The Perfect Scam

In upstate New York, an older couple receives a startling call from an unknown voice.  They are told their grandson has been in a car accident. The caller knows their grandson’s name, where he lives and other details about his life.  The caller shares alarming news that police suspect his grandson is at fault for the accident and are holding him in jail. If the grandparents want to help their grandson, they’ll need to pay for a lawyer and send money immediately. Terrified, the grandparents agree to cover the legal fees to get their grandson out of jail. They follow the caller’s instructions and send $5,400 in gift cards.  Then the caller demands $10,000 cash. The grandparents don’t yet realize that they are victims of the grandparent scam, a con targeting seniors by preying on their devotion to their families. In the U.S., grandparent scams are on the rise, with nearly $41 million in reported losses in 2018, up from $26 million in 2017. Before the ordeal is over, the couple will receive dozens of calls demanding hundreds of thousands of dollars and threatening their grandson.

New Yorker Jerry Needleman was married for over 40 years when his wife passed away in 2008. The devoted couple never had children, and now in his 80s, Jerry settled into a quiet life alone as a widower. Meanwhile in Florida, a woman named Sylvia is pursuing a relationship with a retiree. The man has spent thousands of dollars on his much-younger girlfriend. When they become engaged, the man’s son steps in. In 2012, the family successfully sues Sylvia for fraud. One year later, Jerry is out for his daily walk when he comes across a distraught woman crying on a park bench. The woman is Sylvia. Jerry stops to see if she is OK, unknowingly embarking on what will be a four-year ordeal that includes a marriage, a divorce, a second marriage and annulment — and nearly $2 million lost to a romance scam.

Journalist Alex Palmer tells the story of his great-granduncle, colorful conman John Duval Gluck, who created the Santa Claus Association. Before Gluck started his charity, letters from New York City children to Santa were destroyed, unopened, by the U.S. Post Office. Gluck saw an opportunity, and created the Santa Claus Association in 1913. The organization claimed to use the donations it collected to answer children’s letters to Santa and deliver them Christmas gifts. For a time, the charity did just that. For 15 years money and gifts flowed to the association, and Gluck became a Jazz Age celebrity. But efforts to crack down on corruption in New York ultimately resulted in the uncovering of irregularities that would lead to the charity’s downfall. 

We’ll be back with new episodes in November. In the meantime, enjoy this bonus episode featuring The Perfect Scam show producers as they test their fraud-busting knowledge in a game of True or False, with questions from host Frank Abagnale’s new book, Scam Me If You Can. 

Chinese Americans are being targeted by scammers in schemes known as the “Chinese consulate scam” and the “blessing scam,” through which victims have lost millions. When Mandarin-language calls began to bombard residents across the U.S., authorities take a deeper look. They find that these illegal robocalls are targeting areas with large Chinese American populations. Victims of the Chinese consulate scam are told they are in legal trouble with the Chinese government. The scammers then persuade them to hand over money or personal information to resolve the phony problem. Victims lose $150,000 on average. And, in Chinatowns across America, scammers are targeting older Chinese Americans in the blessing scam, aka the ghost scam. This scam uses some victims’ traditional beliefs to lure them into an elaborate con that involves a team of scammers who work in tandem to steal valuables and cash.

Looking for a change of pace, FBI agent Gasper decides to move from New York, where he’s lived his entire life, to North Dakota. As he settles in to his new field office in the Midwest, Gasper discovers that there are an alarming number of lottery scams being perpetrated against residents in his area. The cases are complex, and with many of the scammers overseas, they are hard to bring to trial. But Gasper is set on getting justice for the victims of these swindles and dedicates himself to investigating the crimes. Meanwhile, Nancy, a 78-year-old retired financial planner, receives a letter stating that she’s won the lottery. To claim her prize, she just needs to pay the taxes on her winnings. She isn’t sure if the claim is legitimate and is hesitant to proceed. But after receiving multiple assurances from the scammers over months, Nancy gives in and sends them $20,000 and becomes one of the many victims Gasper will interview as part of his investigation. After years of painstaking work, the FBI agent finally gets the break he’s been looking for. He links a U.S. resident to the lottery-scam ring that operates overseas. This is the connecting piece that Gasper needs and will lead to a large-scale U.S. trial, the arrest of 27 scammers, and justice for 95 victims.

