A prisoner was sentenced to 22 years in jail for blackmail and scams. He lured women online, promising them love affairs, but defrauded them of money, IPN reports with reference to the Prosecutor General’s Office.
According to the sentence that was recently pronounced by the Buiucani Court of Chisinau City, the 33-year-old man was convicted for concurrent offenses to 22 years in a closed jail, with ban on performing activities related to material management for a five-year period and a fine of 150,000 lei.
Being an inmate in penitentiary, using a false ID on a social networking site, he seduced emotionally vulnerable women in order to swindle them out of money. In one case, he persuaded the victim to take two loans in the amount of 8,000 lei and 7,200 lei and then to go to an appliance store and buy a refrigerator on credit. A month earlier, through the same criminal scheme, he deceived another woman, who borrowed 16,000 lei and bought two mobile phones and a laptop for him. A year later, the defendant made another victim to send him money and two mobile phones, causing her damage of 44,998 lei.
The money and the goods purchased on credit were transmitted to persons empowered by the defendant, under various pretexts.
Two years later, he created another fake account on the same social networking site and extorted money, mobile phones and a TV from another woman by threatening and blackmailing her. The damage caused to the woman was estimated at over 232,000 lei.
The defendant refused to be brought to court to attend the trial. Also, while under investigation, he refused to make statements on the charges brought against him.
