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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Built-in text messages ruined life, says city man

By: Melissa Martin

5/02/2010 1:00 AM | Comments: 74

A Winnipeg man is homeless and heartbroken after the woman he wanted to spend his life with found some salacious text messages on his cellphone.

The catch? He didn't write them.

For Darren P., who did not want his last name used, the cellphone fiasco began on Monday, when his girlfriend of two-and-a-half years stumbled on some naughty messages on his new work phone.

But those messages -- "Booty call," "Where u at," and "Be there soon" -- didn't come from Darren. They were pre-set text messages that came loaded on his Samsung Virgin Mobile phone.

"I said, 'That's ridiculous, why would I cheat?' There's things I believe about relationships... The first is that if you are in a relationship, you don't cheat," says Darren, 49, who notes he didn't know the phone was text-enabled. "I said, 'You're being ridiculous.' She said, 'No I'm not, here's the proof.' "

What happened next: a painful break-up, during which Darren -- who is now living with friends -- launched a quest to clear his name. He called Virgin Mobile, and was advised to file a written complaint, which he intends to do. He even walked into the Future Shop on Regent Avenue to show the offending messages to staff.

"At first, we didn't believe him," says Mike Ford, 20, a sales associate at the store. "But when we looked at a couple of the same phones he bought, and found they all had the same messages... We all felt horrible. We wanted to do whatever we could for him... He basically has to start his life over again. We're going to make sure that he's taken care of."

While Darren praises the compassion of Ford and his coworkers, who have kept in touch with the heartbroken man, he points the finger squarely at Virgin Mobile for selling phones with saucy texts to unsuspecting customers.

"It's not just teenagers buying these things. For people who don't know the technology, these things can be severely misconstrued," he says. "I'd like to see the phones recalled and the messages taken off, so that others don't have to go through the hell I'm going through."

melissa.martin@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition February 5, 2010 A4

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74 Commentscomment icon

Firstly, it sounds like he's better off without her. Why would anyone want a relationship with someone that doesn't trust them?

Secondly, why can't Winnipeg Free Press subscribers comprehend what they read? I thought it was a basic skill taught to 9 year olds. The number of commenters that have called Darren "Darrin", stated that he is "39" instead of 49 or similar mistakes is astonishing.

Since when has "Darrin" been a name?

How does one get such basic facts wrong when they are written right in front of them? I would have thought it'd be pretty easy to check.

Do people in Winnipeg all wear name tags, so they don't forget who they are?

First, this apparently only happened on Monday, so there's probably still time for the girlfriend to come around and realize she made a mistake. Why doesn't the gentlemen bring his girlfriend to Future shop (after 2-1/2 years together you would think she would give him the benefit of the doubt) and the sales people can show her that the phones do come with the same pre-programmed messages. This would solve the problem. I'll look for the girlfriend's side of the story - in the Miss Lonelyhearts column!

Sorry but there is more to this story. Either his g/f wanted a way out, or Darrin really did do something inappropriate and is trying to find an excuse.

Whether or not this is a pre-planned scam between the guy and his girlfriend, if this guy is actually allowed to proceed with a lawsuit for 'losing his girlfriend', we are all in trouble. If losing a girlfriend ruins your entire life, you have maturity and coping problems that need to be looked into.

All phones come with preset messages for crying out loud, it does not have anything to do with just Virgin. You don't have to have texting enabled for these messages to be there. I think that the girlfriend was looking for a way out and that Darrin is a bit naive for a 39 year old.

Why this has to make the news in the first place is a mystery to me.

Well, if the gf wants to get back together I imagine she would take this story as a sign that he IS telling the truth. You've done all you can man.

I guess people's stupidity is news.

I'm also so sure that the texts a 49 year old is sending will be "booty call" and "where u at".

Nobody in their right mind would determine that this meant he was cheating. He was easily able to prove without a doubt that the texts were pre-loaded.

So either this was the easy way for her to get out of the relationship, or she's a complete moron. Don't blame the cell company though.

Obviously she was going to be gone soon anyways, or was not smart enough to be worth your time.

It's Virgin. They're notorious for this kind of thing. The name itself is entirely tongue-in-cheek. Next time you want a cheap phone, research a little about the company if you don't want this kind of thing to happen...Virgin is a sexy brand that targets urban young adults who themselves are sexy. Not that surprising.

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