Scammer Stories

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Anatasia Vailas is passionate about helping others cope with trauma and loss, but one day she ended up on the other end of the ordeal. Now she helps victims try to see the light and heal...  and she knows how to help the family members try and pick up the pieces in the aftermath. 

You can reach her by requesting her on Better help, or just email her directly at [email protected].

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Katharine’s family thought they were prepared when they discovered her loved one was caught in a romance scam. They had the resources. They had the ability to intervene. They even had a plan. But they quickly learned that stopping a romance scam is far more complicated than taking away someone’s access to money. Sometimes the victim escapes the scam, but the family is left picking up the pieces.

Click HERE to read and order the book.

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A romance scam doesn't just devastate the person sending the money. It can destroy entire families. In this episode, you'll hear two heartbreaking stories. In one, a family member ends up behind bars. In the other, the stress and trauma lands a loved one in the ICU. These are powerful reminders that the true cost of romance scams reaches far beyond financial loss. 

The second woman in the episode has a lot to be proud of and so I want to share her successes. Click HERE to watch the documentary.

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Mary's story begins with a love that lasted a lifetime. She met her husband when she was just six years old, and after decades together, they built a life filled with love, family, and memories. Then COVID changed everything. Mary survived. Her husband didn't.

Grieving, lonely, and trying to find her footing in a world without the person she'd loved for most of her life, Mary became the perfect target for an online scammer. 

At first she was a victim. Now... she's a survivor. 

Click HERE to connect with Mary on LinkedIn.

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Heather Rovet thought she had finally found love when a charming handyman named "Jace" entered her life. Instead, she found herself trapped in a nightmare involving one of Canada's most notorious romance scammers.

In this shocking episode of the Scammer Stories Podcast, Heather shares how a relationship that seemed normal slowly unraveled into a web of lies, manipulation, theft, and fear. 

Click HERE for a link to the documentary on her story.

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The number one question I get in my email inbox is from adult children desperately trying to save a parent who is trapped in a romance scam. They’ve tried everything… begging, interventions, cutting off money, even taking control through power of attorney. And still, nothing seems to work.

Over the years, I’ve heard countless theories. Do you hit them with tough love? Do you back off? Is there actually a right way to help someone who is emotionally attached to a scammer?

The woman in this episode has a very different perspective… because she tried one approach and when it failed she tried the exact opposite.

Jennifer Wallis is a financial advisor who now speaks publicly about romance scams after watching her own mother become a victim. In this episode, she shares the mistakes she made, the lessons she learned, and why changing the way she communicated may have helped save her relationship with her mother.

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The woman in this story was scammed twice. Once by love and the other by hanging on to hope that she could get her money back. Then, one day federal investigators came calling. Anola Johnson says her life was just normal before the scam. 

Click HERE to check out Anola's podcast called Romance Scam Rebellion.

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Scammers aren’t always sitting behind a screen in some far away land. Sometimes they're bold enough to meet in person and integrate into your life to steal your money. Unfortunately, that doesn’t mean they land behind bars. The law, and those investigating the crimes, haven’t caught up with the times. That gives the perpetrators time to go on to scam again and again.

Click HERE to read a media article on the suspect.

Click HERE to read the details from for U.S Securities and Exchange Commission.

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Micheal Breinig is a married father of three who had a great life before scammers stole $2 million dollars. The thing is… he wasn’t even looking for anything. He wasn’t even on social media before his co-workers told him he needed to be online to follow what was happening with the election, politics and whatever else was happening in the world. 

Click HERE to order Michael's book.

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We usually hear from a survivor of a romance, or pig butchering scam, sprinkled with a sextortion case here and there because the human side of these stories connect with people’s emotions.  However, talking to the experts is just as important. We’ve heard from FBI agents, financial investigators, advocates and a therapist. Now we’re going to hear from a man who is tackling this nightmare from another angle. Al Pascual is the CEO and co-founder of Scamnetic, a company using technology and behavioral analysis to detect and prevent scams in real time. 

Click HERE to learn more about Scamnetic.

You can reach the Scammer Stories Podcast by emailing [email protected].

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