# Scammer lied about having cancer **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 28, 2023, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972 "2023-01-28T23:23:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2023, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/1 "2023-01-28T23:23:45Z")
I know this happens all the time, but a local 19-year-old woman claimed that she had acute lymphoblastic leukemia AND pancreatic cancer, and actually scammed people out of more than $40,000. > **[Court records: Medical equipment, vehicle seized from Bettendorf woman...](https://www.kwqc.com/2023/01/26/court-records-medical-equipment-vehicle-seized-bettendorf-woman-charged-cancer-scam/)** > > She was arrested Monday, the same day police searched her Bettendorf apartment. This channel just broadcasted that story back-to-back with that of a woman who DID have cancer, and is recovering from a stem cell transplant. As a cancer survivor myself (although mine was NBD compared to what other people go through) people like the faker really infuriate me. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2023, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/2 "2023-01-28T23:47:00Z")
First degree theft, class C felony, up to 10 years in prison. It appears from the article she was not in it only for the money, but for public recognition – public speaking engagements and so on. Or maybe she was paid for those too. I wonder if she thinks it was worth it. This will be (as they said in school) on her permanent record. Just a bit of curiosity on my part: they seized some assets including a new car. Is liquidating those assets what they use to pay back the donors? I don’t imagine she has much of that cash left. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2023, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/3 "2023-01-28T23:50:45Z")
I couldn’t believe she actually got all those other organizations on board with her! Maybe we could introduce her to George Santos; they belong together. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2023, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/4 "2023-01-28T23:52:42Z")
You can find multiple examples of fakers doing this through a search for “GoFundMe cancer fraud”. Even worse, people have conducted fund-raising scams alleging their children had cancer. In one such instance, a woman [tried to get unnecessary treatments for her child](https://www.abc15.com/news/crime/woman-arrested-accused-of-raising-money-on-gofundme-claiming-daughter-had-brain-cancer) so she could take videos, apparently for fundraising purposes. ---
**Author:** ![TheCuse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thecuse/32/2854_2.png) [@TheCuse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheCuse)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2023, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/5 "2023-01-28T23:56:31Z")
$40,000? That’s all? She must have been a scamming newbie. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2023, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/6 "2023-01-28T23:57:20Z")
I haven’t seen any statements from her parents or other family members, which makes me think they washed their hands of her at the first opportunity. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2023, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/7 "2023-01-28T23:58:34Z")
This happens all the time, and is even more disgusting. This sort of thing happened long before anyone ever heard of GoFundMe, too, or even computers. ---
**Author:** ![yeahithappened](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/dfb087/32.png) [@yeahithappened](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yeahithappened)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/8 "2023-01-29T00:01:21Z")
So true, so true…but I think MTG or Lauren would get a bit jealous of the scammer’s ability to attract funds. Maybe they should go to Brazil for the honeymoon? ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/9 "2023-01-29T00:45:13Z")
This just reminds me of… > **[Charlie Has Cancer](https://itsalwayssunny.fandom.com/wiki/Charlie_Has_Cancer)** > > "Charlie Has Cancer" is the fourth episode of the first season of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Dennis and Mac help Charlie find someone to sleep with him after Charlie announces that he's dying of cancer. Mac begins a relationship with a trans... ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/10 "2023-01-29T01:01:45Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > This sort of thing happened long before anyone ever heard of GoFundMe, too, or even computers. Oh, yeah. My brother’s ex-brother-in-law spent some time in jail for fund-raising off of one of his kids (it’s been many years and I don’t remember the details - I vaguely recall Make-A-Wish getting entangled). ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/11 "2023-01-29T04:11:51Z")
I’ve seen references to these scams going back to the 1930s, if not before. Back then, people used classified ads. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/12 "2023-01-29T10:50:53Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > As a cancer survivor myself (although mine was NBD compared to what other people go through) people like the faker really infuriate me. Ditto!!! I’m sitting here on a bunch of medical debt and would be terribly embarrassed to go around begging for money from strangers, I rarely bother mentioning the big C when making appointments or arrangements for anything. [Not that I object discussing it, discussing it is educational to others who might need to go through what I did/am.] ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/13 "2023-01-29T12:44:47Z")
When i wasa new teacher, a student at the school i was at told everyone she had an invitation to some reality tv show (like, a talent performance one) in NYC but needed funds to get there. She raised several thousand in donations from teachers and students. Not me, for what it is worth. I have no idea how she thought she would get away with it. I mean, it was her school. Everyone knew her. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/14 "2023-01-29T13:45:27Z")
This has happened _twice_ in the small city near us (Urbana, Ohio). Ten years ago [a woman claimed she had cancer and scammed people out of a couple thousand dollars](https://www.urbanacitizen.com/news/658/woman-in-cancer-hoax-sent-to-prison). But that pales in comparison to what happened in 2003, when a mother [falsely claimed her seven year old daughter had cancer](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4376718/Cancer-victim-mother-convinced-dying.html). She even shaved her head and gave her sleeping pills. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/15 "2023-01-29T16:30:27Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > But that pales in comparison to what happened in 2003, when a mother [falsely claimed her seven year old daughter had cancer](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4376718/Cancer-victim-mother-convinced-dying.html). She even shaved her head and gave her sleeping pills. From the linked story: > [@](#): > > Hannah’s mother pleaded guilty by reason for insanity claiming to have been diagnosed with Munchausen by proxy - a mental condition in which a caregiver invents or causes an illness of the person they are supposed to be looking after. I’m reminded of the (possibly apocryphal) story about a guy who murdered his parents and then asked for mercy because he was an orphan. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/16 "2023-01-29T17:37:51Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > I’m reminded of the (possibly apocryphal) story about a guy who murdered his parents and then asked for mercy because he was an orphan. - Several sources attribute that to Lincoln. > **[Abraham Lincoln Quote: “Hypocrite: The man who murdered his parents, and then...](https://quotefancy.com/quote/44606/Abraham-Lincoln-Hypocrite-The-man-who-murdered-his-parents-and-then-pleaded-for-mercy-on)** > > “Hypocrite: The man who murdered his parents, and then pleaded for mercy on the grounds that he was an orphan.” — Abraham Lincoln quotes from QuoteFancy.com ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/17 "2023-01-29T23:44:06Z")
So, what ended up happening? ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2023, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/18 "2023-02-01T01:08:41Z")
Couldn’t she claim she was invited to audition, or that she’d made it to the semi-finals? Then she disappears for a couple of days (maybe during a weekend when her family was going to be out of town at Aunt Mabel’s anyways), and dejectedly walks into class Monday morning saying that it was close, but she didn’t make the cut to be on the show. And “thank you so much for believing in me and contributing, it helped my self-esteem and drive to do so much better in every area of my life!” Optional, for hitting below the Bible Belt: "I don’t know why it was the Lord’s plan to have me get so close, maybe God was closing a door and opening a window and I’m supposed to keep trying. Keep an eye out for my next audition… _believe me, you’ll be hearing from me beforehand!"_ ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/19 "2023-02-18T14:48:34Z")
> [@digs](#): > > maybe God was closing a door and opening a window “You realize it’s a smaller opening, right? It’s not an upgrade.” ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972/20 "2023-03-01T03:08:40Z")
She’s pleading not guilty. Maybe she doesn’t believe she did anything wrong herself? (Maybe, really?) > **[Woman accused of taking donations in cancer scam pleads not guilty](https://www.kwqc.com/2023/02/28/woman-accused-taking-donations-cancer-scam-pleads-not-guilty/)** > > A formal arraignment is slated for Thursday. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scammer-lied-about-having-cancer/978972.md?page=2)