How the 'Sankie' Game Works: A Guide for Beginners

You can find my trips here: and here. Now I'll explain what a growing number of tourists travelling in the Dominican Republic describe as experiences with "sankies". Essentially they are Dominicans who seek out their prey among unwitting female tourists. Almost always they come from poverty, have little education and are often illiterate. That doesn't mean they aren't intelligent; however, what they do is play on human nature and weakness. The vast majority of these encounters happen inside the resorts scattered along the coasts. This doesn't mean that all men working in these resorts are sankies, nor that they don't also operate outside holiday spots; however, since these places are heavily frequented by Americans and Europeans, it's natural that sankies find easy pickings there. They work as hotel staff, usually in entertainment or as waiters.

Wages are usually low for unskilled and illiterate workers, but the reasons they take these jobs aren't the wages, but the opportunity to interact with tourists so they can potentially make much more money. So how do these sankies handle the many women they know? Well, first of all, as said before, they exploit human nature and weakness. They realise that most of these women, being on holiday, are there for fun and are probably more adventurous than they'd normally be. They're aware of the fact that no man accompanies them, so these women might be looking for "fun" while on holiday. They often use what salespeople call "qualifying the buyer", asking personal questions to identify "needs" and weak points. The unwitting tourist believes this man really cares about her life and is genuinely interested in her.

They listen a lot, and in the end it seems as if they have similar interests and many things in common, so they seem to be your very soulmate! Then, when the woman seems interested or at least curious, he'll ask for a "date". Now the sankie's work begins. This work usually involves an initial night where he can show off his exceptional dancing skills, which as we know women are drawn to. This will be followed by more nights, depending on the length of the holiday. Naturally at a certain point the sankie becomes intimate with the woman and will know how to choose the right moment to make his move, so that it has the highest emotional impact. Generally he creates a detailed plan of attack on how to extract as much money as possible from his new victim, based on her personality. A sankie can tell if a woman won't be a good victim because she lacks the necessary naivety.

In these cases the sankie will be happy anyway, because she'll pay for everything during her holiday. And he'll get to enjoy himself sexually too. These aren't, however, the real victims the sankie is looking for. What he really seeks is the woman who will bond with him emotionally. With these women, the sankie insists on paying for nights out and entertainment, thus also buying their trust by perhaps showing he isn't so poor. Naturally, the money comes from other victims whose trust has already been won and who have already moved from the courtship stage to the "engagement" phase. The girls in the engagement phase, already back in their home country, have developed real feelings for the man they met and temporarily left, and so have fallen in love.

The sankie has managed to form a bond with them, gain their trust, and give them the hope of returning to live a romantic life of love together in a tropical paradise. Shortly after they return home, the sankie will contact the victim by phone and internet, to prove his sincerity. Shortly after, the tricks to extort money begin. Many common stories involve sick mothers or relatives who need money for treatment. At this point the woman, in what feels like a truly lasting relationship, feels obliged to help. She can't tell her new fiancé that she doesn't want to help his mother in trouble! So she'll send money for the needs he claims to have. Other common stories are that the sankie himself is ill and can't work, or that his friend or another family member is injured and needs money for the hospital.

He promises to pay this money back as soon as they see each other again, and during the same conversation reassures the woman that he loves her and that they'll have a future together. Some sankies use various methods to extort money. Some will use tricks like sending emails saying they long to hear their voice but can't afford a mobile phone. This usually leads the victim to send money via Western Union or other money transfers to her man so he can buy a phone to call her. Then of course the mobile phone breaks or there'll be some later story to make more money be sent. So they'll keep using tricks so that the sending becomes constant, month after month. Naturally the money received is used for personal pleasure and to win the trust of new victims. Some, however, have an even different outlook. They're looking for someone able to get them a visa to leave the country, or to marry them.

Once they're out, with the new life the romance quickly ends and the woman is left emotionally and sometimes financially devastated. Other methods: The sankie, not knowing how to write well in Spanish (let alone Italian or English) since he's often illiterate, needs someone to write the emails for him. So they usually use a friend, like someone who works in an internet café. He often saves the letters by inserting the appropriate name of the current "fiancée"; moreover he'll have several friends who work as sankies whom he can rely on to assist him with new victims. While he's with this one, a kind of "support" might be, for example, to arrange for her to meet and say there's some emergency. Naturally, money will be needed to pay for treatment, car damage, etc.

A sankie often also introduces members of his family: mother, sisters, brothers and anyone else who can be part of his support network. They'll be glad to meet his needs and leave the victim with the impression of being the only girl in the sanky's life. A new novia is introduced at home every week, or whenever possible, and the family can thus enjoy a bit of easy money. Sankies are professionals, but naturally, with so many "fiancées", they sometimes run into complications. It can happen that two or more of his fiancées come back to visit him at the same time. This can be a serious problem. In this case, it's best to break the bond with the girl he considers least profitable. After all, there'll be another plane of potential victims landing soon. If you decide to send money, know that you're not the only one doing it and you could fall into the trap of sad illusions.

Of course love exists in these countries too, but after 5 trips all I can tell you is to be extremely careful.