Robert Evans, love scammer

(This scammer is also known to call himself Mark West, Mark Coker and John(son) Leigh. He may be using other names as well.)

"Robert" claims to be a widower, usually with two kids, sometimes named Gold and Diamond. He'll pretend to fall in love with you very quickly, which is one of the telltale signs of a scammer.
A few weeks into the script, "Robert" will inform you about an urgent trip to Nigeria or another African country. A few days later he will be stuck in a situation where he needs money fast. In most of his scams he stays at a hotel that can't process his credit card, and/or he can't access his bank account for security reasons. The usual amount the scammer asks for is $2650.

The following are some of the messages he may send you:

Hi adorable,
Thanks for sending me a note in response to my interest in you. I presume I was not too rude to have appeared on your communication doubleblind without any formal notification.... lol. Okay, I am a good father and a reliable partner. I lost my wife 3 years, it was such a challenge for me. I have not dated all the while because I would love to get a woman of my heart. I am a Christian and lead my day as they come, committed into the hands of the creator. I was thrilled seeing your profile for the first time and I really adore you just the way you. I will like to know more about you. I have a short subscription (yes he does, most dating sites are quick to delete fraudulent profiles), write me to my private email address; robertevn at gmail dot com, that is robertevn / at / gmail / dot / com, it would not be fair to lose contact with you, I am just giving this a try anyway. I will appreciate getting to know you more about you. Drop me a note soon.

Candy thots,
Robert

How was your night? I was going to send you an email late yesterday
but it was a different story when I laid down to take a little
nap...lol . Well, I want to take this time to tell you a little more
about life. I moved from Italy to the UK with my wife and the 2 girls
but Maria passed away not quite long after we came into Essex (UK). I
believe we can start a relationship one step then the other. I have
lived in the States for 6 months.

what do you like doing? what do you like about men? what has been your
greatest challenges in life? Do you have a specific day as bad? What
has been your greatest achievement in life? Can you tell me about your
previous dating experience and your relationship? I appreciate a woman
who will express herself the best way she could. I understand that
women may be shy sometimes and they get used to a man gradually, I can
take and understand. I want a woman who appreciates her man, someone
who is considerate and not discriminating. I have picked interest in
watching movies of lately, they are entertaining and a good time
killer...lol.

How is your day going? I presume its not a challenging Monday for you.
I try as much possible to put a good smile on my face, people say it
makes me look good that way. Sincerely speaking, I have not had
friends in the USA so far but I have met some people especially at the
Gym. I love attending religious activities, they are part of my life,
I am Christian. I love romantic movies, adventure, science,
comedies...etc....I want to make it a point of duty to have people
around me so that I would not feel the effect of my loneliness.

A time of business is very expensive to waste, sometimes I toil all
day without getting anything, then a miracle comes just at the closing
hour especially in a Self Employed type like mine. Anyway, I was
thinking about you all morning and I am sure you could be wondering
where I was at the moment too, what are you up to?


I would love you to read this:




I ran into a stranger as he passed by,
"Oh excuse me please" was my reply.
He said, "Please excuse me too;
I wasn't watching for you".
We were very polite, this stranger and I.
We went on our way and we said good-bye.

But at home a different story was told,
How we treat our loved ones, young and old.

Later that day, cooking the evening meal,
My son stood beside me very still.
When I turned, I nearly knocked him down.
"Move out of the way", I said with a frown.
He walked away, his little heart broken.
I didn't realize how harshly I'd spoken.
While I lay awake in bed,
A still small voice came to me and said,
"While dealing with a stranger,
common courtesy you use,
But the children you love, you seem to abuse.
Go and look at the kitchen floor,
You'll find some flowers there by the door.
Those are the flowers he brought for you.
He picked them himself: --pink yellow and blue.
He stood very quietly not to spoile the surprise,
And you never saw the tears that filled his little eyes."
By this time, I felt very small,
And now my tears began to fall.
I quietly went and knelt by his bed;
"Wake-up, little one, wake up", I said.
"Are these the flowers you picked for me?"
He smiled, "I found'em, out by the tree.
I picked'em because they're pretty like you.
I knew you'd like'em, especially the blue".
I said, "Son, I'm very sorry for the way I acted today;
I shouldn't have yelled at you that way".
He said, "Oh Mom, that's okay;
I love you anyway".
I said, "Son, I love you too,
And I do like the flowers, especially the blue."



Call me by 4 in the afternoon, then I will be through at work, my
number again is 951-963-1346. Drop me a note telling me what the
sunshine brought for your day.

Candy thots,
Robert.

Hi baby,
Its almost noon here. I dreamed of you and me together as I sleep. Its
so frustrating when I keep missing you alot of you. I know I ought not
to feel that way but I just rather let you know that I miss you than
nodding that I am not thinking of anything. I love you and I cant wait
to be with you. I am sure you must be sleeping by now, if you dont, I
need to yell at you when its morning.

