internet dating exposed

[SandyLou]

If ya'll are thinking about the safety of web dating. . . check out this link.
http://www.ceocowboyexposed.com/

This guy is still on the loose. Be careful!

 

[SoStrongSoFragile]

This is a very sad story, heartbreaking. Sadly it doesnt take the internet to cause such a calamity and happens often enough w/out it. I think we should caution, wisdom, much prayer, agreement with elders/pastors/believers in the area of commitment. I met my husband on the internet over 5 years ago and all is well here other then common and normal marriage issues. Well maybe not normal...

 

[CowboysEx]

Hi, this is Kat Martin, CEOCOWBOY'S wife. I appreciate so very much you all posting this on here so other women can be warned.

Please pray for me and all the other women. We are all hurting so much.

 

[SandyLou]

I know not every person on the web is a phony - - I'm just saying that we should all be careful when meeting people that way. Pray for God's guidance, that He makes the red flags obvious, and take your time getting to know people.

God bless Kat & Misty for sharing their horror stories - the Christian Mingle site message boards were filled today with women saying they had chatted or corresponded with this person and thanking God they didn't get involved. Alas, it's not the first - nor will it be the last - time someone has posed as a wonderful Christian for his -OR HER- own gain.

I'm just saying be careful. And listen to your friends and kids. Sometimes they can discern a lot more clearly.

 

[CowboysEx]

I would like to clarify something that has been brought up to me about my quick marriage to Sam.

Yes, we did get married on May 29, 2004 after only being together for a little over a month. However, we originally were going to get married in October 2004 once the church he was working on was finished.

We ended moving the date up because when he would come here to see me, he wanted to stay at my house rather than a hotel. I wouldn't let him, because I am the mother of a 15 year old boy, and I felt it wasn't right to have him staying at my house when we aren't married. That was just not going to happen.

So, Sam suggested that since we were so much in love and he had already proposed anyway, we just move the date up. I needed it to be around a holiday so I could have extra time off from work, and July 4th was our next choice. But all the places we looked at to hold the ceremony were booked for that weekend, and the only other holiday coming up was Memorial Day.

Some will say yes, we got married too soon and that maybe I deserve some of what has happened to me. Others will say that I really didn't love him. But they are wrong. I did love him. He was the most charming, sweet, kind man I had ever met. Those out there who have come into contact with him know this. He knows his game well, that is why it is called conning.

I don't deserve what happened to me. I was a loving wife, a wife that believed in him and loved him with all her heart. And I meant nothing to him, nor any of the other women that he was seeing. It was all just a game.

 

[hockeysistah12]

This should be a lesson to every women who is finding someone on the "net." I know there are good people online, however, there are people like me who got "ripped off" by men who claimed they were interested, but they continually lied and decived me until I cannot trust anymore.

People should use and I mean use disernment while using the net....

End of story....

 

[Godslove321]

CEOcowboy is now Trace1957....women be careful!

 

[mjmcmillan]

I wouldn't be surprised to find he uses a dozen other aliases. The problem with the 'Net is that anybody can be anything. You can use whatever name you want to call yourself and it might not be that hard to have a couple dozen "sock-puppet" characters at hand, each with different on-line personas. The only problem would be keeping track of who you are "this time".

 

[Godslove321]

I agree...I read his ex-wife story posted on the web about him....I know this guy. The story blew me away! WOW!!!

 

[dayhiker]

I think dating thru the web is as safe as any other method. My GF had 32 dates thru the web and no big problem. I've meet many people thru the web .. no problem. Web people are just like people that don't use the web. Ya, a woman has to be careful on any date with a new guy.
Nice being a guy .. I've never had a problem on a date. Only been robbed once and that was in Dominican Republic. But I'd go back anytime.

 

[memoriesbymichelle]

So sorry for those that have been duped by these sick people! But that is the exact reason I won't do online dating. Anyone can be anyone or anything online and it doesn't have to be proven. Of course that can happen IRL as well. Online just makes it easier, just like the kids that go on FB and bully other kids. In person its a little bit different, but good cons are just that, they are GOOD at conning, whether in person or online. Online just makes it easier for them. My friend just asked me the other day if I had ever went on the Christianmingle.com site and I told her no and that I wasn't interested. I have full confidence in God's ability to bring whatever man into my life by whatever means he desires but FOR ME, I think God knows THAT will not be the way. And when I hear about stories like these it just confirms my belief.

