Complaint Review: Fadi Chaiban - San Diego California

I met Fadi Chaiban (at that time using the name of Anthony Marino) on the dating website Plenty of Fish (POF). He claimed to be Italian from Palermo, Sicily (he is actually Middle Eastern, born in Kuwait). He boosted that he was a multi-millionaire and his millions were earned from the 42 different businesses he owned (businesses ranging from a vending machine business in the Ukraine, to a transportation company (see Ripoff Report 815143 regarding that scam), to a talent agency (turns out that "talent" was sex as it was an escort business and he ran a prostitution ring), various internet businesses (my favorite--notice my sarcasm--being a website to prevent senior citizens fraud--I am sure this website was one of the ways he preyed upon the elderly), promoting inventors products and last, but certainly not least, a business loaning money to individuals (which is how he ripped me off). 

A bit more background: Fadi claimed he had a MBA from Harvard and it was there he was recruited by the CIA to do intelligence work in the middle east. He stated he was jailed and tortured for six days in Beirut, Lebanon as he was thought to be an American spy. It turns out HE WAS DEPORTED FROM THE U.S. in 2000 and jailed for that reason. Fadi escaped and returned illegally to the U.S.

Fadi is a convicted felon and has been in jail at least twice in the U.S. He is a professional con artist and psychopath who thinks nothing of lying, stealing, cheating and emotionally abusing any person in his path.  He has no morals, conscience or ethics.  All evidenced by the fact that to gain compassion and money from those of us he has conned, Fadi faked the death of his mother, brother and sister.  And, to a Los Angeles woman he met on POF, who he also conned, Fadi even faked his own death. This man is very slick and go at what he does.  The first day I met him he stated "You don't need to tell me anything as I have a gift of being able to read minds and figure out exactly what a person needs and wants."  This was the only honest statement out of his mouth.  He did have an uncanny way to say and do exactly what he needed to do to gain a person's trust and compassion.  In my case, he systematically and purposefully worked my teenage son by getting emotionally close to him and trying to distance him from his biologically father. To use and abuse an innocent child is completely unforgivable, but to Fadi, it is all part of his con game.  He will use and abuse any one.  Beware of this man.

The ripoff scam that Fadi used on me was via asking for a loan which he promised to pay back within 24 hours.  To entice the loan, he promised to pay me 30% interest.  Once I gave him the cash ($9000.00) he disappeared.  Phone and email disconnected, he was out of his home...he vanished.  I do consider myself lucky in that I was "only" conned out of $9K, the woman mentioned above from Los Angeles lost $150,000 to this con man.  Suffice it to say, we know there are many other victims of this ruthless ripoff artist and hopefully submitting this report will save another innocent person from falling under the evil spell and wicked cons of Fadi Chaiban.