A Mysterious Woman
She felt that something was not okay with the woman. Was she trying to delude her after all? A lot was going on in her mind. There was a possibility that she got lured in. If so, she was also in danger.
Yet, the fact that the beggar sat on the car without any opposition, she sensed that something was not okay. So she was determined to follow her and find out what was really going on. Yet she had no idea that she would find tons of lies.
A Regular Day in Her Hometown
It was an ordinary day for Melissa Smith and she was doing some tasks in her hometown, San Diego, California. Going to the local grocery store was a usual task of her and she would see the same friendly faces whenever she goes. And she knew that she would see someone else as well- the mendicant.
Nevertheless, on this day, Melissa felt that something was not okay. She believed her gut feeling and began to discover. When she was putting the grocery bags in her car, Melissa noticed that the panhandler and her kid was leaving their spot. Yet, what happened next shocked her.
Shopping Plaza
As this poor woman had to live on the streets, she decided to find a good place. She would sit in a tiny spot during the day outside the East Lake Village Center—a shopping plaza that contained restaurants, grocery stores, salons, dentists, vintage stores, florists, clothing departments, jewelry stores, and sweet shops.
It is normally a crowded place and she knew that people have change in their pockets. She expected that someone would give her money, especially when people notice that she was pregnant. Yet, she had no idea that someone was spying on her.
Trusting Her Gut
Although California is known for Hollywood, impressive architecture, national parks, beautiful weather, there are a huge number of homeless people. Yet, there are times that people would act homeless and Melissa was never fooled by them.
The sight of this beggar woman became usual as Melissa saw her every time she goes to the store. “I felt bad. There’s a pregnant lady with a little boy who is down on her luck,” she explained. She had no idea that this feeling would discover something astonishing.
Family Comes First
Every time she goes shopping, Melissa would see this woman standing in the burning sun for hours, wearing smeared clothes. Most of the time she was alone and sometimes there was a man with her. Melissa presumed that he was her husband.
This woman became quite a familiar person in the area and shop owners tend to give her sandwiches, drinks, and change. She was able to get the attention and sympathy of the public. But Melissa was so curious about this woman.
So Many Questions
Melissa was worried about the beggar. Not only that she was homeless, but also she had a family to feed. Melissa would pass her every time she went shopping. This happened for two months at a stretch.
Melissa thought that the woman should have been so despairing and that was why she kept standing in the sun for hours even without food or water. Above all, she was pregnant! Nonetheless, Melissa felt that there’s something suspicious.
Coming Up With a Plan
It was quite apparent that this woman was well experienced in this. She perfectly knew how to get people’s attention. Also, she knew that her situation would make everyone feel so sorry about her. She had a perfect story that goes along with her situation- a pregnant mother struggling to survive with her little kid.
At the same time, she would tend to hold a cardboard sign with “please help” written with black in right on her pregnant belly. If the small kids didn’t appear pathetic enough for people they get so sorry about the unborn child. She might be telling the truth, but she wanted to confirm it.
Chance
Melissa lived closer to the East Lake Village Center and she would do her shopping before the school rush. But one day she got a strong feeling to have a fresh smoothie. When she reached the store, it was almost the closing time and the beggar was nowhere to be seen. It made Melissa worry but she thought that the woman was fine.
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On her way back, she noticed that she was about to run out of gas, so she decided to stop by a gas station which was located right across the road. When she was getting out of the car, she noticed something unusual which made her investigate more.
A Mysterious Driver
Melissa saw that this poor lady was standing at the side of the shopping complex. She thought that the woman was trying to find some more pennies before going home. At once, a vehicle appeared and was driving towards her.
Many assumptions were going on in Melissa’s head. She thought; who was the driver, was the beggar in trouble and where did her little kid go? She observed the car and she was so suspicious.
Man’s Identity Revealed
She was waiting impatiently. Melissa was flabbergasted at what happened next. The driver was the poor woman’s partner. Above all, the car that he was driving made her more surprised.
That man was driving a Mercedes Benz! It’s a luxury car that is renowned for its high-quality leather interiors and expensive price tags. Melissa wanted to find out what’s going on. She had no idea that she would be the topic for the headlines.
Pictures
“They were leaving, and I noticed they got into a Mercedes Benz. I thought, ‘Wow, a Mercedes Benz?’” Melissa revealed. The fact that the car was expensive and appearing as if it was brand new made things worse. Without a second thought, Melissa started to follow the couple. And she didn’t forget to record everything.
