Maynard Manyowa was always several steps ahead of the con artist, who used the name Kimone Mattis Investments and a bogus image of a young woman on Instagram. The scammer claimed to be an “official cash promoter agent certified and insured by the World Financial Organisation, IRS (Internal Revenue Service)” and said they could double investments in 30 to 45 minutes.
Maynard, who has lived and worked in Africa, recognised it was a scam straight away but decided to play along anyway.
He said he wanted £800 to become £8,000 in half an hour but, when the con artist demanded he send the cash through an app, like CashApp or World Remit, Maynard asked for a London bank account because the scammer had said they were in the capital.
Maynard said: “It was an HSBC bank account. For kicks, I sent the scammer £1, knowing it would p*** him off but also show I was willing to play ball.
“When I disappeared on him, he tried calling me. I told him I needed to use the toilet, for a while. And promised that I would send him money after my number two.
“In fairness, I gave my scammer plenty of opportunities to pick the wind up, in one instance telling him my dog had eaten my tissue. Yet for a person who makes a living out of outsmarting people, he really was 10 steps behind the entire time.
“I gave him the run around all evening and morning. And by the next day, Friday February 18, I was ready to find his other money mules.”
Maynard, a journalist with Yorkshire Live, saw the scammer’s IP…
