Online romance scams are fairly common, where people pretend to plan the future and end up stealing money. The same happened with a woman who met Brandon Kiehm on Bumble in 2019. He met her while using the fake name Dae Up Lee Kim.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg Jr. revealed in the statement that Brandon stole almost $272,000 from the 44-year-old victim of his long con. The statement reads, “A woman thought she was buying a home with her boyfriend, when, allegedly, he stole approximately $272,000 of her hard-earned money. We allege that Brandon Kiehm crafted a relationship on a web of lies, preying on his girlfriend’s trust again and again.”
The police suspect there may be more victims. He was charged with second-degree grand larceny for his crime, but was released on non-monetary bail. The man allegedly pretended to be a financial professional who had graduated from Stanford, to appear like an ideal partner to the woman. However, he has been involved in similar romance scams in the past, too. This time, he pretended to be buying a house with the woman.
Man accused of conning woman out of nearly $300K in alleged Bumble romance scam https://t.co/AIFobmOcnq pic.twitter.com/XCCHhWRvCp
— Eyewitness News (@ABC7NY) December 18, 2025
He told her he would attend the bidding while she was traveling for work. He informed her they were at the second-highest bidder spot. Then he proceeded to ask her for a cashier’s check to pay the home’s trustee.
He asked to pay the broker, and the woman sent $78,259 to him. The identity of the broker was not revealed. Brandon again asked the woman for the rest of the money to buy the house, saying they had won the bidding. That time, the woman signed a contract for the house, not knowing it was all a big scam.
NEW: Today we announced the indictment of Brandon Kiehm for allegedly stealing approximately $272,000 from a 44-year-old woman in a romance scam. Learn more here: https://t.co/afLCvIqLex
— Alvin Bragg (@ManhattanDA) December 18, 2025
He moved on to withdraw the money from his joint account with the associate. The victim found different ID cards with her partner’s photo, but the name did not match. After that, the man revealed his identity, but it was too late. When she contacted the property broker, he informed her that Kiehm never placed a bid.
Apart from this, he has also scammed two other women for $49,000. He stole $800 from a neighbor and $13,000 from a dog walking job. Kiehm was sentenced to two to six years in prison but was released after serving about one year and eight months.
