Sydney doctor scammed by fraudster posing as millionaire

Sydney doctor Sadhana Govindasamy narrated her harrowing experience of being love-scammed by Andrew Pearce, a man she met on a dating app and believed to be a successful private equity investor. After hitting it off on their first date, Pearce charmed Govindasamy, eventually moving in with her and discussing plans to buy a large property together.

Pearce presented himself as a high-flying hedge fund manager with racehorses, even convincing Govindasamy to transfer half the alleged expense for a planned holiday to Hamilton Island. However, on the day of their departure, Pearce stood her up, later claiming he had been in an accident, which led Govindasamy to pay his hospital bills.

Govindasamy's suspicions grew when she encountered news articles detailing Andrew Pearce's history as a serial fraudster. Reports indicated he had conned a woman out of $75,000 by falsely claiming to be a multimillionaire gambler and had previously served time in prison for defrauding another woman. Her suspicions were further confirmed when she contacted a real estate agent who recalled showing Pearce a property, but he was with another woman and falsely claimed to be a banker.

This discovery provided Govindasamy with a way out of the "toxic situation." She reported Pearce to the police, after which he began threatening her friend and incessantly calling her. "I think he's a psychopath. As a human being and a medical doctor, I am convinced so," Govindasamy stated, describing his actions as a betrayal of the trust she had placed in him and vouched for to her family and friends.

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I think he's a psychopath. As a human being and a medical doctor, I am convinced so.