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People getting catfish mugged in Boston, police warn
By adamg on Wed, 11/11/2015 - 3:21pm
Boston Police report several recent incidents of people getting robbed at gunpoint when they arrived at what they thought was an assignation with a cutie they met online.
In a scenario that sounds similar to the case of a man who reported being stabbed and robbed in Cambridge, police say they are investigating six incidents over the past five weeks in Mattapan and Roxbury.
The victims are making contact with an online profile and agreeing to meet the person depicted on the profile at a specific residence. When the person arrives outside that location, they are approached by a male suspect armed with a handgun and robbed of their property.
Police provide several tips to avoid getting catfished, starting with the old saw about things being too good to be true:
"Catfishers" will use profile pictures of very attractive people to lure victims.
They won't Skype or use a web cam to talk to you.
They have an online profile that appears new or incomplete.
If you agree to meet someone based upon online contact, make sure it is a public place. DON'T AGREE TO MEET ANYONE AT THEIR RESIDENCE.. If you think you might be a potential victim of a "Catfishing" scheme, contact your local Boston Police District immediately.
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Comments
Etymology?
What's another word for "cat".
"Feline"?
"Feline"?
Damn...
as if online dating wasn't hard enough. Now this. SIGH I give up.
Sigh
I don't blame the victims... entirely.
Gorgeous woman with a new profile wants to meet you but won't chat on Skype first? Wants to meet in some shady spot and not someplace public? If it seems too good to be true it is.
So then you do blame the
So then you do blame the victims?
OK
I don't think they deserved to be knocked over the head anymore then someone who gives out their credit card number deserves to be defrauded. These guys did something which everyone should assume is questionable at best. The assailants should go to jail for a long time. Hopefully the victims have learned to be less naive about why someone might be eager to sleep/smoke with them.
I don't know the details
Definitely, legitimate casual online hookups do happen in the 18-40something range in Boston. As well as legitimate first dates for which one party asks the other to pick them up at their home.
Good for the victims reporting the attacks to the police, not fear being shamed.
Maybe the perpetrators will be caught, and at least the word is getting out that this is going on.
Not just 18-40
There is plenty of 40-65 y.o people engaging in casual online hookups too. Probably above 65+ too.
Well
In this particular case, the victims definitely do deserve the blame - horny morons thinking they're going to have some fun with a supermodel at a random abandoned Mattapan triple decker.
You just made that up
and used your imagined scenario to condemn a crime victim.
Sounds about right
You can't give someone your actual home address if you're going to rip them off, so you send them someplace like, an abandoned property you can hang out and wait for them. Of course the paramour doesn't know that before he gets there.
Catfish
This type of activity gives catfish a bad name.
bad taste
Kind of leaves a bad taste in your mouth.