I thought I'd found love with my dream TV vet but scammer used cruel trick to swindle me out of £11k disability benefits
SEEING the message pop up on her Instagram account, Lisa Nock's heart fluttered.
It had only been a month since they began talking but there they were - three little words she had never expected to see, "I love you".
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Lisa, 44, hadn't been looking for love so it was unexpected to say the least, but what was even more surprising was who was sending the messages.
TV vet Dr Chris Brown, best-known for his Aussie TV Bondi Vet, was her admirer... or so she thought.
But Lisa, who has autism and mobility issues after being hit by a car as a child, later discovered that the man she was talking to was in fact a romance scammer who conned her out of £11,000 in Instagram cryptocurrency.
Superfan Lisa was drawn in by a "fake but convincing" Instagram account she thought belonged to Dr Chris.
The crook running the account posed as the celeb vet when he contacted Lisa who believed she was talking to the real vet.
The conversation turned "romantic" and the fraudster began "love bombing" Lisa and even proposed.
Believing they were in a relationship, Lisa agreed to transfer the fraudster money for flights and visas to visit her in the UK.
Over a year-and-a-half, Lisa transferred them a total of £11,000 through multiple cryptocurrency wallets, with the biggest single payment being £7,000.
Lisa, who cannot work, from Staffordshire, West Midlands, said: "I thought it was real at the time.
"Although they were flirty at the beginning, we were talking for six months before money was mentioned.'
Romance Scammer Jailed Again - Sharon's Story
After initially contacting what Lisa thought was Dr Chris' Instagram account in September 2022, the account responded immediately.
The pair began chatting before exchanging numbers and messaging via WhatsApp.
"I felt very excited because I wasn't expecting a response," Lisa said.
"Our chat started friendly, talking about family and friends but then it soon turned flirty, and then the love bombing started.
"I wasn't looking for something like that but I liked the friendship side of it."
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By November, the scammer pretending to be Dr Chris said he "loved" Lisa.
He claimed he would come and visit her in the UK, but needed £2,000 for flights.
Lisa said: "I lost myself in it and believed that he loved me.
"I wanted to see him so much, I started going without things like Taekwondo and swimming lessons to transfer the money."
WHAT IS LOVE BOMBING?
EVERY person who is seeking to find that person they want to spend the rest of their life with is prone to love bombing.
Before we go on to explain the term, it is important to know that when these things are done in the right way it could just be someone you have found a connection with.
Love bombing is often used by controlling, narcissistic and abusive individuals.
They try to quickly obtain the affection and attention of someone they are romantically pursuing by presenting an idealised image of themselves.
That is the important thing to remember, as a lot of the tactics used by a love bomber are common traits you would expect from a partner.
It is all about the context they are used in, for what purpose and how it evolves into something else.
More often than not, a love bomber will switch to becoming abusive, very difficult and manipulative once they feel secure in the relationship.
On 23 April 2023, Lisa transferred £2,000 to an account via PayPal.
The scammer then persuaded Lisa to transfer another £7,000 to pay for a temporary hire - a different vet to take over Bondi Vet - whilst he visited her in the UK.
He set her up with a cryptocurrency wallet - where holdings are only accessible by using a private key.
Lisa transferred a further £2,000 in cryptocurrency payments before saying she "couldn't do it anymore" in December 2024 because she could no longer afford it financially.
The fraudster didn't follow up with Lisa and their communication ended for good.
Lisa started to suspect the whole thing was a scam when she noticed the different emails were personal Yahoo emails and not official business emails from the vet.
Eventually realising that she was being scammed, Lisa cut ties with the fraudster in January 2025 and contacted West Midlands Police who in turn reported it to Action Fraud. The investigation is ongoing.
She said: "I'm not hopeful that I'll get any money back.
"They are sneaky and clever - they really fooled me.
"I feel humiliated and let down.
"Looking back, there were red flags, such as I never spoke to this person over the phone or FaceTime.
To this day, I don't know who I was talking to for a year and a half which is scary.
Lisa Nok
"I stopped buying certain things and going out with my friend so I could put aside some of my disability allowance.
"How can people be so cruel?
"To this day, I don't know who I was talking to for a year and a half which is scary.
"I wouldn't want anyone to go through what I have and I hope the real Dr Chris knows I'm still a fan."
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She added: "They knew I was disabled, had limited funds and they exploited that entirely.
"I didn't have a lot financially and now I've been left with nothing.
"I'm sharing my story to help warn others, especially those that are vulnerable like me.
"I never thought something like this would happen to me - until it was too late."
How do I spot crypto scams?
CRYPTO scams are popping up all over the internet. We explain how to spot them.
Promises of a high or guaranteed return - Does the offer look realistic? Scammers often attract money by making fake promises.
Heavy marketing and promotional offers - If they are using marketing tricks to con customers you should beware.
Unamed or non-existent team members - Just like any business you should be easily able to find out who is running it.
Check the whitepaper - Every crypto firm should have a white paper. This should explain how it plans to grow and make money. If this doesn't make sense, then it could be because the founders are trying to confuse you.
Do your research - Check reviews online and Reddit threads to see what other people think.
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