'Beware of scammers': Internet abuzz as Match CEO Bernard Kim discusses romance scams referring to widow duped of $1.5M

DALLAS, TEXAS: Social media has been buzzing lately with discussions about romance scams, sparked by comments from the CEO of Match Group, Bernard Kim who spoke on the tragic case of Laura Kowal, a 57-year-old widow who was found drowned under mysterious circumstances after being conned out of $1.5 million through a dating site.

Kowal had been romantically involved with a man she met on the site, who went by the name 'Frank Borg', for over a year before her untimely death in August 2020.

Bernard Kim asserts romance scams happen and he empathizes with the victims

Following the tragic case of an Illinois widow who lost her life savings to a romance scam, Match.com CEO Kim commented, "Things happen in life," as reported by the Daily Mail.

The heartbreaking story began when Laura Kowal mysteriously disappeared. Her daughter, Kelly Gowe, received a call from a federal agent informing her that her mother had fallen victim to a scam. Desperately trying to reach her mother, Gowe discovered she was missing.

In an interview with CBS News, Gowe revealed that she found records indicating Kowal had wired $1.5 million to someone posing as 'Frank Borg', who turned out to be fictitious.

Commenting on this Kim told CBS News, "Things happen in life. That's really difficult. I have a tremendous amount of empathy for things that happen, but our job is to keep people safe on our platforms; that is top foremost, most important thing to us."

As per the Daily Mail, Kowal left a chilling note, confessing, "I've been living a double life this past year. It has left me broke and broken. Yes, it involves Frank, the man I met through online dating. I tried to stop this, many times, but I knew I would end up dead."

Tragically, Kowal's body was found near Canton, Missouri, far from her home in Galena, Illinois, with her car discovered nearly 50 miles away on August 7, 2020. Though no official cause of death has been declared, her autopsy determined drowning as the cause as per WTVO.

Gowe expressed her anger, blaming the scammers and stating, "It's the scammers, It's the criminals behind those emails. It's Frank Borg… this character. He killed my mom. And everyone that is involved in this scam in any capacity, that's moving the money, that's placing a phone call, that's hitting "enter" and "send" on an email, they're all responsible for my mom's death," as reported by WTVO.

In response to such incidents, Match Group, operating various dating sites, claims to have bolstered its security efforts, investing over $125 million annually to safeguard customers. They assert a 96 percent success rate in removing fake accounts within one day, as reported by the Daily Mail.

Internet users assert Laura Kowal's death is not the fault of Match

A user online wrote, "Ladies, beware of the scammers that claim to be working on an oil rig. They’re in the middle of the ocean, can’t get to a bank, have poor cell service etc etc etc. That’s a popular one."

Another user wrote, "I'm sorry, but if a person you met through a dating site that you've never even met in real life asks you to send them money and you don't see a red flag, then maybe you shouldn't be on those types of sites."

A user commented, "Don't blame Match; blame the gullible men and women out there. As Americans, we love and defend our freedom to choose, and that's the risk with lots of things in this world. There are scammers everywhere, from investments to dating."

Another user commented, "People need to stop thinking that "Lurv" is going to make them complete. We need to stop ingraining in people that they have to be a part of a couple to be happy. This woman had a nice life and was well off. She lost her savings and life over her failure to count her blessings."

A user stated, "Not the fault of Match, in any shape or form. Sadly, this falls at the feet of vulnerable lonely women who allowed themselves to be conned. I mean, the whole world should know by now to not send money to someone that you’ve never even met in person. I don’t feel sorry for the women, but I do feel sorrow for the family that’s left to pick up the pieces."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.