The Brazilian ‘Tinder Swindler’, who allegedly scammed seven rich women with a sob story, has been caught.
Renan Augusto Gomes, 36, was arrested on Wednesday, 21 September, in the São Paulo municipality of São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil, after he attempted to escape the law by car, crashing into three other vehicles along the way.
Gomes, who has been named after the infamous Netflix documentary based on fraudster Simon Leviev, was reported to local authorities by the women who claimed they were defrauded by the man.
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One of the supposed victims claimed that he stole £35,000 from her after allegedly telling his targets that he was an orphan.
Investigators discovered that Gomes used multiple dating apps including Tinder, Happn and Lovoo under the false identity of Augusto Keller, according to G1.
The alleged fraudster has been wanted since last year and claimed that his parents, from Germany, tragically died in a car accident in Aracatuba, Brazil.
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Using his false identity of Keller, he supposedly pretended to be a civil engineer who liked to cook and was on the hunt for a serious relationship.
The alleged conman then began to date his supposed victims, who were aged between 34-40 years old and had high-earning job roles.
His relationships with the women became so serious that he even met their families.
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Gomes was then said to have expressed to the women that he was facing financial hardship before borrowing large sums of money from them.
At one moment, Gomes supposedly made the suggestion to start a business venture with one of his partners, but he fled after he received the money, UOL reports.
Gomes has since been detained during a joint operation by police and the Public Ministry in the area.
Prosecutor Erika Pucci da Costa Leal, who is working on the case, said of the arrest: "Augusto presents himself as an affectionate, attentive man, with stories of the absence of a close family or a heavy workload to prevent the victim from being included in his social circle."
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Authorities noted how the man never removed any of his dating app profiles, which were still active during the time of his arrest.
The bio on his Tinder read: "I've been single for a year. I joined the app looking for a serious relationship, if you're looking for sex or fun, please skip my profile."
In the latest development, the prosecutor believes there may be more potential victims of Gomes, who is now urging women to step forward who believe to have been scammed by him.
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If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, you can contact Victim Support on 08 08 16 89 111, start a live chat, or visit the website, all of which are available 24 hours seven days a week
Featured Image Credit: G1Topics: Crime, The Tinder Swindler, Tinder, World News, True Crime