A woman has revealed how she avoided a sticky catfish scam and is now dating a real man whose photos were stolen to create the fake profile used to lure her.
Nicole Hayden, 38, formerly from Fort Lauderdale, Florida Last year I got a message on Instagram from a man named Marcus.
Her reservations were mild at first, but the mother of two soon realized that the account was fake and stopped dating and things went badly.
Nicole appeared on This Morning today with her current boyfriend, Alessandro Cinquini, explaining that it “started horribly” but is now going well.
Nicole Hayden, 38, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, first received a message on Instagram last year from a man named Marcus. But the photos were of current boyfriend Alessandro (right)
Nicole was fascinated by Alexander’s beautiful photos, but soon realized she was a catfish before she found true love.
Speaking via video link with hosts Vernon Kay and Josie Gibson, Nicole said:It didn’t start well.
“Started in October, I just replied to an Instagram DM and it became a profile with catfish.
“I did not immediately realize that it was a catfish. I just started taking it after a week. That’s when the weather got so hot and heavy and he said hHe loved me and wanted to marry me.
“Then I realized something was wrong. I was starting to think it was the catfish profile or someone who wanted everything too fast.”
Marcus also tried to scam Hayden by telling him that his mother was in the hospital and needed $6,000 (£4,600) for medical bills.
He realized that his Instagram account was a scam and didn’t send any money, but later started blackmailing him and threatening to photograph and leak nude photos of him online.
Nicole appeared on This Morning today with her current boyfriend, Alessandro Cinquini, explaining that it “started horribly” but is now going well.
He also threatened the safety of his children and asked them to send the money “or whatever”.
“After I blocked them on Instagram, they found me on WhatsApp. It was about a month later. He started threatening me and my kids on Instagram,” he said.
“I didn’t give him my number, if you search for my name in Florida you can find my name, address and voter registration number.
“I wasn’t too scared, I thought it was international, but I didn’t like my kids using their names.”
Still frightened by the attempted shake-up, Hayden tried to move forward months later when he saw a profile similar to “Marcus” of Alessandro Cinquini, an Italian from Florida.
Originally from Italy, Alessandro lives in South Florida, works on yachts and has had his photos stolen several times.
“I was getting gas at the gas station, browsing Instagram like everyone else,” she explained.
“It was a different profile picture but I could tell it was him and when I clicked on it I knew it was his real profile.
“I knew it was him, he had 40,000 followers, and he had a featured episode discussing all the fake profiles.”
Alessandro explained that it was “strange” for him to receive messages from Nicole, he was suspicious at first as he received so many messages from women.
“He sent me a message on a special page I use for fitness,” she said.
“Are you real?” I asked. His profile was private and I thought he might be a scammer.
Still frightened by the attempted shake-up, Hayden tried to move forward months later when he saw a profile of Alessandro Cinquini (pictured), an Italian from Florida, who looked exactly like “Marcus.”
“Can we video call each other?” I asked. and now we are here.
“This is the sixth year my photos have been used to target women. I met Nicole and thought, “Let’s share this story to send a message to track down scammers.”
Nicole admitted it was “surreal” and her friends can’t believe she’s dating the real Alexander.
“I was only able to see his real profile, even though I was nervous, I felt a calmness, I knew everything was going to be okay,” he added.
The couple say they look “day-to-day” and are grateful for their “modern” “unique” status.
“We share the same goals and the same vision of life,” said Alessandro.
Source: Daily Mail
