STEP 3: MEET THE GANG
“My dear friend, you should contact the BARRISTER to have the legal documents released to us.”
“The DIPLOMAT will be arriving to your country with the consignment soon”.
“Please I can’t communicate with you from the refugee camp you should contact the REVEREND for more information please.”
Whether the scammers work in gangs or alone, it is rare to see a fraud that wouldn’t involve the victim being contacted by different people who are supposedly vital for releasing the funds, claiming the prize, helping the orphan in need or what have you. This trick serves to create further pressure on you. It is again something that can be observed elsewhere as well. Have you ever wondered why in some cases the army needs two drill instructors instead of just one constantly yelling at the privates? The answer is simple: pressure from many directions is more effective than from just one. You can ignore pressure from one direction, but being bombarded from many directions is much more difficult if not impossible to ignore. This is especially true when you, as a victim, are alone and everyone around you is there just to pressure you more.
The use of multiple characters also creates different kinds of pressures. Why do you think the poor orphan in a refugee camp always directs you to an expensive barrister? Because the poor orphan and barrister working in tandem appeal to different sides in you. The orphan makes you feel guilty and sorry for him, while the barrister creates the sense of urgency and officials being involved. No matter what kind of person you are, the scammers are doing this precisely because in this way they are likely to find your weak spot.
The use of different characters may also create a feeling of helplessness to you. When was the last time that you dealt closely with a bank’s director, a barrister, a diplomat or even the presidents of some countries in some of the wildest cases? Yet in a scam you are suddenly thrown in the middle of such prestigious company. Doesn’t that make you feel a little helpless and confused? Wouldn’t it be better to let these important people run the business since they know it? This is exactly what the scammers want: they want you to obey them. They want to decide what happens in the delusion. Posing as such authority figures is one way to achieve your compliance. They are not taking it from you by force. Instead you are giving it to them, much like you would likely give it to a police officer after being pulled over for speeding. We have been raised from our childhood to obey officials and authorities. The scammers know how to take advantage of this.