The tenacity of a victim and a Boothbay Harbor Police officer led to the indictment last week of a Boothbay Harbor man who allegedly swindled thousands of dollars from his victims.

Michael Hawkins, 31, was indicted in Lincoln County Superior Court on two counts of theft by deception Class C and two counts of deception Class E.

According to the arrest warrant, Boothbay Harbor Police Officer Larry Brown began his investigation of Hawkins in April after a Dresden woman contacted him.

The woman told Brown that Hawkins had falsely identified himself as Michael Carroll, and that he borrowed $1,890 and never repaid it. What appeared at first to be a civil matter was ultimately determined to be a case of repeated intentional deception by a man who found his victims through dating services, social media and in support groups.

Hawkins met the Dresden woman through the “OkCupid” online dating service and sent a photo of himself and his son, outside an Ocean Point cottage that he falsely claimed was his family’s. According to the affidavit, Hawkins claimed to be a law student and a trust fund beneficiary, neither of which are true. The woman documented months of text messages from Hawkins in an 11-page statement and 50 pages of text messages, she provided to police.

She also used Facebook to show that hers was a not a single case of Hawkins using deceit to obtain money.

After posting Hawkins’ photo and a brief story about their encounter on Facebook, the woman received numerous messages from strangers telling how Hawkins had conned themselves and others. Ultimately, Officer Brown interviewed some of these victims and included three other individuals in Hawkins’ arrest warrant.

According to victims, Hawkins repeatedly misrepresented who he was, his possessions and his occupation. He asked victims to loan him money for a variety of reasons, including to buy his son Christmas gifts and medication, because he said his mother was withholding his trust fund payment, and because his car had been impounded or had no gas.

He used illness, his own and his family members, as excuses for not repaying loans or showing up for meetings.

As of Sept. 15, Hawkins is being held in Two Bridges Jail, waiting for someone to post his bail. If convicted, Hawkins could face up to five years of imprisonment and a fine of up to $5,000.