It was the ever first time I was scammed out of money, I was young and naive, and I was also trying to figure out the next steps to take in life. I was probably just out of secondary school and very much in that stage where you're trying to figure out life but haven't really figured out much. I didn't have much in my account, just about 5k that took me very long to save while in school, but I already had a lot of plans to use the money for.
One day on a hot and quiet afternoon when I was alone in the living room, I got a call from a total stranger who surprisingly got my name correctly. I had never met the lady before, but her voice was calm and convincing. That kind of voice that makes you believe what comes out of it.
She told me she run an investment company, and that she works with people's money and helped them multiply it within minutes. She praised herself for being among the best investors who has never lost anyone's money, she made me believe she even had testimonies from other people she's done the same for amd that if I want she'll show me.
"If you have any amount with you I can double it for you within five minutes" she said.
Double my money in that few minutes? I was skeptical. But she spoke again, calm and convincing and l found myself listening longer than I should have.
She calmly but boldly explained how her investment platform worked and promised that any amount I give her to invest would yield 3 times more. That part got my attention, I imagined everything I needed at that moment, I wanted to learn a skill, I wanted to help my sister with her fees, I could buy more groceries at home, my younger sister needs a school bag. The opportunity she presented sounded like gold. Still, something didn't sit right, I asked again just to be sure, and that was when she went spiritual
“I swear on my daughter’s life,” she said. “I could never steal someone’s money. I’m a mother, I understand what it means to trust.” "What kind of a person would I be if I stole a young girls money? God will never forgive me if I did that"
Hmm, her declarations really got me, I didn't think anyone will lie on their daughter's life. So that statement broke my last defense.
At the time, I only had ₦5k in my account. She told me the minimum she accepted was ₦4k, but I pleaded to try with ₦3k first, and she agreed.
I transferred the money. Then I waited.
Five minutes passed, then ten...I called her but she wasn't picking. I called again, this time she picked up.
“There’s a small technical issue,” she said. “Please just wait a few more minutes, we're trying to sort it out.”
Later she call me back and said,
"The problem is that the money you sent wasn't complete and I was trying to work with it like that and that caused a technical error on our system and it is stuck, but if you can send another one, a complete money we can work it out, and you'll still get the old one back.
At this point my gut kicked back in, I hung up the call and went straight to my elder sister. After telling her everything, she looked at me and said, "You've been scammed. That's their format, and if you keep listening to her she'll dry out your pocket."
Just then the weight of shame settled on my chest. Wasn't really about the money, I mean 3k was really painful to lose at that time, but it was the trust. The way I wanted it to be true, I kept wondering how someone could actually swear on her daughter's life. Then I realized she might not even have a daughter as she said. I was simply scammed and she played with my emotions. I know I've had experiences that taught me that people are not to be trusted, but this one hit me differently, I felt like a fool after being deceived by the sweet talking lady, I even wished I hadn't taken the call.
That day, I learned firsthand that not all that glitters is gold. Sometimes it's just just a well-formed lie waiting for a hopeful someone too look into and fall for the trick, its a shame I did, but I'm also thankful I learnt, also my sister said at least I wasnt greedy to put all my money at first or I could have lost everything I had at the moment.
Going forward I made sure to check the glitters properly before assuming it's gold!