She saw that they were laughing, “Low and behold, they were in front of us. Here they are counting money, laughing. Their little boy was not in a car seat or a seat belt. He’s in the front seat with them,” Melissa explained. She was so mad and she didn’t want to let them go. She felt obliged to reveal the truth to the public.
Caught in the Act
Melissa followed them and saw that the car was stopped. She was astonished to see that they were right in front of another shopping complex. It appeared like they have a perfect plan to earn money. Then, the woman got out of the car and started to pretend as if she was a beggar.
“She sits there with the sign. He goes [and] parks the Mercedes. They put up the sign and not less than five minutes; here she is getting money from all these people,” Melissa explained. Whenever she sees the beggar, Melissa knew that something is not okay, but she had no idea that this would end up involving the authorities.
Getting Angry
Melissa was so angry at that point and took several photos of the beggar and her son. Wait! Was the kid her son? No sooner, the couple noticed Melissa. They were so angry and started to yell and scream at her. The woman even took a big rock.
“Next thing I know, she picked up this big boulder,” Melissa said, “I don’t know if pregnant people can do that, but it was pretty big over her head and coming at me with this rock.” There was another woman and saw what was going on, so she decided to call the police. The beggar took the boy and started running away. Nonetheless, Melissa was not ready to give up.
Finding out the Truth
Melissa didn’t want to let these fraudsters get away easily. She shared all those photos on her social media accounts and even contacted the local news station. She wanted to make the public aware of this hoax and save people from giving money to fake beggars.
The news station was so curious and they wanted to find out what was going on. As Melissa had pictures, they could easily get the plates of the car. They found that the car was registered to a female, but the address was classified. This was just the beginning.
Visiting the Encinitas Heights Apartment
No sooner, the journalists became so obsessed with this story. They were able to trail the location of the woman. They traced it to Encinitas Heights Apartments. They also found out that the residents pay a rent of $2,500. Soon enough, people got to know about this, and all the magazines, radio, and paper journalists went to the place but nobody answered the door. No one had entered or exited the apartment.
After that, something else happened. A new couple moved into the apartment as the couple who lived before had left during the night, even without any notice! Melissa was shocked to see the attention that the story was getting.
Going Viral
As we mentioned earlier, Melissa shared this weird story online and she provided proof with pictures and videos. So many journalists got hold of her to get information and then they shared the story themselves. “I feel bad. Don’t give these people money. They don’t need it. They’re driving a Benz,” she pleaded.
The residents were so shocked to hear this. They couldn’t believe that a person used a small child and pregnancy to earn money from others. After a few days, journalists received a phone call that made them peep into a new scene.
Spotting the Beggar
The beggar was found! A young lady named Rebecca had heard of the story while she was driving to another shopping center. She immediately recognized the woman that she was the one who was in Melissa’s videos.
She then commented on one of Melissa’s posts and even posted a picture to prove it. Soon enough, when Emily Valdez got to know about it, she got her crew together and went to the shopping center. They didn’t want this beggar to get away with this again.
Confusion
Valdez went according to the information from the young lady and she started to search for the woman in the shopping center. She saw many pregnant ladies, but they were not beggars. And she finally found the woman from Melissa’s posts and she was flabbergasted.
Valdez was quite sure that the beggar was pregnant. And two days after Melissa finds out the truth, this woman changed the place and starts doing her thing holding a baby. Yet, Valdez didn’t want to stop.
Finding the Panhandler
Valdez got close to the beggar and pointed the microphone towards her and asked, “Is this you, begging?” She instructed her crew to record everything. Valdez grabbed her phone, so she could show the beggar Melissa’s videos.
The lady gazed at the phone, at that point at Valdez, and afterward, she took a gander at the camera. “I don’t speak English,” she murmured. Her son pulled at her jumper. He was positively the kid from Melissa’s photographs. In any case, at that point, as Valdez followed the lady up the road, the beggar’s partner appeared.
Match
“Keep the camera moving!” Valdez said. She was happy to do anything for a decent story. The man attempted to get the journalists far from his family, yet they wouldn’t give up. The journalists followed the family up the road, around the bend, and watched them heap into the rear of a minivan. The vehicle had the seller plates and Valdez was persuaded that she got them.
She ran facial recognition on the lady from the video and the lady she had met that very day. She was happy to see the outcomes; they were an 80% match. Valdez at that point watched the lady’s accomplice. There was something in particular about his response that made her think there was more to reveal. What’s more, her hunch was correct.
