Journalist Hannah Ajala hosts the podcast. The podcast tells
the story of a porn star, Janessa Brazil, whose photos have repeatedly been
used to scam people. Ajala talks to numerous victims who have been conned out
of hundreds of thousands of pounds/dollars. Many of these victims maintain they
spoke to the real porn star
As the program states, there was not just a handful of
scammers using Janessa's picture but hundreds. Janessa's images were readily available
on the internet and on her private porn site. At no time did the people scammed
out of large amounts of money do an image search that would have immediately
told them they were being taken for a ride.
During the podcast, it becomes apparent that this is not a
very sophisticated scam. There's a bit of sweet talk, everyday flirtation followed
by demands for money, mainly car repairs, to mend a broken phone or hospital costs.
As the con develops, the amount of money demanded grows larger. To be fooled by
this deception, you must be either stupid, gullible, or both. Unfortunately,
thousands of men have been fooled by this low-brow scam.
Most scams connected to the porn star Janessa were based in either Nigeria or Ghana. The British journalist Hannah Ajala, currently based in Ghana, met and interviewed one of the many romance scammers, known locally as "Sakawa boys".These scammers are professional criminals and are a major part of a billion-dollar industry. These Sakawa boys have multiple scams on the go at once, and they keep a spreadsheet to keep track of the lies he tells their victims. His wife and children know nothing of his work. Ajala treats these criminals with a courtesy they don't deserve as if they were some kind of celebrity. The podcast's conclusion is a bit of anti-climax as everybody lives happily ever after.
