A British man was beaten, stripped and robbed in Brazil after falling for a dating app trap operated by muggers.
The unnamed 36-year-old London-born victim was snatched by the gang moments after talking to a woman in Sao Paulo on Monday when he had just left a tobacco shop, Folha de S.Paulo newspaper reports.
The four criminals bundled him into a car and stripped him of his cash, clothes, Nike trainers, Rolex watch worth close to £20k, iPhone 11 and Louis Vuitton belt.
One of the four was reportedly armed and when they demanded that he transfer cash via a local instant payment scheme called PIX, he told them he could not because he had no Brazilian bank account.
The gang were unhappy at this response and brutally beat him up, then threw him out of the car onto the street.
According to the incident report, neighbours were surprised by the commotion inside the parked car and decided to call the military police.
The victim told police, according to Folha, that he speaks Portuguese reasonably well so was able to communicate with the thugs who kept him in the car for a few hours.
The Brit said he was watching the Brazil v Switzerland World Cup game and after it ended he went looking for a place to eat.
He was then stopped by a woman with black hair who he was slightly suspicious of, but before he knew it was snatched by the gang, Folha reports.
Following a tip-off, cops seized a 16-year-old boy, who was later identified by the victim at the police station.
Officers seized 1,457 Brazilian Real (£230) in cash and a Samsung mobile phone from him.
The victim told local media that he lives in London but regularly travels to Brazil to visit his one-year-old son, who lives with his mother, from whom he is separated.
According to reports, eight out of 10 kidnappings in Sao Paulo are carried out through bogus dating apps.
Police are still searching for the other suspects involved in the robbery.
