Man allegedly met women online to scam them

PHOENIX (KSAZ) - Authorities arrested a Valley man and charged him with taking more than $300,000 from women he met online.

He's accused of romancing Valley women and then defrauding them out of hundreds of thousands of dollars. The Attorney General's office says 35-year-old Daylon Pierce met all of his victims on dating websites.

"Investigators believe he set up online dating profiles on Match, Tinder, and POF.com," said Mia Garcia.

Pierce listed his address at a high-end apartment complex near 68th St and Camelback. Now he's calling a county jail home after being charged with fraudulent schemes and theft by misrepresentation.

Court paperwork says Pierce would convince these women he was a wealthy stock investor. He would then convince the women to transfer money to him so he would invest it for them.

"In general online dating scammers are very aggressive, very convincing, and a lot of these victims feel like they're in a trusting relationship," said Garcia.

Investigators say Pierce convinced one woman in March that a $92,000 investment would lead to a monthly income of $10,000 to $15,000. She liquidated her entire 401k and invested it with Pierce. By May, her money and Pierce had disappeared.

It's alleged Pierce used some of the money in local casinos, nightclubs, and in strip clubs.