I thought of my leaving here, I wish you could understand that I just
need some money to leave here and go to another hotel or a rent to be
for the next few days I will be spending here. The manager would not
collect bribe as he does not seem to be dumb to that extent, I ought
to have left this hotel a long time ago. I know its my decision to
make but let me just leave, riot happened around here the other day;
once I finish with the project I have to do, I will pay them the
balance or whatever they need to collect so that I can get my passport
to leave the country. If you will not be able to raise anything for
me, I will tell diamond to sell some of her unused expensive
basketball kits and let me have the money so that I can temporarily
use. I have pondered over it and its not as easy as you thought.
Morealso, I have tried doing the same thing you want to do, Gold was
helping me to do it, but the account was unconditionally blocked, when
I called them, they mentioned to me that my account has gone through
series of fraudulent transactions so they would not do anything with
any third party except myself. I will like if you can help me file
some document or something to access my account to sort all these mess
but I rather handle it myself since I would not be staying longer here
anymore.

Let me know what is going on today pertaining to that 15,000 you had
to deposit; being delayed is one of the things that make me want to
give up, I hope you understand me. It all amount to money but in this
case, we will have to spend more when there is delay. Honey, if you
will not be able to send that money for me to leave this hotel, its
fine, dont worry about it anymore, you are trying, I commend you so
much, I will also try all I can this time. I understand that you are
always very busy; if you will not be able to talk to me today and
throughout the weekend, its ok.

I love you.

Robert.

Hi baby,
I have a little problem here and I have been trying so hard to find a
way out of it but so far I have not been lucky. I feel very shy and
weary to send this email but at this same time I have no option and no
where to run to. If my late wife was still alive she would have been
the one to do this for me. My kids are not happy to hear I'm delayed
in an unaccommodating environment.

I got my bags and all my belongings together to check out of the
hotel. They gave me my bill which was not a problem but now it is. I
tried using my credit card to pay, only for me to be told that credit
cards are not a means of payment here. Their system is rather too old
fashioned and this is just another conformation of this. I asked them
about postal/money orders they still told me NO! I tried to use their
banks and airport but I was made to understand the system here is not
too advanced yet and they do not accept any of my payment method. All
they want is cash which I do not have. I keep my money in credit cards
and bank cards. I cannot be traveling with cash. I had no problems in
other countries using my card, now I’m in Africa and this has become a
problem. I am very surprised but nervous as I do not expect this.
Things has been going on here and the last thing I need to is to
remain here for another day. My flight is this evening and I just
wanna make sure I get on that flight. Further delays would cost me
further expences and that might mean further danger.

Now I am stuck here until I can find someone to send me some money to
pay this bill. I need to pay them the hotel bills and all they want is
cash, If I don’t they won’t let me leave and they will involve the
police. Please babe lend me some money and as soon as we get to see
each other this even before our first kiss I will refund the money to
you. Because I can use my bank cards and credit cards in the States. I
am so sorry about this but sweetie I have no option and if you care,
please help me. I will see you to refund the money. I do not want to
miss my flight today as further delay would mean I will incur more
expenses. I have been trying all morning to find a way around this but
it’s been a problem. The bill is $2650 but I have a few money in cash
with me but its nothing close to the bills.

I have contacted my bank but they are unable to process my request
outside the country as they said there are policies against urgent
transactions from this part of the world because of fraud and
terrorism attempts. Please get back to me soon, it is now that I need
you the most. I have tried every option and there's been no way. Now
you are my last option.

Robert

These pictures have been forwarded to me by people contacted by the scammer claiming to be Robert Evans. They've likely been stolen from the internet and belong to an innocent third party.

NOTE: The scammer alternatively claims to have a son and a daughter (John and Gold), or two daughters (Gold and Diamond). When claiming to have two daughters, he is likely using a different set of pictures.



"Me and John"


"Me and Gold"


"On the waves"



(Note how the children in these pictures are called John and Gold, just like in his Mark West script. He doesn't always mention John; sometimes he claims to have two daughters named Gold and Diamond.)

In his original script, "Robert Evans" claimed to have a son named John and a daughter named Gold. Later he appeared to have changed his script and confused the two - apparently he sent the first part about John and Gold, and then another part about his two daughters, Gold and Diamond. This is his excuse for the mix-up:

I am sorry about the confusion, I was going to say Gold and John,
Diamond is Gold's best friend, I spoke to her while I typed you this
message. I hope you are not confused with this provided information. I
hope to talk with you more today. Please take your time to reply my
email message. Drop me a note soon.

These are the two known versions of his opening e-mail. (Differences in colour.)

(Note how he just did a search&replace all over his script; wherever it used to say "the States", it now says "the Canada".)

