Scammers are exploiting love to swindle older and retired women out of their money. Reshmi Dass, Acting Director of Economic Crime, disclosed during the National Scam Awareness Week event at the Grand Pacific Hotel in Suva that nearly ten cases are currently before the courts. She highlighted the case of a woman who lost approximately $500,000 through a fraudulent romance scheme. Dass explained that the scammers manipulated women aged 60 to 70 into sending explicit photos and then threatened to release those images on social media if they did not comply with financial demands.
In another development, the Methodist Church in Fiji is yet to decide on its relationship with a partner church that endorses LGBTQ clergy and same-sex marriage. A Fijian church community from Nevada has formally requested the Methodist Church in Fiji (MCIF) to cut ties with the United Methodist Church (UMC). MCIF General Secretary Jolame Lasawa acknowledged the concerns raised by the American church delegation, but emphasized that the church must proceed cautiously due to an existing agreement with the UMC.
In business news, a German kava ban has been revealed to be politically motivated rather than scientifically based, according to German kava expert Dr. Mathias Schmidt. He urged kava-exporting nations, including Fiji, to seek diplomatic intervention from Germany’s Foreign Affairs Minister and the European Union, asserting that the scientific community has been unaware of the underlying political reasons for the ban, which has been in effect for 24 years.
Overall, the revelations about romance scams targeting retirees, the church’s relationship with LGBTQ issues, and the insights into the kava ban underscore pressing social and economic challenges in Fiji and beyond.