Pat, an 81-year-old woman from Kentucky, receives a call that she has won a $7.5 million lottery prize. Pat can’t believe her luck. Unaware that the call is a scam, she begins speaking with the scammers multiple times a day. Over the next seven months, they befriend Pat in an effort to convince her that she’ll receive the prize money as soon as she pays taxes on her winnings. Slowly they gain Pat’s trust, and she starts sending money to the scammers. Every time she thinks she has made a final payment and will receive her prize, the scammers come up with a new issue requiring her to send more money. Eventually the scammers take over $100,000 from Pat. Unfortunately, Pat’s story is common among lottery-scam victims. Often by the time these scams are uncovered, victims have lost thousands of dollars, and because of the difficulties in tracking down and prosecuting scammers, most never receive restitution. However, determined to get a better outcome for citizens, the state of Kentucky has dedicated resources to fight back against scammers. Investigators in the Kentucky Attorney General’s office have been working to track down and prosecute scammers, and their efforts are paying off. In the last four years the Kentucky Attorney General’s office has returned $2.1 million to victims of fraud. When they hear about Pat’s case they dive in, following the money, hoping to apprehend the scammers and get justice for Pat.

After losing her job and boyfriend in the same day, a distraught Debra pays a visit to a psychic shop. Little does Debra know that the shop is part of a larger criminal organization and Sylvia, the psychic who gives her a reading, is a scammer. After a series of readings of increasing cost, Sylvia tells Debra that all of her troubles stem from her trust issues surrounding money. To solve these problems Sylvia prompts Debra to hand over a $28,000 check — to prove that she trusts others with her money. Sylvia promises to hold on to the check and return it the next day. However, Sylvia immediately cashes the check and cuts off all communication with Debra.   Debra tries a number of ways to get her money back — including contacting the police — to no avail. Eventually Debra is referred to Bob Nygard, a private investigator and retired police officer who specializes in helping victims of psychic scams. Debra tells Bob about her case, and he agrees to take it on. Bob works to chase down the facts, trying to get Debra justice. He finds that Sylvia has taken hundreds of thousands of dollars from victims. It takes five years, but Bob finally gathers enough evidence to take down Sylvia.  

Debra is a divorced mother and ballroom dancer who travels between her home in Florida and New York to train with her dance partner. When Debra loses her part-time job in New York and boyfriend in the same day, she’s distraught. Without the extra income from her job and a place to stay from her boyfriend, Debra knows she’ll have to quit ballroom dancing — even though she and her partner have been climbing the ranks on the Pro-Am circuit. Walking in Greenwich Village, Debra sees a psychic shop she often passes. Today it catches her eye. She is searching for answers and decides to stop in. The shop is well- appointed with lavish decor and plaques that show additional locations in glamorous cities around the world. Sylvia, the psychic who comes to give Debra a reading, is dressed to the nines — like many professionals you would see in New York. After the initial reading, Sylvia says she can help Debra but that she’ll need to come back for a deep reading. When Debra returns for the two-hour deep reading, Sylvia determines that Debra has trust issues, particularly when it involves money. Seeking closure and desperate for a solution to her problems, Debra starts to believe and trust Sylvia. The psychic tells Debra to write her a check for $28,000 and promises she will hold on to it for one day. When she returns the check, Sylvia tells Debra that her money and trust issues will be solved. Debra follows Sylvia’s instructions and gets the money for the check from a home equity loan. However, as soon as she hands the check over, Debra realizes she has made a terrible mistake.

Rob, a veteran in his 70’s, was a caretaker for his wife for years. He is still grieving her death when he receives a call from a woman claiming to be from social security. The woman tells Rob that his social security number has been used to defraud multiple banks and there is a warrant out for his arrest. Even more troubling for Rob, the woman tells him that he will need to get all new identification cards. Rob has been looking forward to taking his special needs daughter on a much needed vacation and worries he won’t be able to get a new license in time for the trip. In a frenzied state, he begins to comply with the instructions of the woman on the phone. But as her directions get stranger, Rob begins to question if he’s doing the right thing. He realizes that he may be the victim of a scam. Unfortunately, by this time the scammers have already emptied out Rob’s savings account. Rob is distraught as this means he’ll have to cancel his trip with his daughter. But, just when he’s about to lose all hope, Rob’s community steps in to help.