PORTLAND, Ore. (KPTV/Gray News) – A Portland man who thought he was going on a first date says he ended up getting robbed by a group of men who catfished him.
Cooper Nicolaysen said the date was planned on the Bumble dating app. The person’s profile looked convincing enough but when he came to Lincoln City Park to meet her, she was not the person who showed up.
“I was excited because it’s been a while since I had a date,” Nicolaysen said.
It’s been about a week since the robbery and he says he is still processing what happened.
“It was a pretty standard Bumble match where she seemed interested in meeting immediately which I guess is a little rare,” he said.
According to Nicolaysen, a few messages his Bumble match sent were a little odd, but not necessarily red flags.
“They did say to bring money so we could go get food after. But I guess it’s hard to tell what that means,” he said. “I was not immediately thinking they wanted to steal my money.”
But when he pulled up to Lincoln City Park on Dec. 30, 2024, around 3 p.m., that’s when he started feeling uneasy.
“I walked in and saw these four sketchy-looking dudes in the middle of the park,” Nicolaysen said, “I texted her and she said she was exactly where those guys were. I waited for them to go away, so I felt a little safer to walk back into the park. But then they popped out of nowhere.”
Nicolaysen said he tried to run away but the four guys caught up to him and started threatening him.
“There was one guy in the front and he started showing that he had a gun on him. He was yelling for me to take out my wallet, give him my keys, and all that. And I just let it happen of course,” Nicolaysen said.
He said he had to spend more than $1,000 to tow his car home, get it rekeyed, and buy a new phone. Nicolaysen has reported the profile to Bumble and the police. But wants to make sure this doesn’t happen again.
“A bunch of my friends have reached out to see if I wanted to go on a date again. They said they can be there for me and watch from the sidelines,” Nicolaysen said.
Letting a friend know where and when you are going if you decide to meet up with someone online is always a good idea. Other safety tips include meeting in a more public place like a coffee shop or a store.
Be a little skeptical and ask questions about what the person’s intentions are. And always trust your gut, if something feels off, it probably is.
Police said they are investigating the incident, but added they don’t think this type of catfishing is very common.
Nicolaysen says he has not gotten any further updates from police just yet.
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