Five men conned by "friend" on Facebook

[lauhumku]

Five men conned by "friend" on Facebook
By Hoe Yeen Nie and Zhao Quanyin | Posted: 12 August 2010 2127 hrs
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SINGAPORE: Social networking sites have increasingly become a prowling ground for cheats.

At least five men in Singapore found out the hard way, after they were conned of over S$1,500 in total.

The men were approached through Facebook by a "Nicole Tay", who appealed to them for help with her rent.

"Nicole" disappeared after getting the money.

When the victims went to where "Nicole" lived, they were told by the flat owner that the girl never existed.

The victims are in their 20s, and a few have made police reports.

When contacted, three of them said they agreed to lend "Nicole" money as they had never encountered an online cheat before.

One of them said: "At first, she didn't mention money. We talked normally as friends. One day, she said her landlord was going to kick her out. She also said she was from Hong Kong and somehow that made it more believable. So I gave her S$50".

- CNA/wk