There's a con artist in your social circle right now

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Some people play golf on the weekends. I hunt con artists. 

But it wasn’t always that way. 

I used to think I could never get scammed. 

I’m way too smart for that. I’ve got a degree from journalism school and I read tons of newspapers and books. I know what’s going on in the world. There’s just no way a scammer could outsmart me. Right? 

Wrong. 

Because con artists don’t outsmart you. They ‘out-feel’ you. They use your emotions to gain entry into your life so they can rob you blind. 

In 2017 I became the victim of a professional con artist. A woman named “Mair Smyth” who very quickly burrowed deep into my psyche and systematically scammed me out of almost $100,000 using a sophisticated series of confidence tricks. 

I’m a gay man. So she couldn’t use sex to ensnare me. Her lures were much more creative and sinister than that. 

I would end up falling for one of the oldest cons in the book: The Inheritance Scam. 

But this scheme wasn’t cooked up by some fictional Nigerian prince soliciting me through email. I fell under the spell of an immensely lovable woman who inserted herself into my life and became my best friend for four years. Unfortunately, she was also an international con artist on the run from the authorities hiding out in my apartment building. 

After I realized I got taken, I spent the ensuing two and a half years bringing my con artist - kicking and screaming - to justice. While uncovering 45 of her other victims all over the world who she scammed out of more than a million dollars. 

My story got tons of press. 

I even produced a podcast about it for iHeartRadio called “Queen of the Con: The Irish Heiress”

Soon, hundreds of victims of other con artists - inspired by my story of triumph and vindication - began contacting me through my website asking for help bringing their con artists to justice. 

So I started helping them. 

It’s become a hobby of mine. Kind of a pastime. 

Really… an obsession. 

I’m now investigating a few dozen cases circling the globe, involving some of the most despicable con women and conmen ‘working’ today. And at this point I’ve learned one thing: professional con artists are all pretty much the same. They use the same playbook. The same age-old set of scams. The same architecture of lies and manipulations. Only the names and places change. But if you know what the signs are early on, you can avoid falling into their trap. 

And if you don’t. You won’t. 

“The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.” That’s a line from ‘The Usual Suspects’ a 1990’s caper about an ingenious conman-thug who gets caught, and then miraculously talks his way into getting released by enthralling police with fully-formed, whimsical - but believable - stories about the ‘real’ perpetrator they should be looking for. Keyser Söze. Who of course is made up. But police get taken in by the conman’s stories and end up letting him walk free.  

Con artists are in fact everywhere. And if you don’t believe that, you’ll be their next mark. They’re living amongst us. Cleverly and convincingly masquerading themselves as a new boyfriend or girlfriend in your life. A new neighbor or coworker. A new best friend. 

They look just like regular people. But they’re not. They’re the devil incarnate.

Below is a list of red flags common in every con I’m currently investigating. These were also the red flags that my con artist waved at me with reckless abandon - that I completely missed. 

Red Flag # 1 - Too kind. Too quick. 

If someone new in your life is insanely kind and giving. Always offers to pay for things. Gives you gifts. Always tries to help you for no apparent reason other than they're just really nice… you're probably being set up for con. Let’s say a complete stranger on the street asks you to drive them to the airport. You obviously would say no. But if a friend asked you, you would probably say, “Sure!” And that’s the con artist’s first mission. They need to become friends with you. Fast. So you’ll do things for them one day that you wouldn’t do for a stranger. 

Red Flag # 2 - Drama. Drama. Drama. 

Look, bad things happen to everyone. People get cancer. People have children who suddenly die. People have crazy family members who are out to ‘get them.’ People get drugged and raped at a bar. But all those bad things don’t happen to the same person at the same time. Unless they’re a con artist making up all this drama in their lives to manipulate and prey on your emotions. To suck you into their craziness and exploit your kindness and good nature. If there’s a new person in your life broadcasting a steady stream of soap opera-esque drama. Change the channel.

Red Flag # 3 - Legitimate day jobs. 

Most professional con artists have, or had at some point, a legitimate day job. And they use the reputation of those jobs to give them the patina of legitimacy in their scams. They’re mortgage brokers. They work in the mayor’s office. They’re investment analysts. They’re foreign exchange traders. They’re travel agents (mine was). They work for a giant cell phone company. You think, “There’s no way they’re con artists. They have amazing jobs.” And THAT’S their plan. For you to think that. And let your guard down. And believe their lies. Don’t. Their day jobs are just a cover. A side hustle. Their real job? Is conning YOU. 

Red Flag # 4 - Isolation  

For a con artist to successfully scam you, they need to be able to lure you away from people who might talk you out of going along with their con. And it’s remarkably easy to do. My con artist tricked me into believing my neighbor was a criminal on the run from authorities in Canada. So I avoided her like the plague. She then convinced my neighbor that I was mentally ill. So my neighbor avoided me. Enabling my con artist to scam us both using different stories. And we were none the wiser. Until well after the money exchanged hands. And con was played. So if someone new in your life doesn’t want you talking to this person or that person… don’t go along with it. Anyone telling you not to talk to someone - is about the biggest red flag there is. And it’s a very effective tool for a ‘working’ con artist to isolate you.   

Red Flag # 5 - Technology 

The next time someone shows you a text or an email and claims it’s from so-and-so. Be suspicious. Con artists scamming in the digital age create google voice accounts and email accounts in other people’s names to text and email themselves - so they can show you those texts and emails to get you to believe whatever story they’re laying out. My con artist tricked some of her victims into believing she was best friends with Jennifer Aniston using this technique. I’m a TV producer in Los Angeles so it’s very possible that someone in my circle is actually friends with Jennifer Aniston. My con artist cleverly made it appear that Jennifer Aniston was always texting her. And she’d show the victims those texts in a, “Look what Jen is texting me now.” kinda way. Sometimes she’d even appear to be annoyed by it. And all her victims bought it. By using this digital spoof, a working con artist can convince a victim they’re friends… with anyone and create a believable story around it. 

Red Flag # 6 - Wires 

My con artist tricked a couple real estate investors into wiring her $60,000 because her daughter needed life saving surgery after a late stage cancer diagnosis. In another case I’m working on, the victim wired her new boyfriend hundreds of thousands to help him out of a jam when a foreign government was holding his property hostage. Long story short… Never. Send. Wires. Period. If someone asks you to wire them money, there’s a good chance it’s a scam. 

Red Flag # 7 - Beak Wetting 

In a lot of investment scams and a lot of love scams, the con artist will actually give you a little money up front. They’ll let you “wet your beak.” My con artist paid me back the first $4,200 I ever loaned her - the very next day. And that gave me confidence to loan her more. And that was her plan. The very term ‘Con Artist’ is actually short for ‘Confidence Artist’ because they gain the complete and utter confidence of their victims - and then weaponize it against them. 

If I knew then what I know now, I would have never gotten scammed. I would have seen all the red flags waving briskly from a mile away and I would have crossed the street when I saw my con artist coming. 

The problem was, I never really believed con artists existed. I mean, yes I knew there were tons of email scams and phone scams where people in Nigeria try to trick you into sending them money. But real people in my life who are con artists? I didn’t believe that could ever happen. But I was wrong. Don’t make the same mistake I did.