Woman realised 'Bumble Swindler tried it on' with her when she saw the papers
A woman has told how she found out that the notorious 'Bumble Swindler' had tried to con her after reading about him in the local paper.
Sarah, who is not using her real name, said she had chatted many times with serial love cheat Cieran McNamara between 2019 and 2021. The 36-year-old said McNamara, who called himself Myles, kept asking her for photos of herself, tried to set up a meeting with her, and once asked her for money to "get back to Liverpool from London".
But it was only last week that Sarah discovered McNamara's true identity - a scammer who created a fake, fancy lifestyle by tricking women into giving him money while pretending to be in a loving relationship with them. McNamara, who also used the names Ciaran Griffin, Christian McNamara and Myles McNamara, travelled first class across the UK on trains and planes, staying in 5-star hotels.
He met his victims in different ways. Sometimes he met them online on dating sites like Bumble and Tinder, other times he would go to posh hotels and clubs, always looking to prey on rich or vulnerable people for his own financial benefit.
Messages sent from McNamara to Sarah (Supplied)
Messages from McNamara where he claims to be from America and live in Liverpool - he also claimed to be a DJ who spent time in Ibiza after they met on a dating app (Supplied)After carefully selecting his victims, he would start relationships with them, convincing them he was successful in a number of different fields. To some, he would masquerade as a successful businessman with a string of high-value properties in his portfolio, while to others he would pretend to be a barrister.
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When he first started speaking with Sarah after matching on a dating app, McNamara claimed he was in a band. He also claimed to be a DJ who spent time living in Ibiza. Speaking to the LiverpoolECHO this week, Sarah said: "I met him either on Tinder or Bumble and he asked for my number. He was quite a good-looking lad so I gave it to him and we started texting.
"He said he was born in America but had lived in the UK for a while. He said he was in a band, but when I asked if I would know them, he said they were small and not one I would have heard of. He said he was touring all the time, and would go missing. He would then pop back up a couple of weeks later and start texting again.
"He told me he lived in Liverpool. He asked where I was from and I said I was from West Derby. He then said he had lived in houses behind the Jolly Miller for 15 years. This was weird to me, I've lived in West Derby all my life and know the houses there are pretty new."
A photo of serial fraudster Cieran McNamara that he sent to a woman from West Derby in his bid to try and manipulate women for money (Supplied)To trick ladies into thinking he was rich, McNamara showed them snaps of himself at big houses in London and Cheshire. He also sent pictures of him on fancy train trips around the world. Sarah told the ECHO that he often sent her photos of him in first-class train seats.
Sarah shared that McNamara made up stories about his family being sick to explain why he didn't message back quickly. He told her his dad had a bad health scare in America. But soon after talking about his dad, he would start sending rude messages again.
Sarah only found out the truth about McNamara's dad after reading a story this month. The Daily Mail said McNamara grew up with his mum and then his grandma. His grandma was actually the first person he stole from. It's said that he took about £60,000 from Kathleen O'Sullivan by taking money from her account and from where she kept her savings.
Sarah said McNamara would send her pictures of himself and ask for her photos too. He sent messages saying things like he "wanted to kiss her lips" or "get into bed with her". But Sarah never wanted to meet him even though he kept asking. He even tried to visit her in the hospital when she was sick and pretended to be in Liverpool looking for a date.
Enjoying the high life - romance fraudster, Cieran McNamara. (Cheshire Constabulary)McNamara would vanish for weeks, then pop up with a message saying he'd been busy touring with his band or DJing in Ibiza. Sometimes the messages came from an unknown number, with McNamara claiming he'd lost his phone. He even sent her links to music on SoundCloud that he said was his band's.
But Sarah told how the messages soon started asking for money - something she refused to do. Even though Sarah never met him, despite his many tries, McNamara often took other women out on dates, showering them with gifts, trips and posh meals.
What these women didn't know was that he was using money he'd taken from other women to pay for his high life. After making his victims believe they were in a loving relationship, he'd make a fake crisis, saying he had bank problems and needed to borrow money, promising to pay it back as soon as he could. If any of the women questioned him, he'd turn it around and blame them for doubting him.
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From September 1, 2022 to 25th September 25, 2023 the next year, McNamara tricked four victims in Cheshire, Warwickshire and Hertfordshire into giving him £302,054.26. His downfall came when one of his victims in Cheshire realised what he was up to and told the police.
Detectives from the Cheshire Constabulary Economic Crime Unit started an investigation which led to McNamara's arrest in Colchester on September 28. He was then charged with four counts of fraud by false representation. After his arrest, officers searched a lock-up rented by McNamara and found about £19,500 worth of brand-new items including a £1,900 Burberry Coat, a £400 Burberry Scarf, Dubarry boots, Gucci trainers and a Ping golf set.
The search for other assets owned by him is still going on and all the items found will be part of a proceeds of crime hearing. Detective Constable Victoria Hazlewood, who was in charge of the investigation, said: "McNamara is a serial fraudster, and I truly believe that he cannot tell the difference between reality and fantasy.
"During our investigation, we discovered a web of lies with thousands of text messages which he sent to his victims to get cash to fund his fancy lifestyle. He tricked his victims into thinking he was a millionaire with properties all over the country, but in truth, he was jobless and living out of a suitcase."
"McNamara found ways to control and trick his victims and throughout the investigation, he has shown no regret for what he did. He really thought that he would never be caught by police and that he would never have to answer for his terrible behaviour."
"Thankfully, because of the courage and bravery of his victims, and the work of the team here in the economic crime unit at Cheshire Constabulary, McNamara was left with no option other than to admit his guilt. While he is now behind bars, I have no doubt that there are other victims across the country who have been treated in the same way and I would encourage them to come forward."
"If you believe that you have been targeted by a Romance fraudster, or you believe somebody close to you has been targeted, then please contact Action Fraud so you can begin to get the necessary support and prevent other people from becoming victims."
When asked how McNamara's offending made her feel, Sarah told the ECHO: "It knocked me sick. He was clearly targeting people who he thought were vulnerable. If he can do that to his own family, it's no surprise he did it to other women as well."
"He has no morals. It's quite scary that he managed to get money from those poor women. He's a master manipulator who repeatedly gaslights women. There are so many similarities between the Netflix show The Tinder Swindler and The Football Fraudster. To be a good liar you have to have a good memory as well and there were just too many inconsistencies in his story."
"I just knew there was something not right with him and now his face and story are out there for all to see. You have to do better than that to pull the wool over a Scouse girl's eyes."
McNamara, 37, from Coventry, was sentenced to seven years in prison at Chester Crown Court on Tuesday, February 6.
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