperate about finding a man. Psychos and con artists can be very persuasive.

[@purepeter4737]

You are also extremely humble Donna ❤

[@donnabaardsen5372]

​@@notaclue822 No, sorry. I absolutely disagree. As said, every can n story I've seen, the women are like these two.

[@donnabaardsen5372]

​@@purepeter4737 No. I'm humble when called for, but not when it comes to making a point. That being, again, that very attractive, experienced adult women are virtually impossible to con.

[@MandyAustin-nl4cn]

Has Josie had a facelift?

[@sarahrean7174]

This is really important?

[@MandyAustin-nl4cn]

@sarahrean7174 it's noticeable that she has changed, her skin is much taughter. Do facts frighten you?

[@Bebedollie]

Lol I notice stuff like that too. I love skincare so I always notice people's skin 😂

[@NieceyWeesey]

Probably neck lift accompanied with weight loss and Botox but she looks great

[@MandyAustin-nl4cn]

@@NieceyWeesey I agree. She's always looked great.

[@bobjames6622]

Plenty Of Fish ...hmmm, more like Any Old Trout

[@ctt7971]

The blonde lady in the thumbnail looks a lot like Travis Kelsey’s mom

[@maryduffy2036]

Smart ? Clearly not.

[@irma567]

🤣🤣🤣

[@mahogany2705]

Black man is handsome 😂😂😂😂😂

[@bedofroses5933]

Desperate people

[@aurora6920]

The criminal was desperate, how sad he could just get a job

[@sundayjames-kq4yu]

I LOVE the fact that the victims were able to leave that message to the assistance team. They were ables to tell that guy, they are no longer victims! you are such an awesome force *VortexTrace* be reckoned and that is why I watch you!! Keep up the good work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!