Ling Ling, a migrant woman, swindled 510,000 yuan (US$61,620) out of Shen, a bachelor with a master's degree, over the past four months for money she handed over to someone playing a similar hoax on her, Shanghai Morning Post reports.

Ling Ling and Shen were introduced through a matchmaking agency in early April.

In the four months they dated, Ling Ling convinced Shen to give her a total of 510,000 yuan with a variety of excuses for needing the money.

On September 2, after Shen had repeatedly tried and failed to reach Ling Ling, he reported her disappearance to police. Within a week, she was found and arrested.

She admitted to her crime, saying that she had met and fallen in love with a man who was living in Japan. She said he promised to help her get to Japan if she would send him 550,000 yuan (US$66,450).

Ling Ling then played the "date" trick and remitted most of the money to the man in Japan, but he had disappeared, she said.

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