'easy to manipulate'
Widow conned out of £500k fights back tears on Good Morning Britain as she defends being tricked twice by fraudsters
A WIDOW who was conned out of £500,000 fought back tears on Good Morning Britain today as she defended being tricked TWICE by fraudsters.
Ex-police officer Anne Larkin, 55, was drowning in grief when she was preyed upon by crooks.
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Host Adil Ray said on the ITV breakfast show: "The thing that I get really alarmed by is that this happened once with a guy claiming to be a soldier. I can imagine you thinking he was quite heroic and genuine, then months later you fell for a second scam.
"How did that even happen? Having been scammed the first time around, surely you would be on your guard a little bit more, but no? They manipulated you again."
Anne replied: "Yes I understand where you're coming from. When you are going through grief of a love one, with a wife, husband or partner in that sense, the grief is completely different.
"It turns your world completely upside down...."
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Anne broke off as she became overwhelmed by sadness.
She continued: "It was easy in that sense for them to manipulate me that way.
"With both I never had a thought or hint in my head that I was being scammed."
Anne was left devastated when her husband of 34 years, Graham, tragically passed away in November 2019 from liver and kidney failure.
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It was at her lowest point that she first heard from conman Clinton, who told her he was a US Army medic from New Jersey serving in Yemen.
It was around this time that lonely Anne was also targeted by a second fraudster, who claimed to be an actor who wanted to help poverty-stricken children.
Clouded by her own grief and loneliness, it was too late when Anne realised she had sent the scammers hundreds of thousands of pounds.
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