Finding More Clues
The weird man said something to Valdez in Spanish. And then he again murmured something to his partner in a different language. Valdez couldn’t comprehend what they were saying, but she wanted to find out it. Later, what he said helped them to find the truth.
Valdez downloaded the recording, set the earphones on her head, and squeezed play. She tuned into the words again and again. She was unable to recognize the language. Be that as it may, she was fortunate enough to get a call from a specialist.
Help
Leslie Albright is a resigned investigator and she went over Valdez’s short meeting with the suspects. She was an urgent individual from the San Diego Police Department during the investigation of underground crime rings. As she had worked for 25 years, Leslie turned into an expert.
This story had Leslie thinking. She realized that she had heard that language previously, yet she was unable to recollect where. At that point, it hit her. Leslie understood that the lady was not a conventional poor person and that this story was more evil than it appeared.
Secrets Come Out
Not only Valdez but also almost all the people were searching for the woman being so curious about what was going on. Yet, they didn’t that this would lead to a scam to be revealed. A lot was going on than they expected.
For as long as hardly any years, people began seeing an issue in their locale. California was depicted as a city of hip culture and luxurious ways of life, yet there was one major issue everybody disregarded, and it was deteriorating constantly. One Reddit client at long last needed to uncover reality, yet doing this was risky.
Identifying the Language
Leslie committed her vocation to get criminals. Also, typically, beggars aren’t associated with any offenses. Yet, the language the strange man was talking made her imagine that there was more to this story.
She watched Valdez’s recording again and perceived the language. The man was speaking Romani and they had a typical technique to excuse the press. What else was this couple covering up?
Hustle
Detective Leslie understood that the couple was associated with an organized crime ring she was researching for quite a long time. This gathering began their ring just after their illicit entry into the US. Tragically, they perpetrate violations day by day. The individuals from the gathering lived in cheap condos and claimed various vehicles. This permitted them to trick countless people.
Leslie imparted her decision to Valdez. The man and lady from the recording were bound to be colleagues than couples. Furthermore, the pregnancy was only a trick. There were significantly more layers to this story.
Escaping the Justice
For quite a while, authorities were attempting to get these culprits and deal with them. Be that as it may, they were savvy enough not to remain in one spot for a really long time. When they notice that somebody is on to their demonstration, they gather their sacks and escape.
Obviously, the beggar Melissa got on tape did the same. Also, exactly when it appeared to be that everything was more than one man stepped in and gave some data. This could enable specialists to discover more about the culprits.
Reddit Whistleblower
This disguised man uncovered some data that even placed his own life in harm’s way. Also, he shared all the subtleties on Reddit. “I had a friend of a friend tell me that they knew them and that they’re just a hustling pair of Con Artists whose families conned their way into the country.”
In any case, he didn’t stop there. He even guaranteed that the lady was forced to do these things. The man was apprehensive about his safety and he erased his profile not long after sharing this data. What could be the results of his character was uncovered?
Getting To The Bottom Of It
After this, more data began surfacing. Incidentally, the lady would frequently stuff her garments with foam and pretended that she’s pregnant. Because of the fake tummy, she would acquire more than $500 every day. However, she was not by any means the only one who did this.
Concerning crime rings, men frequently lead their activities. They guarantee frantic ladies shelter and food in return for some work. The ladies are dispatched each day and gathered at night. Obviously, the benefit isn’t appropriated decently. The individuals who run all that lead luxurious ways of life while others don’t.
Threatening Phone Calls
“They’ll use the babies, children, anyway they can… the children will not go to school because their job and their future is the Family Business,” Leslie disclosed later. These children never get an education and all that they know is a crime.
“People should know, there’s plenty of service and organizations that exist to help people and especially for women with children. They’re taking advantage of them all as well as scamming people at the parking lot entrances. Neither of them is reporting the money they’re making from her begging and both are claiming poverty to get state and federal assistance,” the anonymous Reddit user also added. Yet after the warning had been made, he received threatening phone calls. He made one last thing to say before he wanted to erase all of his traces of the internet.
Warning
“They might be up and trying this scam again or it might be another woman, either way, call the cops on them, making sure to tell the dispatch that they’re “the BMW scammers” so they’re identified and the state can start the proper deportation proceedings against them… don’t help any of them or give money to any of the panhandlers you might see.”
The warning of the Reddit user was clear. And Leslie’s team is trying to catch operations like this. We should be thankful for Melissa because, without her, no one would ever hear about these beggars. But still, there’s a question. “If the police can’t catch them, how will they be stopped?”