A love story started online turned into an expensive scam for a Romanian woman settled in Italy. Convinced for two years that she was in a serious relationship and that she was going to get married, the woman sent around 20,000 euros to an imaginary man. In reality, the “lover” was a woman from Turda, and the truth came out only after more than two years.
It all started between June 2021 and January 2023, when the Romanian woman was approached on Facebook by a man who introduced himself as “Marius”. The conversations quickly evolved into an alleged romantic relationship, and he allegedly promised her that they would get married and build a family together.
To support his false identity, “Marius” would have sent the woman photos, without her suspecting for a moment that she could be deceived.
Money sent under various pretexts
During the relationship, the man started asking her for sums of money, citing urgent and dramatic situations. Among the explanations offered were bank accounts blocked on arrival in Romania, serious medical problems, including leg operations, a suspected heart attack and cardiac interventions, as well as fictitious arrests or expensive treatments for severe illnesses.
Convinced that she was helping her future husband, the woman made dozens of bank transfers and payments through services such as Western Union or MoneyGram. The money went either directly to the defendant, or to her relatives and friends in Cluj county, according to TurdaNews.
20,000 euros lost in a made-up story
In total, the Romanian sent approximately 20,000 euros, believing that she was investing in the future of a real relationship. The truth only came out when the woman began to have suspicions about her “boyfriend”.
The situation escalated in April 2023 when, in a phone call, the alleged victim was threatened not to go to the police. “If I come and you get me in the throat at the police… I’ll break your head! I swear I’ll break your head!”would have said this to him, according to the audio evidence in the file.
Magistrates at Turda Court reviewed the legality of the indictment and evidence, including witness statements, bank statements and phone records, and ruled that the trial could begin.
Although she was informed about the accusations, the defendant reportedly refused to appear at the hearings.
