I'm an 83-year-old retired lawyer. Last year, I lost my wife of 40 years to a horrific disease, rapid onset dementia. I was her sole caregiver and neglected my law practice to attend to my wife. After she mercifully passed, I could not pick up the pieces of my practice and chose to retire. I lost the two anchors in my life, my wife and my 56-year career as a trial lawyer.

I was thus an easy target for a cybercriminal and internet scam. I soon found myself involved online with a beautiful woman who claimed to be a very successful businessperson. She claimed to be an émigré from Singapore who came to Los Angeles for college and then stayed. After a couple of months, we planned a trip together in California. She told me she'd made her money through gold trading with the help of her uncle, a retired investment banker. She said that by making small, conservative trades, buying long or short, at certain times, she always came out ahead.

She offered to help me make some money. Foolishly, I fell for the scam. She told me to open an online account with a reputable financial exchange based in Singapore. When I checked out the exchange, it was legitimate, registered with the Singapore government, and licensed by the U.S. Treasury Department to trade for Americans. Where I was conned was that I was steered to a “clone” website of the legitimate exchange, and not the actual one. Unwittingly, I set up an account with the clone instead of the original legal exchange.

I started small, transferring $5,000 and made money quickly. I was told by my new “girlfriend” that if I invested more, the rate of return would be higher. Foolishly, I did, eventually investing $145,000 and making a “paper” profit of almost $400,000. My “girlfriend” advised that I withdraw my money because of too much volatility in the gold markets following the Presidential election. The clone exchange informed me that I would have to deposit approximately $75,000 more with them to cover capital gains taxes due on my “profits.” Foolishly, I did so, bringing my total “investment” to around $220,000. I sent all the money to them by wire transfers from my United States bank to the largest bank in Japan.

When my “tax deposit” cleared, I expected to receive about $540,000. Instead, I was told that my dollars would have to be paid in bitcoin, and because of market volatility, I would have to pay another $55,000 to them. The lightbulb finally lit up for me, and I knew something was wrong. Through a close friend, I contacted a financial investigator who soon confirmed that I'd been scammed out of substantially all my money. I reported the crime to the FBI cybercrime unit, but the new administration has gutted the unit and has told me they can't help. I've contacted all the banks involved, but I've been told they have no obligation to make good on fraudulent wire transfers.

I am prepared to live with my shame and humiliation, but in a few months, I will be penniless. Soon after, I will be homeless as I will be unable to pay my rent. I'm unemployable because of my age and physical condition (I have severe spinal stenosis and must use a cane to walk). My daughter almost died from cancer a few years ago and continues to suffer from the aftereffects of her illness and treatment. She is in no position to take on the responsibility of supporting me, and she lives 250 miles away from me.

Throughout my long legal career, I routinely donated my time, money, and legal services to others less fortunate than I was. I always believed it was my moral and religious obligation to do so. I never dreamed that someday the shoe would be on the other foot and I would be the one in need of help.

Now I find myself in desperate need. A friend suggested that I ask for help through GoFundMe. I've been silently beating myself up for six months. It's time for me to get up off the floor.

But I can't do it alone. I need help.

WILL YOU HELP ME?