South African authorities on Tuesday (October 19th) arrested eight people in Cape Town on suspicion of extracting nearly six million euros from online dating sites, through a massive romance scam, police said. .
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The eight people of foreign nationality are accused of having created false profiles on dating sites and convinced their victims to pay them money.
More than 100 million people have been trapped since 2011, estimates the US FBI.
South Africa has benefited from the support of the United States in this matter.
The scammers were targeting widowers and divorced people, tricking them into believing they were in "a real romantic relationship," South Africa's elite police unit, the Hawks, said in a statement.
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Setting up touching stories to soften their victims, they then proceed to intimidate or reprimand them before disappearing once the money is pocketed.
The suspects are said to be linked to an organized crime company with roots outside South Africa.
They are also being prosecuted for fraudulent messages and money laundering.
