The Wedding Photo That Never Was

Imagine discovering a wedding photo on your porch, only to realize the smiling couple in it are complete strangers, and one of them is supposedly you, married to a person who doesn't exist. This chilling scenario is at the heart of a romance scam that unraveled two years of meticulously crafted deception, costing one man his savings and his future. How did a simple photograph expose a scheme that had already consumed $63,000 and ensnared 22 victims?

In this episode, we delve into the story of Curtis Richardson, a 61-year-old landscaping contractor from Gallen, Ohio, who fell victim to a sophisticated online romance scam. We explore how a seemingly innocent connection on a vintage truck forum led to a fabricated relationship, a proposal, and significant financial loss, all built on a foundation of lies and stolen identities.

Person: Curtis Richardson
Date: June 11, 2019
Location: Dellwood Circle, Gallen, Ohio
Status: Scam exposed
Amount: $63,000

- A 15-year-old paperboy discovered a silver-framed wedding photograph on the porch of a man who had never been married.
- The scam involved 22 victims and cost Curtis Richardson $63,000 over two years.
- Curtis Richardson, a 61-year-old landscaping contractor, lived in the same house for 22 years.
- The scammer, "Alan Campbell," used a LinkedIn photo of Patrick Devereaux, a civil engineer from Atlanta, Georgia.
- The image of "Alan's" late wife in the wedding photo was a stock image used in at least 40 fraud profiles.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].

The Glasses Case Buried a Year Too Long

A road grader operator found a pristine, monogrammed glasses case buried in red clay, nearly a year after its owner, Robert Allen Whitmore, was declared dead from congestive heart failure. How could an unscratched item survive a Tennessee winter underground, and what did its discovery reveal about a case already closed?

In this episode, we explore the precise and patient unfolding of a story that begins not with a body, but with trust, and ends with a jury's swift decision. We delve into how a life can be completely redirected and how long that redirection can go undetected when manipulation is expertly applied.

Person: Robert Allen Whitmore
Location: Corrigan Bluff, eastern Tennessee
Date: May 14, 2019 (discovery of glasses case)
Age: 77 (in spring 2017)
Original Death Cause: Congestive heart failure

- Troy Dixon, a road grader operator, discovered the glasses case on Hatchett Mill Road.
- The glasses case was monogrammed with "R.A.W." and was unscratched with clean lenses.
- Robert Allen Whitmore had been dead for nearly a year when the case was found.
- His granddaughter, Holly Hunter, was 26 in spring 2017 and visited him weekly.
- A woman named Kathleen Patterson, who was not a real employee, arrived at Robert's home in March 2017.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].

The Twenty Faces That Stole Her Love and Money

Imagine discovering a hidden workspace with twenty identical photos of a man, a laptop still lit, and a legal pad. This was the scene a lineman stumbled upon, unknowingly uncovering the remnants of a romance fraud operation. What chilling secrets did this abandoned setup hold about the woman it targeted?

In this episode, we delve into the meticulous deception behind a romance fraud that ensnared Erin Campbell, a 48-year-old billing coordinator from Dellwood, Tennessee. We explore how a manufactured identity, built on stolen photos and a carefully crafted narrative, led her to send thousands of dollars to a man she never truly met.

Person: Erin Campbell
Location: Dellwood, Tennessee
Date: April 2019
Investigator: Gary Wagner
Fraudster: Devon Achebe

- Erin Campbell, a 48-year-old billing coordinator, was divorced for twelve years.
- She sent $11,200 to a man she never physically met.
- The fraud operation was run for 14 months by Devon Achebe, 31, from Atlanta.
- The face in the photographs belonged to Tim Ostrowski, a structural engineer from Columbus, Ohio, whose headshots were publicly available.
- A cold case from Arizona in 2017 involved Sandra Kwan losing $23,000 to a similar fraud using Ostrowski's photos.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].

The Bridal Veil on the Bench: He Used a Template

Imagine finding a cathedral-length bridal veil, perfectly dry, on a frozen bench at dawn. This bizarre discovery on March 4, 2022, was the first thread in unraveling a sophisticated romantic scam that had been running for months, and even years. How could a single piece of fabric expose such a meticulously constructed deception?

In this episode, we delve into the story of Monica Henderson, a 32-year-old billing coordinator from Dunmore, Ohio, who believed she had found something real. We explore how a man built an elaborate infrastructure of trust within a grieving congregation, using pre-written message templates to ensnare multiple women, and the precise details that ultimately brought his scheme to light.

