Akintaro told Woolwich
Crown Court she began the scam because she was 'naive and used by this person I
was in love with', and admitted asking for more cash from her victims claiming
she needed to pay off debts.
Grace Akintaro, 24,
pretended to be 'Amanda Jenson' and even spoke to at least two of her victims
on the phone, persuading them to send her money for travel and expenses ahead
of romantic rendezvous.
She was helped by Victoria
Nwogu, 22, who admitted laundering some of the money on Akintaro received.
The men were convinced
their online romances with Amanda were genuine but dates were cancelled with
one excuse after another.
Akintaro, of Greenwich
pleaded guilty to seven counts of fraud between August 1, 2014 and December 2,
2015.
The same charges were
dropped against Nwogu, also of Greenwich, who pleaded guilty to one count of
laundering £3,490 between April 29 and May 6, 2015.
Judge Nicholas Heathcote
Williams QC said: 'Judging by what the victims say there were detrimental
effects, both psychologically and financially.
'They were expecting to get
their money back, they thought they were loaning the money.'
Victims were given
different set bank account details to pay larger sums and told they belonged to
her mother or landlord.
Akintaro even sent fake
documents were used to provide evidence that Amanda Jenson was due to receive
an inheritance from a relative and would then be able to pay the money back.
One of the victims handed
over a total of more than £46,000 and another gave the fraudster money from his
dead wife's life assurance policy.
Another man took out an
equity release on his house to pay her money.
One victim was told to go
to a London airport to meet 'Amanda Jenson' who was on an inbound flight.
As he was standing outside
the arrivals lounge he was called on his mobile and told she could see him
waiting but had been held up by customs officials and needed more money before
she could be released.
He refused to pay and went
home.
Police know Akintaro
visited bank branches at least sixteen times, withdrawing £23,000 of the
victims' cash.
The total loss is £104,962
and prosecutor Kevin Dent said: 'The amounts going through Miss Akintaro's bank
accounts add up to just over one hundred thousand pounds and directly link with
the seven victims.'
Akintaro used her three
bank accounts and a paypal account to transfer the money, but claims all she
has to show for it is a £5,000 Renault Clio and a few hundred pounds.
The judge added: 'It was
not a peripheral role because she was talking over the net.
'We are looking at high
culpability because of the high number of victims and long period of time.
'These were romance frauds
and the fact I am ordering a pre-sentence report is no indication as to the
sentence. There is a real prospect she will go to prison.'
Mr Dent added: 'There would
have to be a female involved and that was Miss Akintaro.
'She may not have been at
the top of this, but played a role over a period of time.'
Detective Constable Mark
Cresswell, of the Met's Fraud and Linked Crime Online (FALCON) unit, said: 'We
managed to identify seven victims of this fraud but I suspect there are many
more who have not contacted police.
'Romance fraud is often an
under-reported crime as victims can be left feeling embarrassed about the sum
of money they have handed over to someone they have never met.
'One of the victims we
identified in this case said he had not reported it to police because he
thought he felt he had been a "foolish old man".'
A Match spokesperson said:
'We are appalled by these crimes and welcome the convictions in this case.
Sadly, there is a tiny minority of people who set out to harm others and while
this is not confined to dating sites or even the internet, those who do should
be brought to justice.
'Our member's safety is our
highest priority and we regularly advise our community to be vigilant, to
report any suspicious activity and follow the safety recommendations available
online and through the app.'
They will return for
sentencing on June 20.
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