The Perfect Scam

In this 2024 episode, Daniel no longer lives in his hometown of Fairfield, Connecticut, but he still owns a plot of land that was essentially his childhood backyard. When he returns to visit a sick friend, he is shocked to find that a developer has cleared the trees and is halfway through building a luxury home on his property. But how could something like this happen when the land was never up for sale? Daniel learns how a criminal with forged documents impersonated him and completed the sale without his knowledge.

On Gale's 70th birthday, she is just finishing her shift at work and looking forward to a special dinner with her husband, when the celebration is suddenly cut short. Among the birthday messages she has received is a frightening voicemail from the "Maricopa County Sheriff's Office." When she returns the call, an "officer" informs her that she has failed to appear for a grand jury and must now pay a $9,260 bond. She spends hours trying to fulfill his demands, but a well-trained bank employee and new legislation that holds crypto firms accountable for fraud might just save the day.

Daniel is a New Orleans firefighter starting a second career as a realtor. Before he even gets his first listing, he discovers that someone has stolen his identity and is setting up dozens of property showings. Meanwhile, hopeful renters are paying the impostor thousands of dollars in application fees and first-month deposits. Daniel is in a race against time to regain control of his identity and save others from becoming victims.

Larry and Barbara have issues with their Amazon account, so they welcome a call from "Amazon" customer service. They learn that their personal information has been compromised and used in a money-laundering scheme. To help the government with a supposed investigation, they transfer their savings via crypto kiosks, cash handoffs and gold purchases, believing the money will be returned once arrests are made. Over several months, the couple develops trust in an agent who calls himself Ryan, who assures them that the case is progressing and they will soon be repaid. When Larry, a retired pastor, returns from a trip to Kenya and loses contact with Ryan, he fears their $1.3 million is gone forever.

In this 2023 episode, Penny takes an online training course in social media marketing, hoping to build her hobby into a business. After this initial small investment, she is flooded with calls from companies selling different website services. They promise big returns, but her investment of more than $30,000 with multiple companies doesn't lead to a single sale. Penny reports the scam, but it's not until she gets a call from a news producer that she learns that the person behind the scheme is none other than The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Jen Shah.