Another Scam Victim's Story

I received a contact form submission from someone who had read the "A Scam Victim's Story" page but unfortunately not before they themselves had been scammed in a very similar scam.

Note: In the following emails the victim has been given the name Matias Alberto Vera Jara. This name together with the address, telephone number and email address associated with it are fictitious and used to protect the person's privacy.

Read the emails and my responses and see how the scam progressed.

Contact Form submission received:

I replied...

Date: 23/12/2025, 10:51

From: [Name and Email address redacted]

To: maverajara261@gmail.com

Subject: Re: New Response for "Potential Communications website - Contact Form"

Hi Matias Vera,

Thank you for contacting me and I am sorry to hear that you have been scammed. It is only by people such as me publicising such scams that scammers can be frustrated and potential scam victims warned.

I would be pleased to hear more about the scam and particularly how someone claiming to be Japanese American could succeed in scamming a Chilean person wheras I could undertstand the cultural connection with a Japanese citizen.

Please share whatever information you are comfortable sharing. I am interested in names, what they said, email addresses and links to any websites especially fake bank websites. As with the Japanese person I will create a fictitious identity to protect your identity and privacy in the published webpage.

It took me some time to convince the Japanese person that he had been scammed. A scam victim needs to recognise that they have been scammed so that they refuse to send any further money to meet other "emergencies" or "fees". It is small comfort to you or me that you realise you have been scammed.

There is probably no way that you will get back any money you have sent the scammers but the authorities need to be aware of what is going on.

See attached screenshot of information specific to Chilean citizens...

Regards
[Name redacted]

There followed a detailed email from the scam victim...

Date: 30/12/2025, 13:45

From: maverajara261@gmail.com

To: [Name and Email address redacted]

Subject: Re: New Response for "Potential Communications website - Contact Form"

Good evening, [Name redacted]

First of all, thank you very much for being interested in cases like mine or the retired Japanese man, it is important to let others know how scam can ruin you psychologically and economically. Were it not that I found your page and the previous scam story, I wouldn't have realised I was being scammed. I guess it's a beginning.

Well, to the question that you and your readers might ask is how a Chilean guy could have been deceived by a supposed Japanese-American woman is that I could be considered a weeb or otaku. I don't usually open messages from unknown accounts in social networks because of social anxiety but I was passing through a recent separation and therefore, was very vulnerable. I added that account named "ichika4yoshida" on Instagram and checked a message from "her" and decided to answer and then we started to talk until she asked for my Whatsapp (I will call it after a woman in order to avoid using so much quotation marks). From March 2025 we commenced chatting through Whatsapp, with some picture exchange (first mistake, I should have asked for a video call) and then she told me the same story: she was travelling to New York to embark USNS Comfort as an orthopedic surgeon and that's why she would have very poor internet connection (isn't it supposed that military ships are connected via satellite?). There was nothing wrong or suspicious at that point for me.

Days later, she said that missed her daughter (Tamika) so much and wanted me to check on her as she previously told her about me, so I wrote a message to the "girl" and she used to reply. But a few days later, the nightmare began. In April I received a Message from Tamika's email stating she was Mrs Michelle Hancock, her teacher at Del Mar Pines School in San Diego, California and the girl suffered a terrible bicycle accident being hospitalised at Palomar Health Centre in Poway. She was telling me that she couldn't reach Ichika so she wanted me to report so-called Ichika. I can't check emails now thoroughly but then I was contacted by both Dr Philip Balikian and Palomar Health Centre describing Tamika's situation and a receipt with the costs.

There I got my first suspicion. Email addresses belong to the Russian based bk.ru servers, so I suspect this mafia could probably be Russian (Why would American institutions have their email servers based on a supposedly enemy country?). I commented this to Ichika and she told me that it would not matter, her daughter's recovery was more important, so she provided me with her credentials to access the Coutts Banks Account and made the first transfer which was successful (agreeing the fact that we know it is a fake page).

The scam began the second time I was required to access the account and pay for the craniotomy surgery for about US$36,000. Ichika's supposed account was blocked so here appeared "Manager Frederick Spencer" and "Attorney Daniel Albert"; first, Ichika told me to write to Spencer to clear up the restriction and this one created an account for me to manage the funds, but when I tried to transfer, I asked Spencer and he told me that I have to pay taxes I don't remember well for an amount of 10,000 dollars. That's too much money for an average Chilean worker who earns less than 900 dollars monthly. Then began my correspondence with Attorney Daniel Albert who said these payments were compulsory and I could pay them in installments. This was the no return point, I began paying by the use of some savings I was lent (that person now wants to kill me for the misuse of the money) and asking for loans I can't pay back now. Who did I pay? It appears that the Attorney had a "Chilean-based merchant account" to make local transfers in the name of Verónica Agurto Marcano, who is a resident citizen and I got her certificate of birth (there's someone I can sue at the public prosecutor's office-Fiscalía de Chile as a beginning point for an international investigation). I first paid in total 8,000 because Daniel Albert offered to "cover" the remaining 2,000 dollars. In the meantime, the scammers would not provide further information about "Tamika" whenever I wrote an email by Ichika's request asking for her status.

