Merzouga romance scam in Morocco

Romance Scam

I made a Moroccan friend online and he kept inviting me to go surfing with him. Finally I went and we ended up sleeping together. Well, he put on the whole charm and basically I realised later was manipulating me from the word go. Pretty much everything he told me was a lie, including he was adopted, wanted so badly more than naything just to know who his mum was, even introduced me to a guy saying this man had gone through all the records to find the mum with no joy.

Well his family are alive and kicking but he played on me as this vulnerable sweet person and for a while, that’s what he was. I kept going back to see him, I lunched out my business a bit and making money and spent a lot as he didn’t have a place to stay. This was suitable and I got a lawyer to sort out the papers for him to come to see me. Except then he started to get nasty and abusive.

But I thought I was in love with him and because he was so sweet in the beginning somehow I thought that person was going to come back. Actually he had told this lie that his adoptive mum had died, he said this to justify his increasing craziness. He needed money in his account to get the visa, my lawyer said 2000 £ but he convinced me to hand over 6500.

He promised that he would not touch it, I repeatedly told him I need that money. This is painful to talk about but he was pressuring me to marry him to the extent of sending pictures of himself on a roof saying he would jump if I didn’t marry him. He was using mind games on me and I thought I was in love with him. All the time he was saying I didn’t love him to get me to do more and more for him, looking back it was crazy but he is a professional manipulator.

I didn’t want to get married because of the Muslim thing, and he lied saying I didn’t have to do it. Well so I reluctantly agreed to the marriage and he tricked me into this place were I ended up saying this stuff whihc was to convert ot Islam and next thing I was married. I asked him for the money back because to get the visa with marriage he didn’t need it. He promised to transfer if but that was the last time I ever saw him.

He first blocked me on the phone, then his friends pressured him to talk to me. I spent several months of him going from abuse to I love you, promising to pay me back and never giving me a penny. This was 8 months ago. Crazy thing was I was warned that arab men did exactly this and ignored it. I even told him someone said this to me and he got so angry.

But it was just what he was doing. It’s not just the money, I am totally traumatised. I am in the middle of a police case but he seems to be bribing the police and I am scared. He threatens to hold me prisoner in the country if I come back to talk to the police. When I look back and realise he just had sex with me to scam me it makes me sick. His name is Hamza Rhani and he is a prolific scam artist. Can you help me?

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Merzouga Scamming

Most of the time, the scammers are actually wealthy individuals live in upscale parts of Morocco’s cities but hide that fact to victims they are trying to lure. They pretend to be nomadic and live in tents and do camel rides, but these organized master manipulators only come to Merzouga once every few months for the sole purpose of getting new victims.

They do most of the chatting and talking at their own home, far away from the camel rides with all of the comforts of a modern home. In addition, almost all of them are already married with children. This is not what they make their victims believe, as they tell their victims that they live in poor conditions in order to get more money.

The scammers first act really charming to women (especially to middle aged or olden women, as they have the most money and are the most generous) and get them to fall in love, and get their contact information when they are about to leave.

Once the scammer gains the trust of the victim, he slowly begins asking for more and more money, first for living costs and then finally for new cars or to start a new business. However, THEY DO NOT USE THE MONEY AS INTENDED — it all goes into the pockets of the ORGANIZED CRIME ring that is run there.

Like all scams, they request money using Western Union or wire transfer — never trust anyone who asks for money that way.

I have seen people lose money from 10,000 all the way to 80,000 because of these psychopathic scammers who have no sympathy nor feel any guilt from the relationships they have broken or the damages they have caused.

Once the victim really begins to fall for the trap, many start spreading tours run by the scammer, as the victim will try anything to help the scammer’s business succeed. Unknowingly, they are only there for the scammer to get more victims. I have seen women go as far as door to door knocking for their cause, which only gets more and more women entangled in their causes

Those same victims are often tricked to try to visit or move in. In order to keep the idea of poorness, the organized crime ring rents rooms from other people in the desert. They never accept any marriage requests because they are only into the victim for the money and use them for that purpose. Again, they are already married themselves. Often, they have 2-3 women like this and have them in at different times of the year.

Remember, if anyone in Merzouga asks for your number, know what you could be expecting.

I have compared these scammers to a virus — they prey on the money, love, and time of the victim while she has no idea, and then use her to get more victims.

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Scam in Morocco

I recently discovered in Agadir Couchsurfing some scammers, originally from Tagounite/Merzouga region. There were 6 male students living in a very poor apartment, no windows, no furniture, no electronics, sleeping on the floor. They made best efforts to host us and show us how kind and generous they are, while obtaining as much information as possible on our financial status and making sure we are aware of their lack of resources. We payed for dinner and gave them gifts. After staying with them (Said Ait Ouaaicha and Hafid Ouaicha and others name I don`t know) , we flew home.

They kept writing every day, building connection and trust. Then they asked with a sad reason to borrow money, 150 euros and provided bank account. It was suspicious a bit, that a Moroccan poor boy has a bank account, so before sending the money I asked some people from his reviews on the Couchsurfing website.

Within few hours it turned out they asked each and every couchsurfer they met for money for different reasons promising to return it and never did. Mothers surgery, own foot surgery, phone bill, rent, school expenses etc. About 30 surfers shared their stories and conversations on how much they each gave him and how he promised to return it.

The boys made a whole act of perfect host just to get under the skin of travelers, then make up stories for money. The contacted travelers related same scam from shop sellers or hostel owners in totally unrelated places in Morocco. I guess this is what awaits male or couple travelers. For women, they must apply the romance scam

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MERZOUGA SCAMMERS

Merzouga is a beautiful romantic village in the middle of the desert.

Women fall for the charms of the men here without realising that the majority are working as call-boys/prostitutes for a living. They are very loving and charming. They get the girls/women to fall in love with them, talñking about romance and future.

The women/girls keep travelling there to visit their boyfriends, taking with them gifts of clothes, telephones, sunglasses etc., and pay for everything they do with their “boyfriend”. They pay the alcohol, tobacco, food, hotel rooms…. Usually (blind from love) they leave money for their boyfriends when they return home.

Later the men are asking for money per Western Union, using excuses such as they must put credit on their phone to be able to chat, or repair their phones to keep contact, pay electricity, debts, and whateverelse they can think of.

Often if they think their “girlfriends” have a bit of money they suggest larger sums to enable them to buy a jeep to do excursions for tourists so enable them to build a busiuness so their girlfriends can eventually move there or to make money to start to build a home for the future together.

Little do the women/girls realise that they are being scammed, and actually PAYING to have a “nice time” with a man on “holiday. Usually, a few months later (or 3 or 4 years) the women/girls find out that they are not the only “girlfriend”. There are usually at least 2 or 3 others in the mans life…. all travelling to morocco to spend time with their “boyfriends” when they can.

The men there in Merzouga find it normal to use the women in this way. They feel no guilt. It is their way to get money, and needs. I speak from experience. I know many women/girls that have fallen for this scam and ended up very hurt (and sometimes quite broke!). THIS IS THE REALITY OF MERZOUGA.

Often these men contact women through messenger, after checking out the females facebook to see if they are single, rich, looking for boyfriend, sad, adventurous… and especially “older” women that are alone because these are usually the most generous.

They start with sweet introductions, then video chats, then start pestering for the women to visit. ALmost all say and do the same things. It is a planned scam, and there are people they call “uncle” who often have homes/rooms somewhere for them to stay. Women believe the “uncles” are family, but they are not. They are mafia. Helping control the “business” in Merzouga….

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