Just FYI Swede, if this ends up being a scam, not all of us hold you responsible. It's obvious to me at least that you have been acting in good faith.
I myself can only say that even if it the project gets back on it's feet I would never have gotten involved had I known that it would cause me this much stress for no reason. At this point I just feel stressed out and disappointed in Sam, Fabrizio etc. no matter the outcome.