Romance Scam Victim Receives Suspended Sentence for Role in Money Laundering

 Dublin, May 23, 2025 — A 50-year-old woman who fell victim to a long-running online romance scam has received a suspended sentence after pleading guilty to allowing her bank account to be used to launder nearly €17,000 in criminal proceeds.

Alida Kuiken, with an address at Kilrussane, Knockraha, Co. Cork, appeared before Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on Thursday. She admitted to permitting €16,997 to be transferred through her bank account over two days in September 2022, believing she was assisting her online fiancé — a man she had never met in person but thought to be a US marine.

Detective evidence presented in court revealed that during a search of her residence in February 2024, Gardaí seized a personal diary in which Kuiken had written goals including repaying the laundered funds, finding a Christian husband, opening a pet store, and securing rental accommodation.

It was accepted by the investigating officer that Kuiken had little to no understanding of the nature of the criminal operation she had become entangled in until after her arrest. She told Gardaí she had transferred the money into another account and subsequently converted it into Bitcoin, forwarding it to the individual she believed was her fiancé. She said she was under the impression that the funds were being sent from friends of his family to relatives abroad.

When asked by Gardaí if she had found the circumstances unusual, she acknowledged that she had — and that she had voiced those concerns at the time. Her plea was accepted on the basis of recklessness rather than deliberate criminal intent.

Further evidence supporting her lack of awareness was found in her correspondence with her bank after the suspicious transfer resulted in an immediate freeze on her account. She maintained she believed the funds had gone to their intended recipient.

The court heard that Kuiken began communicating with the fraudster via an online dating platform in February 2021. Over the course of their three-year virtual relationship, she never met the man in person. In one email to her elderly father dated April 19, 2021, the scammer — posing as a US marine — claimed to be her committed fiancé.

During interviews, Kuiken candidly admitted she had been “utterly naive” and described feeling “pathetic” in hindsight. She told Gardaí she now believes the individual manipulated her over a prolonged period, carefully cultivating her trust in order to exploit it. Final contact from the fraudster occurred in 2021, when he claimed he was about to retire.

Kuiken, who is currently between administrative support contracts, has since made efforts to remedy the harm caused, having gathered €7,000 for restitution. The court also heard that she had previously reported the fraud to US federal authorities.

Judge Orla Crowe acknowledged documentation indicating that Kuiken may have transferred up to €50,000 to the fraudster over time. In delivering her sentence, the judge took into account the defendant’s cooperation, lack of prior convictions, and evidence of genuine remorse.

Kuiken was handed a suspended sentence and was not required to serve time in custody, contingent on continued efforts to repay the funds.