Omar Needs Your Help.

[Miss]

I have no idea if this is a scam or not, trying to figure out a way to confirm if it is really him or not. I don't believe it is.

Some of us got a frantic email from Rob today, explaining he was in London for vacation and got robbed. He has no money, nothing, and is terrified. He needs a little over $1k to get his hotel bill paid and get back to the US. However, I don't have even $10 to give him.

He wants to pay it back as soon as he gets to the states. Please contact me if you're willing to help.

1st Email:

How are you? Honestly I'm doing pretty awful. I'm visiting London for vacation and so far a lot of crap has been spewing.I got robbed by a gang of Lebanese at the train station last night,the cold,wet,darkness didn't help things and everything I had on me including my wallet,passport and cell phone got stolen.It was a traumatic experience for me and you can't imagine how scared I was when it happened.I'm completely paranoid and all garbled in my mind right now and am just waiting for a miracle to happen.I've just been to the Consulate and luckily after standing in line for what seemed like hours,I got to a customs agent and she said they can issue a replacement passport so I don't have to be stuck here for weeks.I'm tight up here and need to clear my hotel bills so that my luggage can be released by the hotel management.I'm just wondering if you can help out by loaning me some money so that I can sort things out on time and catch a flight back home today,I promise to refund you as soon as I arrive home.
Pls get back to me Asap.

2nd Email, after I offered to try and raise him some funds here.

Oomggg,r u kidding me?? I'm having such a hard time here and I'm just about to get in a line up at the consulate in order to get my replacement passport stamped.It's been so embarrassing for me but I guess it's just this post-9/11 world we live in and the government lines that suck.I really need your help,just need you to loan me 870 British pounds,that's equivalent to $1240.77,you can send it by going with cash to any Western Union location close to you or sending it online via the western union website.

Here is my information.

{MSG ME FOR IT.}

As soon as it's sent,email me the pickup number that I need to receive it here,also let me know how much they charge in sending fees.I will reimburse you the full amount as soon as I arrive home.

I really appreciate it.

Hackers. It sounded way too fishy, but if it was true, I didn't want to leave him hanging.

[masterofsparks]

I got the same email. Unfortunately, I'm not in a financial position to help him either. I feel awful for him - hopefully someone will be able to help him out.

[Miss]

I'm trying to figure out a way to confirm that it is Rob, not some sort of scam.

[Christina]

That's not Omar.

[masterofsparks]

I'm trying to figure out a way to confirm that it is Rob, not some sort of scam.

The message I got came from an email address I don't recognize, but when I replied to the email address I normally use for him, I got a response fairly quickly and in the same voice as the original. If this isn't him, I have to assume it's someone who has access to all of his accounts.

[Christina]

I'm trying to figure out a way to confirm that it is Rob, not some sort of scam.

The message I got came from an email address I don't recognize, but when I replied to the email address I normally use for him, I got a response fairly quickly and in the same voice as the original. If this isn't him, I have to assume it's someone who has access to all of his accounts.

He's probably been hacked.

[masterofsparks]

I'm trying to figure out a way to confirm that it is Rob, not some sort of scam.

The message I got came from an email address I don't recognize, but when I replied to the email address I normally use for him, I got a response fairly quickly and in the same voice as the original. If this isn't him, I have to assume it's someone who has access to all of his accounts.

He's probably been hacked.

I had my doubts. The message is definitely not in anything resembling his usual voice. Has anyone spoken to him or confirmed that he is not in England or that he is OK?

[Miss]

I had my doubts. The message is definitely not in anything resembling his usual voice. Has anyone spoken to him or confirmed that he is not in England or that he is OK?

Yeah it didn't sound like him, and two of the emails were copied and pasted.

Tom messaged me back on FB and said he gave him a call. He is not in England, he is a okay.

[Christina]

I had my doubts. The message is definitely not in anything resembling his usual voice. Has anyone spoken to him or confirmed that he is not in England or that he is OK?

Yeah it didn't sound like him, and two of the emails were copied and pasted.

Tom messaged me back on FB and said he gave him a call. He is not in England, he is a okay.

Happened to a friend of mine last year. She basically had to shut down her email and start a new one.

[emma]

My mother recently got a few emails like this from a friend of hers who is a journalist. The gist of them was that she was on assignment in Europe somewhere and all her stuff had been stolen. Because they had a few details that made it seem like it was really her (claims that she had been there working on a story, etc.) a bunch of people sent her money, but it turned out she'd been hacked. Her friends and family sent over two thousand dollars before she figured out what was going on. Awful stuff.

[Miss]

Hopefully nobody sent anything.

My boyfriends' senile grandmother got a call a few months ago from someone claiming to be her grandson, my boyfriend. "It's me, grandma. I drove to Canada, got pulled over for drunk driving and now I'm in jail there. I need some money."

