Northern Irishman missing in South Africa, part of online dating scam

Irish family desperately seek answers after 66-year-old father goes missing having flown on a one-way ticket to Johannesburg to meet an online love interest.

A 66-year-old, who flew to South Africa to meet a woman he had been chatting with online for two years, is believed by his family to missing.

Stanley Currie flew to South Africa on Dec 28, 2018, and has not been heard from since Dec 30. His family and friends took to social media to post pictures of Currie and plead for assistance in finding the 66-year-old who suffers from depression and a heart condition. He was last seen wearing a dark jacket and a “monkey” hat. He has the names Mark, Kelly-Ann, and Ann tattooed on his forearms.

On the Facebook group Missing Persons - South Africa, Richard, Curries brother wrote: “I need your help.”

He explained that Currie had “been talking to “someone” on the internet for about two years. On the 28th December 2018, he boarded a flight to Johannesburg on a “one-way” ticket to meet this person. He hadn’t booked any accommodation over there was carrying a large amount of cash. [sic]”

His concerned brother went on to outline their concerns. He added “He suffers from depression and has got heart health problems. Numerous attempts have been made by myself and his family to contact him but his phone has been turned off since Sunday night just gone. This “person” who he was going to meet no one from the family have any idea who “she” is, and we are obviously concerned that it is a scam. We are now getting very concerned about him as already stated we’ve had no contact.

“We have contacted the police over where he lives in Northern Ireland but they aren’t interested no surprise there. All we want to know from him is that he is safe and well and for him to contact his family to let them know that all is well. We can’t obviously force him to come back but knowing he is alive and well is all we want to know.”

The South Africa Community Crime Watch (SACCW) group is also assisting with the search. A spokesperson for the group, Steven King, told the South African website TimesLIVE “We are still busy with investigations. At this stage, we have a little information, which we cannot put out to the public yet. But we cannot conclusively say whether he arrived in South Africa.”

He added “The family tried to find out what airline he used but it seems as though he missed his first flight, which had been booked by a neighbor.  Someone else booked a second flight for him,” King said.

King also reports that the family has received little assistance from Dublin authorities. He told TimeLIVE “They have tried to open a case in Dublin but authorities there say he went on holiday willingly. The family is in distress. No case has been opened in South Africa yet.”

Can you help? Share this story with anyone who might recognize missing Stanley Currie (66), from Northern Ireland, believed to be in South Africa.

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