The women were looking for love. Instead, they spent thousands of dollars lured by false promises on a Russian billionaire’s dating site.

Latest news from ICIJ.

Stories that rock the world. View this email in your browser DONATE Welcome to ICIJ’s newsletter! When Maria first made an account on dating website AmoLatina, she was looking for love. She had no idea she was walking into a sprawling, 60-company-wide online empire owned by a Russian billionaire. And when she met “Dan, 45,” a divorced Brazilian living in Argentina with a degree in finance and a love for photography, she had no idea way of knowing she would become one of a whole host of women to lose many thousands of dollars to exploitative relationships across those sites. The women say they were lured by promises that the platforms were safe, the users verified and the communications authentic. Instead, they found themselves emotionally corralled into connections with highly attractive, smooth-talking profiles. While they shelled out for each text, emoji and video message, their supposed beaus and belles were using the site free of charge and keeping the paying users engaged. AmoLatina is one of a number of websites in the Social Discovery Group's online dating network. Image via AmoLatina.com, social media. It was only after spending more than $60,000 in 20 months that Maria started to suspect something was wrong. Despite a steady stream of messages, photos and videos on the pay-per-interaction platform, Dan continuously refused to connect in real time on a live call. “It is not unusual to see victims lose hundreds of thousands of dollars or even more than a million dollars,” Keith Custer, a supervisory special agent in the FBI’s Baltimore field office, told ICIJ. “The scammers do not stop until they have bled the victims dry.” Read more. CRYPTO EXCHANGE SIDESTEPS SANCTIONS Experts told ICIJ that crypto giant HTX has been deploying tactics that could blunt the impact of recent sanctions from the U.K. and Europe, rapidly generating new accounts in a way that could confuse authorities and compliance officials. ASSAD-LINKED COMPANIES RECEIVED $10M FROM UN An ICIJ analysis of new data found the United Nations paid roughly $10 million last year to at least 11 companies formerly linked to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, even after his ousting from power. Thanks for reading! Carmen Molina Acosta ICIJ's digital editor LATEST NEWS How offshore firms helped a mafia-linked druglord hide $230m Crypto-to-cash services ‘knowingly' facilitated money laundering Swedbank fined $50m in NY over Panama Papers revelations IFC watchdog in turmoil following scathing report on Cambodia Taiwanese authorities charge executives who helped China’s cyber spies target ICIJ network Businessman accused of masterminding Caruana Galizia assassination stands trial in Malta Senator questions Merck over patent strategy for cancer drug Keytruda Crypto giant Circle rebuffed efforts to help scam victims, police say Cyprus watchdog refers former president to prosecutors for alleged ‘abuse of power’ Lowering doses of cancer drugs could slash global health spending by $30B, new research shows How ICIJ used data to investigate an industry that thrives on secrecy Warnings of money laundering gaps in major US crypto bill READ MORE NEWS STAY CONNECTED WITH ICIJ: This email was sent to www.tnr.tv.raymundolopeztiana@blogger.com, because you signed up to get ICIJ's stories in your inbox. Want fewer emails? Change your preferences or unsubscribe. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists | 1730 Rhode Island Ave NW, Suite 317 Washington, D.C. 20036 USA