Over sixty characters, thousands of messages and eight years of lies and exploitation – this could be one of the world’s most sophisticated catfishing scams.
At the centre of this story is radio host Kirat Assi who received a Facebook message in 2009 from a handsome cardiologist called Bobby. Kirat was slowly reeled into Bobby’s world and eventually duped into an intimate relationship with him. She was manipulated, coerced and tricked, she lost friends and her career.
When the scam fell apart in 2018, the catfisher was someone Kirat was not expecting. Alexi Mostrous and Claudia Williams from Tortoise Media ask why the police didn’t take the case seriously and was a crime actually committed?
If you think you may be in an abusive relationship, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or visit their website, thehotline.org. For the UK call The Freephone National Domestic Abuse Helpline, run by Refuge on 0808 2000 247 for free at any time, day or night.
Watch more from this series:
Did North Korea Smuggle $100 Million of Heroin Overseas?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fqz-UenejQw
The Man Who Secretly Impregnated 78 Women
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_Qihr-XVAw&t=43s
Who Was Behind the 1994 World Cup Massacre?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03jc5tWACKo
Check out the VICE World News playlist for global reporting you won’t find elsewhere:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLw613M86o5o4S3BXgi3bCiIVuopQxIMgV
Help keep VICE News’ fearless reporting free for millions by making a one time or ongoing contribution here. – https://vice.com/contribute
Subscribe to VICE News here: http://bit.ly/Subscribe-to-VICE-News
Check out VICE News for more: http://vicenews.com
Follow VICE News here:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vicenews
Twitter: https://twitter.com/vicenews
Tumblr: http://vicenews.tumblr.com/
Instagram: http://instagram.com/vicenews
More videos from the VICE network: https://www.fb.com/vicevideo
#VICENews #News
