Original subtitles

[curious music plays]

[Cecilie] If FBI is on it, that's a big deal.

Yeah, huge deal.

They were investigating her for some extremely serious fraud.

They had tracked about $600,000

in fraudulent funds from eight to ten victims.

She pled guilty.

Part of her plea agreement meant that she had to admit

to all the things that she had lied about.

[tense music plays]

I found out that she never worked for the Gates Foundation.

She had barely gone to any college,

let alone graduated from the University of Washington.

She read me like a book.

She figured out exactly the combinations

of fancy degrees and impressive accolades

that would get someone like me to fall for her.

But that wasn't even the half of it.

She did not have MS, ever.

[dramatic music plays]

[Aaron] She had created fraudulent documents saying that she had MS.

And that was the lie she kept using for years afterward

'cause that was the lie she invested in, that she had spread to everyone,

and that she had based her entire scheme on.

And now the story was all over the news.

Sabrina Taylor pleaded guilty and admitted to lying about her health,

employment, and education to get money.

I was so angry when I found out

that her diagnosis was completely fraudulent.

She picked MS 'cause that's what killed my dad's dad.

That was what got her the most sympathy.

I never went to any doctor's appointments with her, and I really, really wish I had.

You know, the appointments were always

magically scheduled when I couldn't make it.

[tense music plays]

She ended up doing some pretty serious jail time for a first-time offender.

Wow, how long was she in prison for?

About 18 months, I believe.

At the sentencing hearing,

I finally got to hear where a lot of that money went.

She was essentially using everyone else's money

to live like she was on vacation every day.

It felt like the bizarre sense of camaraderie,

knowing that there were a bunch of other people out there

that also had been ripped off by Sabrina.

It's a terrible club to be a part of, but it's a club.

The facts of the case just make me think more and more that

there never was anything there,

that I was just a way for Sabrina to get some more money.

I think that first ad was designed to attract a guy

with a decent job

that she could sponge off of for a while, and she fucking hit the jackpot.

[music ends]

How much money had you been giving her?

The grand total ended up being right around $100,000.

Wow. It's insane.

I'm so sorry, Aaron, that you had to experience this.

As part of her plea agreement, she has to make an effort

to pay everyone back over the next few years,

but I was not a part of that agreement.

I don't fully know why I wasn't included in the case the FBI put together.

That's the biggest reason why I wanted to talk to you guys.

I think it's really important that we try to speak to the FBI

to see if they can do something to help you.

-I think that sounds fantastic. -But I just want to make it clear.

In a lot of fraud cases, we never get justice.

My fraudster has not been in jail at all for anything he's done to me.

It will be difficult, but I really hope that we can do something to help you out.

Thank you.

So I will let you know. Thank you so much, Aaron.

Talk to you later.

[suspenseful music plays]

[line ringing]

-Hello. -Hi, Bri.

Hey, Cee, what you got? How'd it go?

It went well. I just finished speaking to Aaron.

They were together for six years. Pure abusive relationship.

And some years later, FBI contacted him.

She was lying about an MS diagnosis.

-What? She lied about that? -[Cecilie] Yes.

And she went to prison.

But not for Aaron's case.

Unfortunately, he never got justice.

He didn't know he was being defrauded until years later,

so he never went to police at the time.

[Brianne] I would love to speak to the FBI

to find out if there's anything else that we could do at this point

to help him get some of that money back.

I have a contact there, and hopefully they'll agree to meet with me.

[Cecilie] Amazing. Thank you so much.

-You're welcome. Bye. -[Cecilie] Bye, Bri.

It's hard to get law enforcement to revisit a case

once there's already been a judgment.

Most often, it's literally case closed.

But no matter how challenging it might be,

it's always gonna be worth the try.

[curious music plays]

[Cecilie] This case is really unique.

Most romance scammers are men, but Sabrina flipped that script,

and she targeted multiple men using the same playbook again and again.

Oh, Sabrina.

I am looking at emails that Sabrina has sent Aaron

to see the tactics that she was using to get him to do what she wanted.

The emotional manipulation here is just insane.

"I'm in so much pain all the time, and I can barely walk."

"I honestly feel so worthless, and frustrated, and scared."

A normal human would really feel sympathy and empathy.

"I have to have many medical things done or start doing. That's roughly $2,700."

