(Another) oil rig scam -- watch out for Gregory Jaxson

Recently I joined WeChat to chat with a friend I met on a recent visit to China. WeChat offers a "people nearby" feature to help you meet people in the same area you are.

One night I received some messages from "Gregory." He was visiting the Dallas area and wanted to move here. He was divorced with a 15-year-old son. He was ready to retire after signing some kind of contract and completing one last job on an oil rig. He said he was a marine engineer who loved cars. In fact, he owned four cars. He couldn't wait to finish work and move.

It seemed like a normal conversation until I noticed a few problems. His English was spotty. He kept using odd words such as nutritive, I couldn't find any Internet records on him and he immediately wanted my phone number so we could talk, but then he would only text.

He got serious really fast and started talking about his son, who, though 15, liked to watch TV shows designed for much younger children. He was supposedly 50, but had been a widower for 8 years after a 28-year marriage. And he kept asking what time it was in Dallas, Then the move, it turns out, was only because of me.

I kept texting waiting for the inevitable request for money, which came after a week, His drilling machine had broken parts and he needed $4700 to complete the job or he would end up in court. All of his money was tied up. His cars weren't any help. He "needed to get his finances in order when he got home." He didn't have any credit. But he had lots of excuses. I started blocking his texts and reported him on WeChat.

Two days later I got a call from another guy, telling me "Mr. Greg" had collapsed on the rig and was airlifted to a hospital. The "hospital worker" claimed to have seen the texts and concluded that I was Mr. Greg's wife. Would I be able to travel to give him a blood transfusion? Nope. The guy tried to make me feel guilty about not sending the money or trusting Mr. Greg. He was vaguely threatening. He got blocked too.

Greg was very persuasive and I can see how people would fall for his story, but don't buy it.