Call it a Romance Scam: A 47-year-old man masquerading as a millionaire businessman stole the identities of women he met on Match.com and e-harmony. John Edward Taylor was indicted Jan. 3, 2107 for stealing from more than a dozen women in cities including New York, Chicago, Atlanta and Philadelphia, according to Federal prosecutors. According to the complaint, Taylor claimed to be a wealthy businessman with oil and land interests in North Dakota.
In a statement posted on the Department of Justice website, Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “John Edward Taylor allegedly trolled dating websites to find unsuspecting women for his ‘romance’ scam, designed to steal their money. While masquerading as a millionaire businessman with romantic and professional interest in his victims, Taylor was in reality an alleged con artist. When confronted by some of his victims for looting their bank accounts, Taylor took his insidious crime another step further, allegedly threatening to release sexually explicit photos of them.”
The Wall Street Journal covered the story here. They approached Taylor’s attorney, who didn’t respond to a request for comment. A spokesman for Match.com pointed out a miniscule number of subscribers were scammed and that the company takes “this issue very seriously and we diligently address it on the site, tracking, monitoring and preventing fraud at every step of the way.”
Prosecutors say Taylor stole personal information, like bank and credit card numbers, which he then used to fund his day to day life and open new accounts.
FBI Special Agent-in-Charge Timothy Gallagher said: “Today’s charges illustrate the FBI’s commitment to combating the growing threat of online dating scams and financial fraud. Our job is to protect victims and ensure those who commit these egregious crimes are held accountable.”
Taylor faces five charges, including wire fraud, bank fraud, aggravated identity theft and threatening communications.
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