She knows what she's doing to this man.

It's difficult to say no to someone that needs medication.

She just ends it with the most horrible thing.

"This is why I should have just died."

Oh, I feel so bad for Aaron.

Everything was on him to help.

I can really understand why he felt so trapped.

He's lived with this guilt for years, thinking her life depended on him,

and he's never had any justice or closure.

[cell phone vibrates]

[chimes]

[chimes]

I have a meeting this morning with the actual FBI agent

who was able to convict Sabrina.

A perfect outcome for this meeting would be for him to take Aaron's case

and help Aaron get his money back.

But it's gonna be hard to get them to take this on.

-Hi. Agent Cropcho? -[Cropcho] Hi. Yes.

Brianne Joseph, private investigator.

Thank you so much for agreeing to meet with me. I really appreciate it.

What made this case special in that it was taken on by the FBI?

Wire fraud, which is what she was charged with,

is sending a lie via an email or a text message.

Um, you know, wires cross state lines,

so that would give us jurisdiction to investigate this.

For some of the victims, we had years' worth of text messages

where you could see in plain sight the lies that she was telling,

and then people agreeing to give her money based on those lies.

So why wasn't Aaron's case picked up by the FBI?

Problem with Aaron's case is how old the activity was.

-Okay. -There's a statute of limitations.

Um, for wire fraud, it's five years.

If the fraud isn't charged within that five-year period,

we can't charge that anymore.

He had no idea he was being defrauded until years later.

Very complicated, especially with personal relationships.

It's unfortunate that, uh, we can't help everybody get some recovery or justice.

[Brianne] The immediate solution

would be to educate people on what to do if they think they are being defrauded,

and what signs to look for so that they can avoid it being too late for them.

It would make it easier, um…

-[Brianne] Yeah. -…to bring cases like this to justice.

[Brianne] It's clear to me that law enforcement has not caught up

to how to investigate and prosecute love fraud.

These crimes don't come to light often for years.

The victims may never get justice

if they're required to report the crime in such a short time frame.

This is why we need more victims to speak out and come forward

so that the legal system will understand what this crime is.

[soft music plays]

-[Cecilie] Hi. -[Brianne] Hello.

-I'm Brianne, private investigator. -[Aaron] Hi.

-[Cecilie] Nice to see you. How are you? -[Aaron] Nice to see you too.

[Brianne] So I do want to commend you, honestly,

for your bravery and standing up for yourself.

I have never heard of a case like this.

So the older a case is, the more difficult it is actually

to go back and get something done with it.

Unfortunately, according to the FBI,

you're outside of the statute of limitations

for them to do anything else with it.

-Right. Thank you. -[Brianne] I'm so sorry, Aaron.

How can I make a claim if I don't have the evidence to make the claim?

I appreciate why the statute of limitations as a concept exists.

And at the same time, I didn't know I was being defrauded 'cause…

I literally thought she had MS.

I really didn't know for absolute certain until the case came out.

-[Cecilie] Yeah. -'Cause things need to change.

The way the laws are, they don't protect the victims.

They enable the perpetrators.

-Yeah. -[Cecilie] Yeah.

The reason why I'm doing what I'm doing is to actually create that change.

And the only way that change will happen

is if people like you come forward and bring attention,

and people like us stand behind you to help you amplify your voice.

-[Aaron] Thank you. -I know how it is.

And how much it takes to go public in telling your story,

uh, 'cause you never know

what kind of reception, what will come out from it.

But I really, really can say from the bottom of my heart

that it's been a big part of my healing process.

Thank you for saying that.

And I hope that this maybe have helped you get a sense of closure in this case.

-[Aaron] It really has. -Yeah.

I'm not gonna let this define me,

and I'm not gonna let her be the most important part of my life again.

Thank you, Aaron, for doing this.

Thank you for taking this seriously.

-Thank you. -[Aaron] Thank you.

Definitely a pleasure meeting you.

[Cecilie] What I learned is that sometimes justice doesn't look like a courtroom.

It's about reclaiming your voice. It's about speaking up,

and telling the truth even though it's hard.

And being listened to and believed

can bring a form of closure that no legal process ever could.

[soft music plays]

[Aaron] It was definitely hard to share my story at first,

but I can't even begin to tell you how much better life is today.

