A woman has revealed how she nearly fell for a catfishing scam, but managed to find love with the real owner of the images that were used to deceive her.
Former nurse Nicole Hayden has opened up about her scary experience of nearly being catfished online - a scam which sees people take other's images and pose as them to speak to unsuspecting individuals, normally to try and steal money.
However, like all good Disney fairytales - but one firmly rooted in the modern and online era - Hayden's negative incident led to her eventually finding love.
An attractive man who Nicole believed to be called Marcus slid into her dms on Instagram but after a short while, alarm bells soon started going off in her head.
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She told NBC 6 South Florida: "‘It started getting really hot and heavy. I think he even told me he loved me after a day.
“He's like, ‘I love you. I'm going to marry you. You're the woman of my dreams.”
On top of this, Marcus asked for 'a favour,' telling Nicole that his mother was in hospital and that he 'needed $6,000'.
When Nicole refused, the situation turned nasty.
She reflected: "At that point, that's when they got really belligerent and said we can access your phone, we can get all of your pictures."
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The catfish told her she had to send over the money 'or else,' threatening her and her children and to photoshop her face onto naked images and put them on the internet.
"I was scared, but then I realised I live in a gated community, my kids go to a charter school, I am safe," she said.
However, while scrolling on Facebook one day, Nicole saw an image of 'Marcus,' but under the name of Alessandro Cinquini.
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After clicking on his profile, she saw that Alessandro had warned his friends his pictures had been stolen.
Alessandro said: "It breaks my heart to see that women are sending scammers who they think are me thousands and thousands of dollars and sometimes I feel powerless.
“A woman said she paid me $3,000 and then she went into debt. I was like we need join together and teach people."
Nicole reached out to Alessandro and the pair met up after realising they both lived in South Florida. As a result of their shared experience, they both resolved to raise awareness of catfishing.
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However, the duo soon realised that their relationship went further than first anticipated.
Nicole said: "So together we actually make each other better. He's more adventurous. If I didn't have a family so young, I think I always tell him he's like my male spirit part because he's like the mirror of me only, and a male version.”
The pair may have actually found love within one another online and reflect that it can be successful, but they warned others to be careful.
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Alessandro concluded: "Don't trust someone that is asking for money, no matter how much you trust them. You will be sorry."
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, you can contact Victim Support on 08 08 16 89 111, start a live chat, or visit the website, all of which are available 24 hours seven days a week.
Topics: Social Media, Crime