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An elderly gentleman from Lurgan, County Armagh, has been left emotionally devastated after losing £35,000 to a series of cryptocurrency scams that employed AI-generated social media advertisements. Eddie Rushe, aged 82, fell prey to three different fraudulent schemes over the course of 18 months. His son, Michael, describes the experience as a form of “grooming” carried out by what they believe to be an organized syndicate. Despite feeling ashamed about what happened, Eddie wants to raise public awareness about the sophisticated tactics scammers use.
Before these incidents, Mr. Rushe’s life mainly revolved around his family and greyhounds. With no prior knowledge of cryptocurrency and no computer access, everything changed after he encountered investment offers on his phone through social media ads. The advertisements featured well-known figures such as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, Piers Morgan, and financial expert Martin Lewis—though these images were AI-generated fakes designed to build trust. Martin Lewis has previously warned about the misuse of his image in fraudulent ads online, but Mr. Rushe was unaware of this deception when he decided to invest, motivated by a wish to leave a financial “nest egg” for his family. He explained, “When I leave this earth I want them to say he looked after us while he was here and he was looking after us when he was no longer here.”
The scam began after Eddie responded to the adverts and was contacted by a woman named Sophie, who acted as his “financial adviser.” Sophie called him daily, sometimes twice a day, and convinced him to close his existing bank account and open new ones, including one with an online bank. She also encouraged him to purchase a laptop for managing his cryptocurrency holdings. Over three months of persistent calls and guidance, Sophie directed Mr. Rushe to move £13,000 from his normal account into the online account, which then disappeared to the scammers. Following this final transaction, contact abruptly stopped, and the money was lost.
Tragically, the effects of the scam weighed heavily on Mr. Rushe’s health. Three months after the initial loss, he suffered a stroke following a fall. Michael believes the stress of the fraud contributed to this medical emergency. Although Eddie felt relief after finally admitting to his family what had happened, he confessed, “I wasn’t proud.” The following year brought further misfortune as his father was targeted by scammers two more times. Michael suspects different scam teams obtained his father’s details from the first incident. These newer fraudsters tried to reassure Mr. Rushe by acknowledging his previous experience and claiming legitimacy. Despite efforts to recover funds through the Financial Ombudsman Service, Michael has noticed a marked decline in his father’s mental and physical health. The family feels that banks and financial institutions could have done more to protect Eddie and others vulnerable to such schemes. Even now, the scammers continue their attempts, calling Eddie nearly every day, but he has learned not to answer.
Jim Browning, a well-known scam investigator who tracks and exposes fraudsters online, emphasized how anyone can fall victim to these scams due to the scammers’ mastery of social engineering. “They are incredibly good at convincing people that they’re legitimate,” he told BBC News NI. Highlighting the professionalism behind such fraud, Browning explained that these criminal networks often create fake companies that appear extremely credible—sometimes even going so far as to sponsor major sports teams—and secure necessary accreditations to maintain the illusion. He also noted that individuals who have been scammed previously are often targeted again, as their personal information is traded across borders among these networks. “Scammers prefer people who have been scammed before because they are unfortunately more likely to be scammed again,” Browning added
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