How Ukrainians are using fake dating profiles to scam gullible Russians out of thousands of pounds to help pay for war

Ukrainian scammers are using fake dating profiles to con gullible Russian men out of thousands of pounds to fund their country’s war effort.

The group, known as the Monetary Army, uses a range of tactics to lure Russian soldiers, police officers and students from military academies, among others, into handing over up to £19,000.

The 100 or so scammers match men on Divinchik, a popular dating app in Russia, with fake profiles featuring photos of beautiful women.

Arthur, a Monetary Army con artist, told the Telegraph that once they match with Russian men, they plan to get them to buy tickets to fake events.

‘During the conversation, when the matter comes up, it is my job to invite men to one of the events we organize on a fake housing site.

‘For example, to the theater, stand-up comedy show, ballet or cinema. And then the man never meets the woman.’

The 100 or so scammers are matching men on Divinchik, a widely used dating app in Russia, with fake profiles created using photos of beautiful women

A pair of tickets often costs around £35 and the marks have to pay with cryptocurrencies. These currencies are reportedly untraceable, unlike normal fiat money.

After the transaction is completed, the scammers tell the Russian men that they cannot attend the appointment and offer to ask for their money back.

The Telegram customer service channel, which is often the same scammer with a different fake profile, then starts the second part of the scam.

“The system tells the guys that they have to buy two extra tickets as a deposit so they can get their original tickets back,” Arthur said.

‘That allows them to put in more money, basically unlimited, depending on how stupid he is.

“They start telling the victim that he made a mistake when filling out the declaration form. You have already made two payments, now you have to make four.”

The Monetary Army often makes around £100 per scam, but the scammer revealed the most money ever stolen from one man was £19,000.

A view of the site of a Russian missile attack, during the Russian attack on Ukraine, in the village of Budj, Kharkiv region

A general view of a private home with a roof destroyed after the Russian attack on July 8, 2024 in Kharkiv, Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Defense Minister Rustem Umerov listen to Ground Forces Commander Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi during their visit to a Ukrainian military position in the city of Kupiansk

While some of the money goes to the Ukrainian military, most of it goes to paying staff. Arthur said he earns around £1,600 a month from his job.

But the Ukrainian military will take any money it can get, given the state of the war, which has now lasted 28 months.

Officials said four people were killed Saturday in Russian shelling of Ukraine, as the two countries carried out drone strikes, one of which set fire to a Russian oil depot.

Two people were killed and two wounded in Ukraine’s partially occupied Kherson region in the attack near the regional capital, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said.

Two more people were killed and 22 injured in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region on Saturday afternoon, Governor Oleh Syniehubov said.

An oil storage facility in Tsimlyansky District, deep in Russia’s southwestern Rostov region, was set alight early Saturday morning after a Ukrainian drone strike — the latest long-range attack by Kiev forces on a border area.