I've got a new partner,

a new, very large circle of friends.

Things really did get better.

I wanna tell the guys that are still in that relationship,

"You can get out."

"And you can start over."

[tense music plays]

Hi, my name's Lindsay.

I was dating a man,

Christopher Lloyd.

I trusted him.

I gave him over $140,000.

I lost everything.

I have to move out of my apartment.

He not only took my money, but he took my life.

I need help to hold him accountable for what he's done.

It's time for him to be stopped.

It's heartbreaking.

She seems super defeated.

She seems very tired, and I know that feeling.

I want to understand how things got so bad for her

so we can start to build a case.

[melancholy music plays]

When I first moved to San Diego, I had never even been here before.

I was just kind of ready for a change of scenery.

[chimes]

So I was single for a while, you know, just dating, trying to meet people.

It was hard because I didn't know anyone here.

I would say, I was dating more intentionally,

trying to actually meet someone that just makes you feel safe.

My profile did say that I wasn't looking for casual things,

making sure you're single, not attached.

I don't want there to be any surprises. When we meet, you know exactly who I am.

You know exactly what I'm looking for.

So you try to put that out there, like,

"Listen, don't come with any bullshit because I don't want it."

[intriguing music plays]

[Lindsay] I remember being on Tinder and seeing Chris's pictures.

Looks cute, handsome, very attractive.

We just started talking, like, on a regular basis, like daily.

He used to be a pro for the LA Dodgers.

There were videos of him online, and I was impressed.

But since then, he had retired and made a ton of money,

and he used that to start a whole new career as a financial manager.

He told me he was a full-time dad.

I think family values are extremely important.

I'm very close with my family.

So to be able to be, like, present like that for your kid,

to me, that just screams stability.

But also, like, he was super easygoing, and,

I don't know, he seemed like a normal, nice person.

[upbeat music plays]

-[Cecilie] Hi. Nice to meet you. -[Lindsay] Hi. Nice to meet you.

-[Cecilie] It's a really nice salon here. -[Lindsay] Thank you.

[Cecilie] How long have you been working?

I've been doing hair for 14 years, almost.

-[Cecilie] Yeah. -Since I was 19. I love it, actually.

-[Lindsay] Good to see you. -Good to see you. Thanks again.

-[Lindsay] Yes, of course, honey. Bye. -[woman] Bye.

-[Lindsay] You can pull up here. Yeah. -[Cecilie] These two?

So do you have a picture of Chris that I can see?

Here's one. I believe this is at, like, a work event.

-Ah! -[Lindsay] He's dressed, you know, nice.

We had been talking for a month now consistently every day.

He said he didn't live in San Diego,

and he lived more in the Long Beach area, an hour and 20 minutes away,

which isn't, like, terribly far.

I was, like, really excited for us to, like, finally meet in person.

We met at a breakfast place.

He was, like, clean cut.

He smelled really good.

Dressed nice. Fresh haircut.

He was very confident, and we had chemistry.

I mean, like, we'd had so many conversations before,

so talking was, like, nothing.

It was very easy, very flowing.

I remember him saying, "People always ask me why I don't have, like, a house,

in, like, the Hollywood Hills or something."

"I could be living a more extravagant life but I'm a very low-key person."

I liked that. I like humble.

I remember he paid with, like, a huge wad of cash,

and he left them, like, a crazy tip. It was, like, $80 or something.

And then, like, finally, like, we hugged and, like, kissed

for, like, the first time, like, passionately, like, romantically.

And it was, like, right on the hill, like, with the water there.

So it was, like, it was sweet.

It was very much like a slow burn.

It was, like weeks of, like, "How was your day?"

"Great. I helped so-and-so with their retirement plan." You know.

-Just normal getting to know each other. -[Lindsay] Normal conversation.

And we started, like, FaceTiming, and I…

He introduced me to his son.

What you were having was just a great relationship

with someone you trusted.

A hundred percent.

He really played the family card a lot with me,

and that was, like, my soft spot.

-[Cecilie] Yeah. -Especially, like, with my mom.

[melancholy music plays]

[Lindsay] Seven years ago,

my mom died very suddenly, and unexpectedly, and tragically.

She had taken a really bad fall

from the top of the stairs, and she hit the back of her head.

[inhales]

And she had a really bad brain bleed.