Original:

Hi your name,

Thanks for your email, I really am glad to hear back from you. It is quite a surprise and not a shock as I was going to say to get your email message. Oh my.....! Where do start? I am new to this online dating thing and it really makes me nervous when it comes to meeting people. I lost my wife 3 years ago, her name is Maria, and she meant so much to me. It really was a pain but I am taking this time to get out of my shell and move on with my life. I have 2 wonderful kids, they are John and Gold, John is 20, Gold is 17, they are so dear to me. They currently live with my late wife's mother in Italy. I wish to have them in the States again in the future. I hope to make one big happy family when things are good.

I work from home as a consultant that bridge world top crude oil/petroleum buyers and sellers, it is more like a broker or a negotiator's Job. As good as it may sound, I was trained as a Petrol Chemical Engineer but decided to make a diversion to this field; it feels relieving to me and requires of information from the top marketers to get the right updates. It could be a risky Job at times but mostly rewarding. So good, I have always been on the gaining side. I also got my degree in Marketing which makes my dream in this career to become achievable.

I am a loving father and responsible man; I am caring, affectionate and quite romantic. I am not a bitter person but always want to see smiling faces around me. I know the needs of a woman that is why I have taken my time to go for the best. I wish we could take this time to know more about each other. I must confess that I did like what I saw on your profile that was why I put an interest in the first place and am glad that you did send me an email. I moved to the States because it was our first wish before leaving the UK that I wish to go to a new place as we have planned to relocate as a family. I came to the States 6 months ago and I have not gotten any friends except for the people I meet at the Gym but they are busy types. I intend to permanently stay in the States; I have a green card which we applied for some years ago. I thank goodness that I am able to get over my ugly past and move ahead to hopefully lead a better life.

I watch sport on the TV. I have a Chihuahua, she is beautiful and funny. I like to meet a woman who loves, caring and affectionate. I like the sunrise and its set, I like it when it chilly, warm a few. Well, I prefer going to New Zealand for vacation because of the great adventure and pleasure in there. I love listening to slow rock, R and Bs, Jazz, Gospel and sometimes pop. I love cooking Italian meals and little of Mexican, my favorite is Rosa Pasta. I like your kind of personality, there's something special about you, I can’t wait to know you more, tell me your likes and dislikes. Waiting earnestly to hear from you. I really do not know what else to tell you as I am a newbie to this whole online dating thing but would be willing to answer any questions that would make us better acquitted. It does feel good reading your email and sending you one. I hardly can wait to hear from you.

Charming thots,
Robert

Altered version:

Hi your name,

Thanks for your email, I really am glad to hear back from you. It is quite a surprise and not a shock as I was going to say to get your email message. Oh my.....! Where do start? I am new to this online dating thing and it really makes me nervous when it comes to meeting people. I lost my wife 3 years ago, her name is Maria, and she meant so much to me. It really was a pain but I am taking this time to get out of my shell and move on with my life. I have 2 wonderful kids, they are Gold and Diamond, Gold is 19, Diamond is 16, and they are so dear to me. They currently live with my late wife's mother in Italy. I wish to have them in the Canada again in the future. I hope to make one big happy family when things are good.

I work from home as a consultant that bridge world top crude oil/petroleum buyers and sellers, it is more like a broker or a negotiator's Job. As good as it may sound, I was trained as a Petrol Chemical Engineer but decided to make a diversion to this field; it feels relieving to me and requires of information from the top marketers to get the right updates. It could be a risky Job at times but mostly rewarding. So good, I have always been on the gaining side. I also got my degree in Marketing which makes my dream in this career to become achievable.

I am a loving father and responsible man; I am caring, affectionate and quite romantic. I am not a bitter person but always want to see smiling faces around me. I know the needs of a woman that is why I have taken my time to go for the best. I wish we could take this time to know more about each other. I must confess that I did like what I saw on your profile that was why I put an interest in the first place and am glad that you did send me an email. I moved to the Canada because it was our first wish before leaving the UK that I wish to go to a new place as we have planned to relocate as a family. I came to the Canada 6 months ago and I have not gotten any friends except for the people I meet at the Gym but they are busy types. I intend to permanently stay in the Canada; I have a green card which we applied for some years ago. I thank goodness that I am able to get over my ugly past and move ahead to hopefully lead a better life.

I watch sport on the TV. I have a Chihuahua, she is beautiful and funny. I like to meet a woman who loves, caring and affectionate. I like the sunrise and its set, I like it when it chilly, warm a few. Well, I prefer going to New Zealand for vacation because of the great adventure and pleasure in there. I love listening to slow rock, R and Bs, Jazz, Gospel and sometimes pop. I love cooking Italian meals and little of Mexican, my favorite is Rosa Pasta. I like your kind of personality, there's something special about you, I can’t wait to know you more, tell me your likes and dislikes. I wait earnestly to hear from you. I really do not know what else to tell you as I am a newbie to this whole online dating thing but would be willing to answer any questions that would make us better acquitted. It does feel good reading your email and sending you one. I hardly can wait to hear from you.

Charming thots,
Robert

These pictures have been used by the scammer on various dating sites.