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Several years after losing her longtime partner to Covid, Julie Osgood, a 60-year-old from Middleton, decided to explore the world of modern dating. Having been with Tony Donohue from the age of 17 until his passing in November 2020, Julie regarded signing up for a dating app as a significant and daunting step. However, her initial experience was disheartening — the first four men she connected with turned out to be scammers, leading her to feel resigned to remaining single.
Julie shared that although she recognized each fraud attempt before losing any money, the emotional toll was significant. Reflecting on her experience, she stated, “I’ll never, ever go on a dating website again. I just don’t know where you’re meant to meet genuine people.” Determined to prevent others from falling victim to similar scams and hoping to encourage dating platforms to take stronger measures, Julie spoke out about her ordeal.
Research from the previous year showed a worrying rise in romance fraud cases, with reported losses to Action Fraud exceeding £92 million in 2024, up from £82 million the year before. Julie recounted that the scammers she encountered had a “similar playbook,” often presenting themselves as widowed or divorced men with teenage daughters living with their mothers. Her experience showed consistent patterns: the scammers would build rapport over a couple of weeks, share stories about business trips, and eventually ask for financial help.
After initially giving up on online dating, Julie decided to try again following a recent house move and her children leaving home. She joined an app aimed at over-50s called Ourtime and matched with a man named Franck, who portrayed himself as a French architect living in the UK. Despite appearing genuine and agreeing to meet for a drink, he soon claimed he had to leave for France abruptly. Julie played along and discovered that Franck was weaving a story about legal troubles involving his late father’s estate and frozen bank accounts, a classic scam tactic. Although she arranged to meet him with £20,000 in cash as a test, she never boarded the flight, suspecting it could be dangerous. When confronted, Franck accused her of dishonesty and demanded her location details. Julie reported the incident to the police and the dating app.
Julie’s account highlights the emotional and financial risks entwined with online dating scams, particularly for older people looking for companionship after loss. A spokesperson from Ourtime emphasized that member safety is a top priority and indicated their willingness to assist authorities in investigations. Despite this, the repeated negative experiences have left Julie feeling disillusioned. She concluded, “I’ve given up now, I’m just going to stay alone,” expressing the difficulty of moving forward while remaining hopeful yet uncertain about where genuine connections can be found
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