Chris, I told him my mom died and how she died.

He was always really good about asking me about my day and how I was feeling.

It was nice to feel like, you know, someone really cared.

Being the oldest of three kids,

he knew how important it was to me to be able to help my siblings

because we didn't have our mom anymore.

And because I'm the oldest, I feel like taking on that role,

of if they needed anything, especially if it came to money.

And Chris was sympathetic.

He made it seem like he understood.

[gentle music plays]

[Lindsay] Because of his job, he knew tons about investment.

So I told him, I received my mom's 401K when she died,

and he would, you know, start talking about, like, "Oh, a 401K is not for you."

"That's not where you want your money to be. It's a waste."

And he also made me feel like,

"You could have so much more. I wanna help you."

"I wanna help you better your life and your family's life."

Like, he would say that.

"And use your mom's money for something good."

-Did he say that? -Oh, a hundred percent.

So he mentioned, "You should invest with my firm."

"We represent this company called Planet 13."

"It's looking for, like, angel investors."

[curious music plays]

[Lindsay] So at first, I was like, "Meh."

Like, not really sounds like what I want to do with my money.

And then he brought it up again in the sense of, like,

"Well, you know, they give a 10% payout." And I was like, "Whoa. Are you serious?"

He was like, "Yeah. The more you invest, the more you get back."

He said there would be a contract to help me get my money back

if there was ever a problem.

The agreement was that I would give him $140K,

and every two months, I'd just be getting a check for $20,000.

It's a high, you know,

residual payout that you would be getting for passive income.

He told me after two years, I'd be making a lot of money.

His mom was invested with the same company.

So he, like, really, like, made me feel safe in the investment.

Like, it's risky, but not really.

[soft instrumental music plays]

[chimes]

[Lindsay] We had been talking consistently every day,

and we had chemistry.

I was really just focused on, like, us, and, like, building our connection

and whatever business connection also was happening.

It was, like, two and one simultaneously happening,

romantic and business.

And he would always say things like,

"You don't have to do this to have me in your life.

I just simply wanna do it to help you."

[chimes]

[Lindsay] I just, you know, thought, like, "Why do you care so much about my future?"

He would start talking about, like, "Oh, when you start getting money,

we could take trips and you can take more time off,

and we can spend more time together."

So I trusted him,

'cause you want us to have a future, which is really nice.

[Cecilie] Fraudsters often create the illusion of a shared future.

For me, it's the ultimate romantic gesture.

"We can be a team and look at what we're gonna do in the future together."

You're with someone who wants to make you better.

They know that you might have some money, and they just want you to grow.

But in reality, it's a calculated move,

designed to earn your trust and lower your guard.

[curious music plays]

[Lindsay] So I signed my contracts with him in the beginning of May.

Like, I remember having a call with my financial advisor,

told her that I wanted to take the whole entire 401K out.

She was, "I would advise you not to take all of it."

And I said, "If I'm going to invest, I wanna make the most out of it."

She's like, "Are you sure?" And I said, "Yes."

And she said, "Okay. It's just gonna take some time."

"I have to sell off your stocks."

And it might take a few days, but, you know, we'll get it done for you."

I remember telling Chris.

He was, you know, stressing out and stressing me out a little bit.

Like, "We really need to get, like, something in your account

because they'll close it."

And the money was taking a little time to come through.

So then he said to me, "Okay, well, I'll, like, fund it for you."

[chimes]

[Lindsay] I am, like, a beyond-loyal person.

And so, you know, my whole thing was like,

"Not only are you helping me with this, like, investment,

but, like, also now you're giving me this money to fund my account, and…"

Like, "How could I ever repay you?" essentially.

So, sure enough, like, the money comes through a week later.

So I wire him the money, and then it went to his account, direct.

[keyboard clacking]

[Lindsay] $140,000.

Yeah.

-Oh, that's a lot of money. -[Lindsay] Yeah. It's a lot of money.

[soft music plays]

[Lindsay] One morning, he decided to come down before I went to work.

It was July 12th, and time for my first payment.

And that's when he was in his Lexus.

And I remember him doing, like, this kind of, like,

jumping out of the car, like, excited.

And he was like, "I love payday."

And he gave me a check, and it was for $20,000.

I was, like, super excited.

I'm like, "It went through. Like, this is legit."

