Scam Goddess

What’s poppin’ con-gregation? This week, Lisa Gilroy joins us to discuss how Beanie Baby Mania took the 90’s by storm with people collecting and selling Ty Inc. stuffed toys for thousands of dollars. Plus, influencer scammer Caroline Calloway is accused of owing her landlord over $40,000. Stay Schemin’! Research by Kaelyn Brandt.  Sources:  https://www.insider.com/influencer-caroline-calloway-accu...

What’s poppin’ con-gregation? This week, Vinny Thomas joins us to discuss Gerry Cotten, the infamous Crypto King. Gerry created the crypto currency exchange, “QuadrigaCX,” later to leave users with no access to their funds after his mysterious and controversial death. Plus, scammers are now using deep-fake technology to impersonate people.   Research by Kaelyn Brandt.  Sources:  https://www.newswe...

What’s poppin’ con-gregation? This week, Chinedu Unaka joins us to discuss how in the 80’s a group of MIT and Harvard students perfected card counting and took to casinos, making over $57 million dollars. Plus, a former British Airways pilot is sentenced to a year in jail after it was discovered he wasn’t actually the pilot he said he was. Stay Schemin’!   Research by Kaelyn Brandt.  Sources:  htt...

What’s poppin’ con-gregation? This week, Danielle Pinnock joins us to discuss Nakesia Washington, a scamming travel agent who specialized in planning trips for the Essence Festival, only to leave clients high and dry. Plus, romance fraud is on the rise and one man sends nearly $500,000 to a love interest he never met. Stay Schemin’!   Research by Kaelyn Brandt.  Sources:  https://www.blackenterpri...

What's poppin' con-gregation?  This week, Solomon Georgio joins us to discuss Sarma Melngailis, a business woman who went from “Queen of Vegan Cuisine" to the “Vegan Bernie Madoff.” Plus, pet scams have become such a problem in Michigan that the Michigan Attorney General released a video warning residents. Stay Schemin'!   Research by Kaelyn Brandt. Sources: https://people.com/food/bad-vegan-fame-...

Laci welcomes Traci Thomas (T he Stacks Podcast) to discuss Jamison Bachman, a man who posed as a charming tenant only to victimize his roommates, determined to take their homes from under them. Plus, an elderly woman pleads guilty to helping a Nigerian scammer she fell in love with. Stay Schemin’!   CONgregation, catch Laci's TV Show, Scam Goddess, now on Freeform  and Hulu ! Did you miss out on...

What's poppin' con-gregation? This week, Jabari Davis joins us to discuss Heather Morgan, a rapping former-CEO who was a part of the largest asset seizure in history, involving over $4 billion in bitcoin. Plus, a Greek Orthodox priest and hedge fund manager participates in a “short and distort” scheme. Stay Schemin'!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt.    SOURCES: https://www.wsj.com/articles/hedge-fund-...

Laci welcomes Brittani Warrick ( 28 Days) to discuss how a 19th-century Scottish man convinced people to establish the new country of Poyais; however, it didn’t actually exist. Plus, one antique store goes viral after a TikToker exposes the real cost of antique swans. Stay Schemin’!   CONgregation, catch Laci's TV Show, Scam Goddess, now on Freeform  and Hulu ! Did you miss out on a custom signed ...

What's poppin' con-gregation? This week, comedian Frankie Quiñones joins us to discuss how 18 barrels of bourbon went missing from the Buffalo Trace Distillery, producers of the famed Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon. Plus, scammers capitalize off of fake high end whiskey being sold in local liquor stores across the nation. Stay Schemin'! Research By Kaelyn Brandt.  SOURCES: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/0...

What's poppin' con-gregation? This week, Corinne Fisher & Krystyna Hutchinson join us to get an update on some of our favorite scammers: Anna Delvey, Elizabeth Holmes & The Tinder Swindler. Plus, a Chinese student spends 21 days living a luxurious life for free as part of an art project for her school. Stay Schemin'!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt.    SOURCES: https://www.thecut.com/2018/05/how-anna-...

What's poppin' con-gregation? This week, Bridger Winegar joins us to discuss Sergei Mavrodi, the man behind one of the world’s largest Ponzi schemes. Plus, a 73-year old Long Island woman helps the NYPD catch a scammer. Stay Schemin!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt.    SOURCES: https://www.nbc15.com/2022/01/22/watch-grandmother-helps-catch-scammers-fun/ https://qz.com/1259524/mmm-and-bitcoin-russian-p...

What's poppin' con-gregation? This week, comedian Brian Simpson joins us to discuss how a group of British OG's successfully stole about $19.4 million from the Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Company. Plus, we learn how a Japanese KFC owner popularized fried chicken as the main dish during Christmas time in Japan. Stay Schemin'!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt.    SOURCES: https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/913...

