Hello everyone,

My name is Leonardo, I come from a humble family and I started working when I was still a boy.

I worked for many years in the fields, enduring scorching summers and harsh winters, saving money and preparing to change a future that otherwise seemed already written.

After years of sacrifices and renunciations, what I thought was an opportunity presented itself. A “friend” of my father needed help in one of the shops he had opened, and since it was connected to the products I had grown in the fields, I could be the right person for the job.

So I left the countryside and began working in the city: longer shifts, away from home from morning to evening, constant contact with customers. All things new and disorienting for me, but at the same time beautiful and stimulating.

One day, an unfortunate day, the shop owner introduced me to his best friend and minority partner in the shop, who was soon to become his best man.

This best friend told me about an innovative project he had been part of for years, which guaranteed a monthly return of 2%. I thought about it, reflected, considered the risks, and trusted the guarantee of knowing personally both the shop owner, who was also my father’s friend, and the other partner.

Naively, I believed that people who open shops, manage investments, show themselves in person and shake your hand could not “do you harm.”

So I decided to join the project and made my first payment, part of my savings earned with honesty and hard work. Everything went well, I made another payment, my savings decreased but for what seemed a stable, long‑term project. Finally, I decided to move all my savings into the project and dream big. It seemed to work and promised to let me pursue my dreams.

Years passed, the project continued, and I never withdrew anything, convinced it was a serious long‑term plan.

Meanwhile, I met someone, fell in love, and decided it was time for another turning point in my life.

I left the shop job, ready to start my new adventure, but problems began. Delays and clumsy excuses for the wages owed to me as an employee. After months I finally managed to get what I was owed, but I was left only with the disappointment of realizing that those I considered “friends” had exploited me solely for my work skills. Once I was no longer useful, I went from being treated like “family” to being just “money to spend.”

I prepared to leave, exchanging calls and messages with the other partner involved in the project I was still part of. We even talked about the country I had decided to move to, to be with the woman I love, a place he himself had visited years before. I was glad he seemed different from the shop owner.

Months passed, preparations for leaving went well, and I was finally about to start withdrawing the 2% monthly return from the project to support myself in the first months in a new and distant country.

Unexpectedly, and with suspicious timing, I was told that the company behind the project had been sold and that I would be reimbursed for all the capital accumulated over the years within a couple of months.

I wasn’t too worried, I still believed in the good faith of those involved and the seriousness of the company.

But as months went by, communications became difficult and sporadic. I was told to stay calm, that they knew the lawyers handling the sale, and that everything would soon be finalized.

After another month of silence, I realized it had all been a farce.

I filed a complaint with the authorities, contacted institutions and companies, searched for information and began my own investigations.

But I had nothing left, my entire bank account was gone, all the savings of a lifetime, earned through sweat and hardship, vanished.

I cannot afford a lawyer, so I continue the investigations on my own, hoping that justice will eventually help and support me.

Almost a year later, I am here asking for help from anyone willing to give it, because justice and the competent authorities remain silent. No measures have yet been taken, and after all this time, recovering my funds, even partially, seems almost impossible.

In a foreign country, without the savings I had put aside with so much sacrifice, without a job or stable income, I felt lost and defeated. My only lifeline is the love of the person by my side, the support of family and friends, and the determination not to let them steal my dreams as well as all my money.

So I ask you for a small contribution that will allow me to regain emotional and financial stability, to restart my projects and give me the initial security I need to build my future.

A heartfelt thank you to anyone who takes the time even just to read what happened to me, telling my story is itself an important step toward regaining self‑esteem and serenity.

I wish you all the best.

Leonardo