Cops: Woman Posed as Men in Love Scams Targeting Elderly

An Oklahoma woman apparently got sucked too far into the online dating world—but as the scammer, not the one being scammed, according to state authorities. Christine Echohawk is accused of posing as men to woo four elderly women, with a release from the office of Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond alleging that the 53-year-old Pawnee woman ripped off her out-of-state victims, ages 64 to 79, out of $1.5 million in total. All four "believed they were sending funds to, or for the benefit of, a male subject with whom they thought they were in an online romantic relationship," per the release.

According to an affidavit cited by CBS News, Echohawk started grooming her first victim in April 2023, introducing herself online as "Edward Lotts" and claiming to need money to pay off a debt that would then release $2 million to "Lotts." Echohawk allegedly told that victim that once the big payout arrived, they'd move in together. That woman sent $600,000 to Echohawk after selling her own home to get the cash.

Authorities say Echohawk briefly paused her scam in January 2024 when the law started poking around, but she was back at it by October, posing as "Jason Morris" and convincing one victim to send her more than $100,000 in cash and Apple gift cards, claiming she needed to buy supplies and fuel for an oil tanker that "Morris" owned. The other victims similarly sent cash, gift cards, and cashier's checks to Echohawk, per Drummond's office. Echohawk's alleged scheme began to unravel in January when her bank, MidFirst Bank, flagged a $120,000 cash transfer from one of her alleged victims.

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Authorities say that Echohawk would take the money she swiped, convert it to crypto, then send the crypto to a man she identified as Maurice Deniro; officials believe that's an alias. Echohawk, who was arrested Monday, has been hit with money laundering charges, as well as charges related to using a computer to violate state statutes. She remains in Pawnee County Jail and could see more than six decades behind bars and up to $260,000 in fines if convicted. "These types of scams that target seniors are especially egregious," Drummond said in his office's release. (More online scam stories.)