UPDATE: Romance fraudster sentenced to 3 years behind bars

Merseyside Police have today (30th August) welcomed the sentencing of a 31 year old man from Liverpool after he was found guilty for a series of ‘romance fraud’ offences.

Ivan Nkazi pleaded guilty of 11 counts of fraud and 4 counts of Malicious Communications and was sentenced to 3 years in jail.

Detective Sergeant Chris Hawitt said: “I welcome the sentencing of Nkazi and praise the 19 victims for coming forward and the investigative work of all officers involved in bringing this man to justice.

“Nkazi defrauded his victims when he contacted them through dating websites pretending to be someone else. Here, he would blackmail and even threaten some victims into paying him large sums of money. All the time, never having any intention of engaging in a real relationship with them.

“He is also reported to have threatened to throw acid in some victim’s faces, turn up at their work and harm their families.

“Nkazi, who was originally arrested by Cheshire Police on 8th January 2018, carried on engaging with women across the country whilst under investigation. The case was passed to Merseyside Police, where after a further two week investigation, Nkazi was again arrested, charged and remanded in custody.

“Nkazi is a cruel human being who manipulated countless women for his own financial gain. He clearly had no respect for those he was speaking to and tricked them into thinking he had feelings for them.

“I hope he takes this time to reflect on the emotional and financial torment he has inflicted on these women and they can also find some closure in this court result.

"I would continue encouraging anyone using any social media or dating websites to take extra care when speaking to people they don't know. Remain cautious regardless of how believable the person or their profile claims to be."

Anyone that also has been a victim of fraud, regardless of the motive is urged to get in touch with us @MerPolCC or by calling 101 so we can work together to investigate the incident and bring offenders to justice.