It's Fraud Friday, and we're feeling good because the deacon has returned. Jacquis Neal ( Grand Crew) joins Laci to discuss the story of Juan Carlos Guzman Betancur. He was a teenage stowaway found frozen like a cube on an airplane who grew up to become one of the world’s most talented and good-looking criminals. Stay Schemin’! (Originally Released 02/08/2022)   CONgregation, catch Laci's TV Show,...

What's poppin' con-gregration? This week, Blair Socci joins us to discuss Michael Larson, the man who went on CBS’s game show, “Press Your Luck” and scammed them out of over $100,000. Plus, a man is accused of double-dipping employment as a principal of two different schools, hundreds of miles apart. Stay Schemin'!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt.    SOURCES: https://theretronetwork.com/big-money-no-w...

Praise the Lord, Con-gregation! This week, host of You're Wrong About podcast, Sarah Marshall joins the show to discuss the scams of televangelists Jim Bakker and Tammy Faye Bakker.  Plus, money found in the wall at Joel Osteen’s megachurch has people questioning if fraud was involved. Stay Schemin'!   CW: Mention of sexual assault @ 45:30   Research By Kaelyn Brandt.    SOURCES: https://religiona...

What's poppin' con-gregation? This week, we got Scottie Beam & Sylvia Obell discussing Richard Scott Smith, a man promising love but really conning a group of mid western women out of over $1 million dollars. Plus, a Los Angeles family is shocked to learn that someone posted their home on Airbnb to rent it. Stay Schemin'!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt.    SOURCES: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/11/...

What's poppin' con-gregation? This week, Fortune Feimster joins us to discuss Laura Albert, an author who published a book under the pseudonym JT LeRoy. It wasn’t discovered until years later that JT never really existed. Plus a 63-year-old Mississippi man is accused of being involved in a footbath scheme resulting in over $10 million in fake claims. Stay Schemin'!   CW: There is mention of sexual...

What's poppin con-gregation? This week, Mitra Jouhari joins the show discussing Christian Gehartsreiter aka Clark Rockefeller who spent 30 years passing himself off as an educated, wealthy aristocrat while taking advantage of people. Plus, three political operatives are accused of defrauding $3.5 million from PAC scams. Stay Schemin'!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt    SOURCES: https://media.vanityfai...

This week, we have Yvette Nicole Brown discussing Candace Owens, a controversial conservative political commentator who is often called out for spreading blatant lies. Plus, the Trump Organization is once again being accused of fraud, this time, for insurance related to its New York golf course. Stay Schemin'!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt    SOURCES: https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-f...

What's poppin' con-gregation? This week, we have Larry Owens discussing John Duval Gluck, the conman who popularized writing letters to Santa Claus in the beginning of the 20th century. Plus, investors in an NFT project titled “Evolved Apes”  learn that the world of NFTs isn’t immune to scams. Stay Schemin'!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt    SOURCES: https://www.vice.com/en/article/y3dyem/investors-s...

What's poppin' Con-gregation? This week, Aida Rodriguez joins us to discuss an all-women gang of thieves that took London by storm for the greater part of the 1900s. Plus, a man pleads guilty in a lost luggage scam resulting in over $300,000 worth of fraudulent claims. Stay Schemin'!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt    SOURCES: https://theculturetrip.com/europe/united-kingdom/england/london/articles/th...

What's poppin' Con-gregation? We got Patrick Hinds & Gillian Pensavalle discussing Sean Kirkham, a lifelong hustler who took advantage of U.S. nightclubs and the families of murdered and missing women in Canada. Plus, an ex-con uses identity theft to raise money for his boyfriend's bail bond. Stay Schemin'!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt    SOURCES: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/cit...

What's poppin con-gregation? This week, we have Dexter Mayfield discussing a scammer known by over a dozen names in over a dozen states, all the while nearly leaving over a dozen broken hearts in her wake. Plus, an influencer gets in trouble for promoting a skincare line claiming protection from blue screen light. Stay Schemin'!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt    SOURCES: https://gamerant.com/valkyrae...

What's poppin' con - gregation? This week, Diallo Riddle joins us to discuss a legendary con artist who used his ties to notorious crime families in the US to pose as a major music executive, gaining fame and access to lavish perks around the world. Plus, an anonymous group walks away with $3.81 million after creating a viral cryptocurrency named after popular Netflix show, Squid Game. Stay Schemi...

What's poppin' con-gregation? This week, we have Amanda Seales discussing Kyle Sandler, a man who posed as a rich Google executive, creating a now defunct tech business incubator in Opelika, Alabama. Plus, a fortune teller is arrested for fraud, scamming one victim out of $50,000. Stay Schemin'!   Research By Kaelyn Brandt    Sources: https://www.al.com/news/2021/05/kyle-sandler-explains-how-he-co...