 

[memoriesbymichelle]

Oh and one other thing. No one DESERVES to be duped because they happen to be a loving, caring, trusting, individual. So those that say you deserved it are wrong in my book. I hope (and I'm sure) you will be more cautious in the future, but I hope it doesn't change who you are otherwise.

 

[hope_is_last_to_die]

Its like people get ripped of on the net in many ways with all sorts of scams, dating is just one of a long list. Im sure there are good web dating sites as well as bad ones. One thing I do think is good about the web for dating is that it gives people more opportunities to meet someone. What is sad is that in my experience in Ireland web dating isnt really talked about in churches, there is still a stigma attacked to this kinda dating. I wonder if this how it is in US?

 

[dayhiker]

I don't have specific experiences that tell me the churches attitude toward internet dating. People in general seem to have one or two views. Its great, works for some. Or there are so many dirt bags out there on the internet that internet should be avoid.

Well, ofcourse the internet is the same people that live on this planet. Each medium a person uses to weed out the dirt bag means they have to develop techniques to accomplish that. If they already have techniques for the people they meet in real life that's great but they will have to develop new ones for the internet.

 

[memoriesbymichelle]

Yeah and even then you can still get duped just like IRL. I think the US is more open in general to alot of things (doesn't mean it's a good thing). My church doesn't say if they are for it or against it as a church. I mainly think women need to be very very careful. guys not so much.

 

[nuhope]

Hi, this is Kat Martin, CEOCOWBOY'S wife. I appreciate so very much you all posting this on here so other women can be warned.

Please pray for me and all the other women. We are all hurting so much.

I was unable to read your story because I couldn't access the link, but sorry you have been hurt.

9 month's ago my husband ended our marriage and he thought he met some other christian woman (supposed to be a christian missionary who went from Spain to Nigeria). It turned out to be a scam. It broke my heart, bu God put me back together I was miraculously healed by the Lord Jesus, and forgave him. It was all a scam. She was supposed to be 34 and he is 67. I am 55. It was one of the worst things I ever had to live through, friends and family were supportive, but only the Lord helped me live through the anguish I experienced. My h sent money supposed to be for her passport/medicals (I suspected it was a scam but he wouldn't listen). It caused a lot of heartbreak to both of us and to our children. We should have checked the IP address out sooner, we joined a romance scam site - didn't realize so many people get scammed annually its worth billions, bigger than the drug industry.

Will pray for you, Angela

 

[dayhiker]

nuhope,
Welcome to CF. I've not seen any scamming in the mature forum!
Ya, when one is on the web its best not to send any money. There have been a few times I thought about it to help people. But those I had known for a long time, like years before a situation developed where they could use a little money to help out. They didn't ask in any way either. But even then I ended up no sending any money. So basically if its not free on the web, then I don't go for it.

 

[memoriesbymichelle]

WOW nuhope that is SO sad! And it makes me sick how people prey on others like that. That is why I don't frequent any sites because I am scared of that exact thing (even though I have no money to send anyone lol). My girlfriend asked me about Christianmingle.com or something like that and IDK if it was here or somewhere I read how a few women got attacked by men they meant on that site. Anyone can be anyone they want (make believe) on the internet. I've even had people on here want to be "friends" and that's totally fine, but when they start sending me messages EVERYDAY and then want to know if we could communicate outside of this site, I'm not for that. One guy would get upset if I didn't answer right away and I don't necessarily come here everyday. I thought it was very odd, but shortly after I said I didn't want to give him my email address, he quit communicating with me.

 

[dayhiker]

I've heard of guys that can try to be pretty dominate and also impatient guys on the web ... just shows what they are like. I think most people reveal who they are even thru the web. As I've said before web people are real people just like someone you meet on the street or at work. Each of us try to hide some things and emphises other things when we meet others. Some are terrible at doing that. Others are good at it.

 

[memoriesbymichelle]

I've heard of guys that can try to be pretty dominate and also impatient guys on the web ... just shows what they are like. I think most people reveal who they are even thru the web. As I've said before web people are real people just like someone you meet on the street or at work. Each of us try to hide some things and emphises other things when we meet others. Some are terrible at doing that. Others are good at it.

Yeah and then there are "people" that even though they are real people just like you and me like to be somebody else online on purpose. That's a little bit different than trying to hide the things you don't think someone will find appealing when you meet. And that's the scary part. They do this in person too. In fact there is a show coming out next week called "The devil you know" and there are others like "Who the BLEEP did I marry?" THAT'S what I'm talking about.