It wanted money in advance, so yes, it was.
It pretended there was a significant market for straight male escorts, so yes, it was.
It wants money off clients just to see who's available, so even if it weren't, it'd be crap.
Normally, victims lose nearer to the ?350, but they must have thought he was particularly gullible to ask for ?1,500 on top of that. It's almost certainly vanished, but it would be worth talking to your local Trading Standards department. How did he pay? How did he find them? If it was via an ad, tell whoever published it.