When I thought that everything will be settled as I told Frederick Spencer that tax restrictions were okay, in order to pay Tamika's bills and get the money I asked back, Spencer derived me back to Daniel Albert because of currency restrictions in the US, so I was required to pay for a ACAMS certificate and a permission of the department of treasury. In total, another 2,000 I had to get from loans. Then, another payment for about 3,000 dollars for a tax investment dividend at SEGRO Plc. Always paid to the same person here in Chile who constantly changed accounts but I can assure that it is the same woman because in Chile everyone has a RUT number (Unique Identification Roll), necessary to access bank accounts.

As I could finally be released from all these unexpected charges, delighted by promises of economic distress and Ichika being so sweet and loving with me, Spencer indicated me that I had to pay a maintenance cost of US$800 for the new account (the "bank" had already changed its name to Gray Peak) and US$550 dollars for the issuance and delivery of an ATM card as an instrument to access to withdrawals and transfers. It took me about 7 months to pay all the requirements and the appearance of new requirements made me fed up. I even got debt from illegal moneylenders. As I got the last loan to pay ATM card issuance and dispatch, my suspicions arose: the last payment I had to make was for Renata Maria Palys via Western Union. That "woman" had the same name of the person who supposedly received payments for Palomar Health Centre, but she was based in Newington, Connecticut.

Before the arrival of the ATM card, I received an email from "Doctor Philip" stating that the surgery was successful and the girl required vitamin supplements for a full recovery for about US$380 dollars. It happened this December. As I told Ichika about this, she told me that I had to get another loan in the meantime the card arrived. I decided to wait for the card because it arrived sooner than expected and my surprise was that it was a fake cards, the ones you can make in China as playing cards.

Then I realized I was scammed and googling I found your page and the Japanese mate's testimony. Now I deeply regret answering the messages and getting involved in a fake relationship because I didn't just lose money, but the peace of mind, the trust of the mother of my son and dignity. I can't see the light at the end of the tunnel because I'm broke and had to quit my job for mental health. God only is holding me strong.

I hope this message can be understandable and sorry for the delay and lack of some details, perhaps, if you want, I can share with you the mails for more information. I cut off all contact with Ichika and related characters. I blocked her on Whatsapp and all email holders who have been scamming me. Ichika wrote me an email and blocked her too. I even received a Whatsapp message from supposedly Frederick Spencer after Christmas but I didn't reply. I will send all this background information to Fiscalía because there's someone in Chile involved and I want her in prison, maybe this criminal band can be dissolved from my sue.

Thank you very much for your help and time.

Notes:

A well practiced scam was run on Matias, extracting a series of payments and transfers to pay fees associated with a fictitious accident. I have to stress to readers carefully consider approaches from people you don't know before engaing with them and do not send them money under any circumstances.

I replied...

Date: 31/12/2025, 11:09

From: [Name and Email address redacted]

To: maverajara261@gmail.com

Subject: Re: New Response for "Potential Communications website - Contact Form"

Hi Matias Vera,

Thank you for your detailed account of the scam exacted on you. I can see the similarity with the scam on the Japanese citizen.

I cannot say for certain that it is the same scammers in both cases as I am sure the scripts for these scams are available for scammers to purchase probably on the dark web. The only thing that are certainties are the email addresses given to you for you to communicate with them and bank account details whereby you are required to pay the particular expenses and fees. The rest... names, stories places and events are all made up.

I can see how the amount scammed out of you has mounted up each payment being an amount that seemed reasonable but when added together became a significant drain on your income and savings which were intended for your living expenses. You also tell me that you are in debt to money lenders who have threatened you if you don't make repayments.

It is a sorry state.

I will say that you have taken the correct steps now you have discovered that you have been scammed by ceasing email and whatsapp communications and possibly telephone calls with the scammers. It is worth considering closing your existing email account and opening a new email account.

You will feel better if you take the case to your country's law enforcement but I think the chance of getting your money back are remote.

I would like to document the scam by publicising the names and email addresses used by the scammers, the fake bank website addresses, bank account details and any photographs, "legal documents" and "identity documents" they may have sent to you. Please can you send me those details and "documents" as email attachments.

If you have sent photographs of yourself to the scammers then those photographs may be used by scammers to support scams where they contact a female. Similarly if you have sent a copy of your identity card or passport to the scammers then those documents may be used by the scammers or others to use your identity to scam financial institutions and get loans (which they will never pay back in your name).

I do hope that you have not sent copies of your identity documents to the scammers.

You mention receiving emails from supposedly a US health facility which was making use of bk.ru email addresses/mail servers. That is very much a red flag which you spotted. Unless someone communicating with you is claiming to be Russian it would be unusual to receive an email from someone using a Russian email provider. [ portion of text redacted ].

You also mention the bank accounts (fake bank accounts) you were supposed to use to make payments... these would be "blocked" as there was no way payments could be made from these accounts as they were fake and any money said to be in the accounts did not exist. The Coutts Bank (the genuine bank) is a bank for high wealth individuals who have funds or income of several million US Dollars. The Cortts Bank (the fake bank) a similar named bank is to trick you.

Regards
[Name redacted]

Attached:

Michael Fowler

Potential Communications

Promoting the Christian message over the internet

Another Scam Victim's Story

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