Information on a scam/ fraud  -- Russian women ('virgins") who
approach male tourists, have affairs, get them to bring them to U.S.
later  --not mail order brides--real women in Russian cities who
approach American men--- how to recognize the fraud.  i want reputable
articles or advice--not e-mails-- news articles or govt documents, or
television news (20-20 or 60 minutes) type of reports concerning  this
scam.  Or first person interviews warnings, on how to recognize the scam, etc.
i have checked RussianScam.com and other scam sites to no avail
(lots of MAIL ORDER BRIDES) NOT what I want---I want in person approaches

I know you said you want documentation, not e-mails.  That being said,
I think it is obvious to most when they are being scammed in such a
way.  Unfortunately, we often listen to our hearts more than our
brains.
  
If you are interested in discovering whether a Russian woman is truly
in love with you or just wants an easy ticket to U.S. citizenship, all
you need do is tell her you were actually thinking of becoming a
citizen of HER country and want to live where she lives.  Most likely,
she will be gone.

An acquaintance of mine went to the Ukraine and met such a woman.  He
met her family, etc.  They made plans for her to come to the United
States so they could marry.  He produced a photograph of the woman
that was absolutely stunning.  His looks would remind you of Harpo
Marx and he is NOT highly educated, working a trade for a living.  He
then went on to tell me how she has a degree in this and that ( I can
only remember that I was impressed).  I commented on how she was very
attractive and her educational background was impressive.  I then
asked him, 'What does she see in you?"

Actually, this isn't for me, but for a colleague of mine---a 62 year
old male professor who is normally intellectually superior, but who
confided to me that his "houseguest" was a 25 year old woman he met in
Russia who approached him there and for two years she has been trying
to get into the USA to visit.
Now she is here,(on a 6 month visa) and he says the problem is "she
was a virgin, and I cannot bring myself to break up with her because i
am the only lover she has had."
I do not think he will respect emotional reasoning, but if he saw a
newspaper article on this type of scam, or a transcript of a 60
minutes type newsshow, etc. I think he would pay attention to that. 
After all, professors pay attention to well researched documents.
I hate to see him scammed like this.
PLEASE somebody out there--can you help me?
Thanks,
vkg

Marriage for the sake of Green Card (or EU citizenship) is quiet
common. However, quiet truthfully, if your professor friend is in
love, claiming that his friend is only one of those looking to scam
him (even if you showed him a "proof" from an article), might only
alienate him from you. He may believe, that his friend, *unlike those
women* is pure hearted, and that you are trying to ruin his happiness.
We had several threads here on "how do I stop my friend from
committing a romantic disaster", and you cannot always stop the train,
unless you want to ruin your relations with him.

Maybe, you should consult the INS, who by the way, investigate
marriages, in order to ensure that such a scam does not occur.

You should definitely be wary.

I saw a reputable article on one of the primetime news programs
(Dateline, 20/20, 60 minutes). I do not have the exact date, but it
aired within the last year and had a number of first person
interviews. These were not mail-order brides but rather older men who
visited the country. Whether or not the women claimed to be "virgins"
I don't know. Sorry for the lack of definitive information, I just
wanted to let you that what you are looking for is out there.

I hope you are wrong about your colleague's friend and things work out
well for them, but it is good to see that you are concerned for his
well-being.

I know this information comes somewhat late, but hopefully it can
still be of use to you:

The 60 Minutes article that dynomite mentioned, titled "Russian
roulette", is dated May 11, 2003.  The 60 Minutes transcript of the
segment can be found here (paid membership needed, but there is
currently a free month-long trial available):

http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/sixtyminutes/stories/2003_05_11/story_830.asp

There is a transcript of the segment available on another website, but
from what you said, your friend might want to see it on the actual 60
Minutes site to be convinced that it is somewhat credible.  The link
to the copy is here:

http://www.mediadefamation.org/defamation0.htm

The 60 Minutes segment seems to deal specifically with Australians and
the exploitation of Australian laws, although the information
regarding some Russian women using unwitting men as a means to
permanent residency is there and could possibly apply in the United
States as well.


To find this, I searched for:
russian marriage scam "60 Minutes"


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