Lyle Lambie, an 80-year-old man from Perth, Australia, has lost his home and his entire life savings of $300,000 after falling victim to a romance scam.
Mr. Lambie, who had been seeking companionship online, believed he had met a woman from overseas on Facebook. "I thought it was a genuine woman," he told Seven News. "She was saying she's madly in love with me and everything."
The scam unfolded over three years, with the scammer requesting money through prepaid gift cards and for expenses such as airfare and passports. "A few times she said she was in hospital and needed help," Mr. Lambie recounted. "I paid [for an] airfare from America to Australia and paid for passports and everything else and it was just never-ending."
The financial loss has resulted in Mr. Lambie being forced to leave his home of more than two decades. He watched as removalists packed his belongings, leaving his home empty. "Devastated. Absolutely devastated," Mr. Lambie said. "I lost everything."
Mobilized by his experience, Mr. Lambie wishes to share his story to warn others about online scams. "Just be wary and stay away from scammers," he advised. "It's online because they're out to get everything out of you as much as they can."
According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, Australians reported a total of 481,523 scams in 2025, with financial losses amounting to $2.18 billion across 274,577 reports. Romance scams alone cost Australians an estimated $139.9 million last year, making it the third most costly scam category, behind investment and phishing scams. Individuals over 65 accounted for 26.5 percent of total reported losses to Scamwatch.
John McMaster of Consumer Protection WA emphasized the importance of secrecy in scams and urged individuals to speak with trusted people about their experiences and never send money. "Without people speaking up, we simply wouldn't have the insights needed to track and disrupt scam activity," said ACCC deputy chair Catriona Lowe, encouraging people to report suspicious activity to improve understanding and response to scams.