"Like, I got my money. Like, great. Amazing."

I was feeling like life is really about to change for me.

So, basically, after I did the investment,

things kind of started to, like, fizzle.

[tense music plays]

[Lindsay] We stopped talking as much, and, like,

he wasn't making as much of an effort to try to come see me.

And I'm like, "Okay, like, what the heck?"

So I messaged him, and I was like, "Hey,

I think that maybe it's better off that we just have a business relationship

and, like, maybe not do the romantic part anymore."

So after that, our romantic relationship was, like, officially, like, done.

[chimes]

[Lindsay] Come September, I was supposed to get my second check.

And he's telling me about this family member that's very ill,

and how he might not be able to meet me to pay me,

and asked me to set up a PayPal account

so that he could start sending me my payments in, like, smaller increments.

[foreboding music plays]

[Lindsay] But then he's like, "I'm having issues with PayPal."

And then from then on, it was just a complete shit show.

Just, like, became, like, this, like, months and months of, like,

redoing my account and having to open a new account,

and signing new paperwork for a year straight.

It just became this whole long, drawn-out process of not paying me.

I really started to spiral. I was like, "Why can I only talk to you?"

"Why can't I talk to your boss or someone else?"

At one point, he said to me,

if I told people, it would just be more toxic for my mental health

because they wouldn't believe me or think I was stupid.

So there was eight months

of not speaking to anyone about what I was dealing with

and just keeping it all to myself. I didn't tell a single soul.

No one knew.

[Cecilie] Control and isolation

are the silent weapons in these kind of relationships.

If you lost all your money to this individual, what are you gonna do?

That's the only individual that can help you.

So it's very isolating which is exactly what they want.

At this point, I am, like, in a terrible, like, mental state.

I don't know what's real, what to believe.

And I realized I wasn't gonna get my money back.

I knew I had to go to the police.

[curious music plays]

[Lindsay] Those are the contracts that I signed.

I drove to the Fullerton Police Department,

and they turned me away.

-[Cecilie] On what grounds? -Um, I gave him my money.

They said that to you? You gave it away.

I walked into the police station with all of this and nothing.

-I wouldn't just give away $140,000. -[Cecilie] No, that is--

-Yeah. Yeah. -[Lindsay] He stole it.

You are dealing with the consequences. What about him?

Is he dealing with any consequences? You know, they never do.

That is lighting the anger inside of me 'cause it's just not fucking fair.

It's been a year since I actually saw him in person,

and that's when he gave me my check.

I need to get my money back. Like, how am I gonna get my money?

Yeah. I promise you, we'll do our very best.

[line ringing]

-[Brianne] Hey, Cecilie. -I have just met up with Lindsay.

-Okay. -She's lost an incredible amount of money

in an investment romance scam.

Over $140,000.

Oh my God.

Do we have anything we can at least sink our teeth into with this one?

[Cecilie] Yeah.

Lindsay has been amazing at actually providing contracts.

Chris said he was linked to a company called Landmark Associates.

The company that she would "supposedly" have invested in called Planet 13.

[Brianne] Okay. So we need to find out if he lied to her

to get her to make these investments.

I'm gonna start by digging into this guy.

[tense music plays]

[Brianne] Early on in the investigation, it's important to deep dive into the case

to get all the information that's readily available to you,

whether that's through record searches, database searches.

You start to collect intel

about the perpetrator and figure out who they really are.

-[Cecilie] What did you find? -[Brianne] Well.

He had a restraining order put out against him

from someone named Lauren in Arizona.

[tense music continues]

He had to have been doing something terrible to her

for her to want to get this restraining order against him.

So we need to talk to whoever this Lauren person is.

Could she be another victim?

[Cecilie] I'll see if I can find her.

[keyboard clacking]

[Brianne] It's up to us

to prove that they have defrauded other people.

That it's not a one-time occurrence.

There is a pattern of behavior that the police need to consider.

[ominous music plays]

[music intensifies]

[Cecilie] So Lauren got back to me on LinkedIn, which is great.

She's the one who had the restraining order against Chris,

and I'm just so curious to hear what happened to her.

A restraining order is a serious charge.

It's not something the courts grant lightly.

There must have been enough evidence to believe that Chris posed a real threat.

The question is, what did he do to her?

[suspenseful music plays]

[music ends]