Social Scammers | Belle Gibson, Coco Berthmann and Brittany Dawn
True Crime Society3 Maalis 2022

Social Scammers | Belle Gibson, Coco Berthmann and Brittany Dawn

The rise of social media has led to it being easier for us to make new friends, keep in touch with friends and family all over the world. Technology has given us access to any information we could ever need, all within seconds.
With this increase in social media use comes some downsides too. People are now more easily able to take advantage of others and money is able to change hands so easily.
In this episode of the True Crime Society Podcast, we chat about three Social Scammers – women who have been in trouble with the law after obtaining funds fraudulently from unsuspecting social media followers.
  • Belle Gibson is one of Australia’s most prolific social scammers. She managed to deceive huge corporations. Apple planned to include her health and wellness app on all iPads and Apple Watches. She told lie after lie about her health – she claimed to have terminal cancer that she cured by using holistic therapies. She also claimed that she underwent multiple heart operations and had endured strokes. None of this was true. When her deception was uncovered, she was dropped by Apple and Penguin Books. Belle has been ordered to repay hundreds of thousands of dollars – so far, none of the repayments have materialised.
  • Coco Berthmann had a troubled start to life. She has claimed that she managed to escape Germany as a teenager and that she had been trafficked by her parents for years. She moved to America and became a human rights activist. She established the Coco Berthmann Scholarship Fund and spoke about her ‘experiences’ publicly. In early 2022, Coco told a friend that she had stage 3 mantle cell lymphoma cancer. A GoFundMe was started for Coco, and it raised thousands of dollars. In February 2022, Coco was arrested on suspicion of communications fraud. Police investigated her ‘cancer diagnosis’ and found no evidence that Coco ever had the illness. Many of Coco’s other claims have now been questioned. There have been allegations that she was not actually a victim of child sex trafficking, said police, who could not verify her claims of working with the FBI.
  • Brittany Dawn has had a long, troubled run as an Influencer. She started out as a fitness influencer with her company BDawnFit. She got into trouble with her followers years ago after her ‘personalized’ eating plans, that people paid up to $500 for, turned out to not be so personal. She was also accused of triggering people with eating disorders by using tags such as #skipdinnerwakeupthinner. Brittany refused to refund most members and tried to move on with her life as a ‘Christian’ influencer. She married Jordan Nelson, a man who lost his job as a police officer after he used ‘excessive force’ during an arrest. She also faced much backlash after she released a tearful video, detailing how her husband shot her dog after it was hit by a car. The dog was still alive and breathing, but the couple decided to shoot it instead of taking it to a vet. In February 2022, the Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced that the state of Texas was suing Brittany for between $250,000 and $1 million in penalties and court fees for misleading customers.

You can read our blogs on these cases:
https://truecrimesocietyblog.com/2022/02/28/the-deception-of-coco-berthmann/

https://truecrimesocietyblog.com/2022/02/28/social-scammer-belle-gibson/

https://truecrimesocietyblog.com/2022/02/28/the-continuing-fall-of-brittany-dawn/
You can listen on Apple here - https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/true-crime-society/id1504300714?i=1000552780017

and Spotify here - https://open.spotify.com/episode/5vXVo0h3HzJpb8c4WNOhAN?si=DPJhGWFGRJeFS3G2AUm83A
This week’s episode is sponsored by Apostrophe and Better Help.

Visit Apostrophe.com/tcs, click Begin Visit, then use our code TCS at sign up and you’ll get your first visit for only five dollars!

BetterHelp is online therapy that offers video, phone and even live chat sessions with your therapist, so you don’t have to see anyone on camera if you don’t want to. Visit BetterHelp.com/society

Jaksot(262)

Vanished Without a Trace | Siblings Lilly & Jack Sullivan

Vanished Without a Trace | Siblings Lilly & Jack Sullivan

Skip to the case time stamp: (9:10) On May 2, 2025, siblings Lilly (6) and Jack (4) Sullivan were said to be in the kitchen of their home in Nova Scotia, Canada.  Their parents - mother Malehya Brook...

3 Heinä 20251h 1min

The Brutal Murder of 21-Year-Old Lilie James

The Brutal Murder of 21-Year-Old Lilie James

Timestamps: (3:17) - Karen Read Trial Update (9:40) - Lilie James Murder Coercive control is a behavior that is intended to dominate and control a partner.  Studies indicate that it can occur in up t...

26 Kesä 202547min

Missing Jennifer Kesse | No Longer a Cold Case?

Missing Jennifer Kesse | No Longer a Cold Case?

Timestamps - (11:37) Jennifer Kesse Start Florida woman Jennifer Kesse (24) had the world at her feet in 2006.   She had a supportive partner and was becoming increasingly successful in her corporate...

19 Kesä 20251h 2min

Moms Who Murder | Rhonda Paulynice & Lauren Ingrid Flanigan

Moms Who Murder | Rhonda Paulynice & Lauren Ingrid Flanigan

Timestamps - (10:45) Moms Who Murder A study by Brown University showed that from 1976 to 2007, on average, there were 500 cases of filicide a year in the United States. Filicide is the deliberate ac...

12 Kesä 202552min

The Mysterious Deaths of Caitlin Tracey, Baillee Schneider & Phoebe Handsjuk

The Mysterious Deaths of Caitlin Tracey, Baillee Schneider & Phoebe Handsjuk

Timestamps: (10:50) - Baby Tana Update (15:58) - Mysterious Deaths Caitlin Tracey and her husband Adam Beckerink had a very volatile relationship.  Caitlin alleged abuse by Adam against her and ...

5 Kesä 20251h 12min

Vacation Nightmare | The Murder of Grace Millane

Vacation Nightmare | The Murder of Grace Millane

Timestamps: (6:40) - Creche update / Listener of the week (11:23) - Patty Wu-Murad Update (14:46) - Grace Millane British woman Grace Millane (21) had the world at her feet.   She had just graduat...

29 Touko 202556min

The Murder of Jason Corbett | Murder or Self Defense?

The Murder of Jason Corbett | Murder or Self Defense?

Timestamp to get straight to the case: (5:38) In 2008, Irish man Jason Corbett placed an ad for an au-pair to assist him in raising his two young children Sarah and Jack.  Jason’s first wife Margaret...

22 Touko 20251h 7min

Unlucky Lottery Winners | The Murder of Abraham Shakespeare

Unlucky Lottery Winners | The Murder of Abraham Shakespeare

Timestamps: (7:47) - Erin Patterson Trial/ Updates (10:15) - Listener of the week (12:29) - Lottery Case Florida man Abraham Shakespeare was struggling to make ends meet in 2009.  He was unable to re...

15 Touko 202554min

Suosittua kategoriassa Yhteiskunta

olipa-kerran-otsikko
siita-on-vaikea-puhua
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
i-dont-like-mondays
poks
kolme-kaannekohtaa
aikalisa
antin-palautepalvelu
kaksi-aitia
sita
yopuolen-tarinoita-2
mamma-mia
rss-murhan-anatomia
meidan-pitais-puhua
rss-nikotellen
loukussa
rss-palmujen-varjoissa
terapeuttiville-qa
ootsa-kuullut-tasta-2
rss-ootsa-kuullut-tasta