Person: Monica Henderson
Date: March 4, 2022
Location: Hargrove Reservoir, Dunmore, Ohio
Item: Cathedral-length bridal veil
Temperature: 31 degrees Fahrenheit

- A jogger, Douglas Cole, found the dry bridal veil on a bench at the quarter-mile marker of Hargrove Reservoir.
- Forensic examiner Paul Strang discovered six draft message templates on a prepaid phone, four of which matched conversations with women from Ridgecrest Community Church.
- Donald Draper, the scammer, used the LinkedIn profile photo of a civil engineer named Thomas Garrett from Portland, Oregon.
- Monica Henderson, a methodical billing coordinator, never sent any money and found out about the scam in time.
- The scammer, who called himself Donald Draper, had circulated a fake email from a "Pastor Elaine Sturgis" from Dayton to vouch for him.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].

The Captain's Medals: A Wife's Final Betrayal

Imagine finding a frost-stiffened Army dress uniform jacket on a gas meter pipe, only to discover it belongs to a retired captain who has never been to your town. This bizarre discovery in Harlan Falls, Ohio, marked the beginning of a complex romantic scam involving a meticulously constructed identity. What led a 53-year-old woman to hang this uniform and then vanish?

In this episode, we delve into the story of Pamela Wright, a woman who, after the sudden death of her husband, found herself entangled in a sophisticated deception. We explore the quiet, deliberate construction of a persona that led her to believe in a man who didn't exist, and the financial transactions that followed.

Person: Pamela Wright
Location: Harlan Falls, Ohio
Date: February 2022
Status: Missing by choice

- A utility meter reader discovered an Army dress uniform jacket on a gas meter pipe at 14 Crescent Mill Road.
- The jacket belonged to Marcus Calloway, a retired Army captain living in Fayetteville, North Carolina, who had never been to Harlan Falls.
- Pamela Wright, 53, had been a billing compliance coordinator for 21 years at a regional insurance firm.
- She met "Captain Marcus Calloway" on Abiding Hearts, a faith-based dating site for older adults, in the fall of 2021.
- In December 2021, Pamela sent $4,200 for "Army travel documents" based on a detailed fee schedule.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].

The Offshore Rig Photo: He Knew Your Payday

Imagine losing seven years of meticulous savings in just four months, not to a market crash or medical emergency, but to a sophisticated romantic scammer who knew your exact pay schedule before ever saying hello. How could a man so careful, who tracked lunch costs and paid off his house early, fall victim to such a deception?

In this episode, we uncover the story of Jeffrey Reynolds, a 44-year-old floor supervisor from Calvary Creek, Ohio, who lost his entire savings to a man he believed was a petroleum engineer named Gregory Sharp. We explore the calculated patience of the scammer, the subtle signs noticed by those around Jeffrey, and the chilling discovery of a photograph meant to prove a lie.

Person: Jeffrey Reynolds
Location: Calvary Creek, Ohio
Date: September 2018 - January 2019
Amount Lost: $114,000
Scammer's Alias: Gregory Sharp

- Jeffrey Reynolds, a floor supervisor, spent seven years building his savings account.
- He lost $114,000 in eleven wire transfers over four months, from October 2018 to January 2019.
- The transfers consistently occurred within 2-4 hours of Jeffrey's direct deposit clearing.
- A photograph meant to prove the scammer's identity was found in a non-public storage room at Calvary Creek Fellowship.
- The image in the photograph was a cropped and edited photo of Scott Weller, a petroleum engineer from Scotland, placed against a Louisiana training facility background.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].

A linguistics expert who could hear a splice - and chose not to believe herself

Imagine falling in love with a voice, only to discover it was an AI-generated illusion, meticulously crafted to exploit your deepest professional expertise. This chilling romance scam targeted a linguistics expert who could detect the most subtle vocal nuances, yet still fell victim to a sophisticated fraud. How could someone so attuned to the human voice be so completely deceived?

In this episode, we delve into the story of Brenda Stroud, a highly skilled linguist whose professional life revolved around the intricacies of human speech. We explore how her expertise was weaponized against her in a year-long "experiment" designed to test the limits of AI voice generation and deepfake technology, culminating in a shocking discovery.

Person: Brenda Stroud
Location: Mableton, Pelham County, North Carolina
Date: November 2021 - May 2022
Status: Victim of romance scam
Field: Applied linguistics

- Brenda Stroud held a master's degree in applied linguistics from UNC Greensboro, earned in 2020.
- She taught English as a second language to about 14 students at a time through LingoBridge.
- The scammer, Norman Brooks, was 37 years old and operated from Charlotte, North Carolina.
- The AI voice was trained on thousands of hours of open-source audio from language-learning platforms.
- A 24-year-old actor named Aaron Pendley, from Scottsdale, Arizona, had his face harvested for deepfake video calls without his knowledge.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].