1) Boyfriend doesn't have his license, or a car.
2) Boyfriend doesn't drink.

She hung up on them.

[masterofsparks]

I had my doubts. The message is definitely not in anything resembling his usual voice. Has anyone spoken to him or confirmed that he is not in England or that he is OK?

Yeah it didn't sound like him, and two of the emails were copied and pasted.

Tom messaged me back on FB and said he gave him a call. He is not in England, he is a okay.

Good to know. Like you, I had my doubts, but I also didn't want to leave him hanging if it really was him.

[Sarah]

Omar would never use the expression "line up" (or, for that matter, say "Oomggg,r u kidding me??" except, I suppos, in jest, which one would hardly expect from someone in the dire circumstances described).  In any case, had he been stranded in London, I have no doubt helpful embassy personnel (and it would have been an embassy, not a consulate) would have allowed him to use a telephone.  Still, were further proof necessary, here's more evidence that the FOT are a nice bunch of folks.

[gravy boat]

Hopefully nobody sent anything.

My boyfriends' senile grandmother got a call a few months ago from someone claiming to be her grandson, my boyfriend. "It's me, grandma. I drove to Canada, got pulled over for drunk driving and now I'm in jail there. I need some money."

1) Boyfriend doesn't have his license, or a car.
2) Boyfriend doesn't drink.

She hung up on them.

My grandmother, who lived alone, lived in the same town as me. Once I was around 11, I was in her part of town on my bike so I figured I'd surprise her and say hi. She came to the door and must have looked through the peephole but would not open it -- said I wasn't her grandson and to go away or she'd call the cops.  It was weird.

[Jason]

Somebody let him know they have his facebook account too.

21pmRob

How are you
6:22pmJason

Bad back, also getting over a stomach virus.

And you?
6:30pmRob

i'm visiting London and am having a problem with the hotel management where i lodged.
6:31pmJason

London?

Are you visiting that guy?
6:31pmRob

i had expected that a place set up for tourism should have a better payment policy considering how much of tourist $$ they let get away.it's been a drag with the hotel management so i need to pls loan me some $$.
6:31pmJason

What are you doing in London?

I thought you'd lost your passport.
6:34pmJason

Hey buddy, I'm worried.

About you.
6:34pmRob

yea
6:35pmJason

yea what?
6:35pmRob

I've visiting

been
6:36pmJason

So tell me what happened.
6:37pmRob

it's too much to talk on im,what's important is that i wasn't hurt or injured.

right now i just need you to loan me some money

can you help me out?
6:38pmJason

i think so
6:38pmRob

k
6:38pmJason

where are you staying?
6:38pmRob

I'm at the heathrow airport right now

at the health center to be precise.
6:39pmJason

There's a health centre in airport!!!

Thats pretty fancy.

Why are you in the health centre?
6:39pmRob

yea

i got lambasted.
6:40pmJason

what happened bro?
6:40pmRob

i was mugged and shanked with a knife
6:41pmJason

holy freaking shitballs!!!

A KNIFE!!!

I read about knife crime in the UK.
6:43pmRob

it wasn't just the knife

i was also beaten with a cane

i feel like shit right now.

how can you get some money to me asap,i'm trying to book a hotel room for the night.
6:43pmJason

Not sure how.

Will think of a way.

Why didn't you use Karate?
6:44pmRob

can you try western union

online?
6:45pmJason

Why study Karate for 15 years, under some of the best teachers on the planet, if you're gonna get with a cane.
6:45pmRob

huh
6:46pmJason

Just wondered what happened to your karate skills bro.
6:46pmRob

i don't need apologies now,i need help.
6:47pmJason

I'm not apologising!

Why are you saying that!
6:47pmRob

can you loan me some money?!
6:47pmJason

They must have knocked the sense out of you.

YES I ALREADY SAID I CAN LEND YOU SOME FUCKING MONEY

WHAT IS YOUR FUCKING PROBLEM?

Is that about Cindy?

I told you, I fucked her once, we were drunk, and you two had already broken up.
6:49pmRob

lolz
6:49pmJason

WTF?
6:50pmRob

I'm mortified.
6:50pmJason

You do not sound right in the head, wat did the doctor say?
6:50pmRob

I mean i'm completely paranoid right now
6:50pmJason

That's understandable, English people are vile animals.

I will never visit that country again.
6:51pmRob

i can't hold up here much longer
6:51pmJason

what do you mean?

You're worrying me.
6:51pmRob

how soon can you send it via western union.
6:51pmJason

My cousing lives in london I can get him to come help you.
6:52pmRob

fuck

ure just messing with me?

k

cool
6:52pmJason

I have travellers checks, I can fed-ex them to you if you get a room or an address you can use.
6:53pmRob

just go to the western union website and send it online using a credit or debit card

i can get it in minutes

right after you send

brb
6:54pmRob is offline.