The Widow, The Creek, and His Perfect System

Imagine finding a dead cell phone in a creek, sealed in a waterproof case, with a perfectly dry photograph of a man in uniform tucked inside. This single, baffling detail would unravel fourteen months of meticulously crafted lies, exposing a sophisticated system designed to exploit women navigating the loneliness of widowhood. How could a photograph in a creek expose a hidden world of romantic scams?

In this episode, we delve into the story of Darlene Zeller, a 54-year-old widow from Reeds Spring, Missouri, who became a target of a calculated romantic fraud in the fall of 2022. We explore the precise methods used by Norman Erickson, the man behind the "MarcusB_Ret" persona, and how his system exploited Darlene's vulnerability, turning her quiet mornings into a calibrated trap.

Person: Darlene Zeller
Location: Reeds Spring, Missouri
Date: November 2022
Scammer: Norman Erickson
Victim's Age: 54

- April Whitley found a cell phone sealed in a clear waterproof case in Kessler Creek at 6:47 AM on a Saturday in November 2022.
- The phone contained a dry photograph of a man in uniform, a detail that helped unravel 14 months of lies.
- Darlene Zeller, a medical billing coordinator in Branson, Missouri, had been a widow for six years after her husband, Warren Zeller, died in 2016.
- Norman Erickson, operating from a rented house in Forsyth, Missouri, used Darlene's forum post about feeding goats to calibrate his daily 5:28 AM texts.
- The conversation moved from the "Surviving in Service" forum to email and then a messaging app within two weeks of the first exchange.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].

The Museum Curator Who Fell For a Fake Artifact

Imagine falling for a sophisticated romance scam, not with your heart, but with your professional expertise and life savings. A museum curator, trained to spot fakes, found herself entangled in a web of deceit involving a pre-Columbian artifact and a man who never existed. How did a genuine artifact become the bait in a meticulously crafted romantic scam?

In this episode, we uncover the story of Valerie Sawyer, a collections management specialist at the Aldermoor Regional Museum, whose professional ambition and inheritance became targets. We trace the origins of a complex fraud that exploited her knowledge of cultural property repatriation and led her to transfer thousands of dollars to a scammer.

Person: Valerie Sawyer
Location: Crestfield, Ohio
Date: Summer 2021 - Late October 2022
Amount: $62,000 inheritance
Artifact: Pre-Columbian ceramic figurine

- Heather Young found a genuine four-inch pre-Columbian ceramic figurine on a vacant property in Morrow County, Ohio, in late October 2022.
- Valerie Sawyer, 23, was a collections management specialist at the Aldermoor Regional Museum with a bachelor's degree in art history.
- Valerie inherited $62,000 from her grandmother, intended for a property down payment.
- Howard Miller, an alleged independent artifact recovery consultant, contacted Valerie via a specialist online platform.
- Valerie transferred an initial $4,000, followed by $6,000, for what she believed were procedural delays in artifact repatriation.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].

The Canning Jar: A Child's Lie, A Woman's Ruin

Imagine discovering a sealed jar containing a child's hospital wristband in an abandoned shed, only to learn no child ever lived there. This single, unsettling detail would unravel a multi-state romantic scam that left four women financially ruined. What hidden truth did this seemingly innocuous object reveal about the con artist behind it all?

In this episode, we delve into the story of Donna Edwards, a 38-year-old bookkeeper from Aldene, Tennessee, whose careful life was upended by a man she met online. We explore how a meticulously crafted online persona and a compelling story about a sick child led her to trust a stranger, ultimately costing her thousands of dollars.

Person: Donna Edwards
Date: Spring 2017
Location: Aldene, Tennessee
Online Platform: HeartlandMatch
Scammer's Alias: Rick Mercer

- Donna Edwards, a 38-year-old bookkeeper, meticulously filed quarterly taxes for seven years without a miss.
- She exchanged messages with Rick Mercer for several weeks before their first two-hour phone call.
- Over eight weeks, Donna sent six wire transfers totaling eleven thousand four hundred dollars.
- The scammer used photographs from Wade Norris, a construction supervisor in western Kentucky, without his consent.
- The only true detail in the scammer's story was his daughter's name, Chloe, who was eleven years old.

To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].