The day of my mother’s memorial service.
[00:00:16] Bob: That’s so painful, wow.
[00:00:18] Heidi Tjeltveit: He, obviously, was put up to it.
The, the criminals no doubt, “Of course I wasn’t going to.”
It was… it was like he hadn’t said it.
(MUSIC SEGUE)
[00:00:45] Bob: Welcome back to The Perfect Scam.
I’m your host, Bob Sullivan.
This is part two of our story, Lottery Victim Turns Money Mule.
Brad cut off the money and even cut off the phone line.
But that wasn’t the end of it.
It was really just the beginning.
He could only accept calls from and text messages from people in the address book in that phone.
[00:01:43] Bob: But that doesn’t work, not for long.
[00:02:01] Det.
So Brad would hide his cell phone, right.
[00:03:06] Bob: And not just one pre-paid phone, like something right out of a movie.
Over time there is a steady stream of burner phones.
And that he, you know, he probably slept with the phone, but he always had one.
After all, he has no money left to give them.
A payment processor being, of course, a euphemism for money launderer, or money mule.
[00:06:38] Bob: How long did this money mule stuff go on for?
[00:06:41] Brad Simpson: For the rest of his life.
During one trip home, Paul’s sister, Heidi Tjeltveit, can’t believe what she sees.
[00:07:25] Bob: Wow.
[00:07:26] Heidi Tjeltveit: In his office.
[00:07:27] Bob: What was that like?
And he didn’t give a shot to hide it at all.
[00:07:45] Bob: I mean that, that must have been heartbreaking.
Did you, did you have any conversation about it?
[00:08:06] Heidi Tjeltveit: No, I didn’t know what to say.
I was just dumbstruck.
[00:08:11] Bob: Yeah, sure.
[00:08:12] Heidi Tjeltveit: Just so taken aback.
And again, you know maybe I was in shock, but I, like what?
I don’t understand.
I don’t understand.
[00:08:20] Bob: As he had done before, Brad turns to law enforcement for help.
[00:08:25] Det.
I’m familiar with the scam.
It’s, you know, that particular scam has been around for decades, many decades.
So this, this scheme never stopped.
The con artists just manipulated him into doing another part of another con.
[00:09:04] Bob: The criminals are bold.
Armed with numbers from the prepaid phones that Brad has found, Det.
Pierce tries calling them to tell them to leave Paul Simpson alone.
That doesn’t get them anywhere.
[00:09:16] Det.
Pierce: I personally called some of the numbers, and I personally talked to some of the scammers.
Obviously, they had no, you know, no fear in speaking with me because they’re international.
Theyre thousands of miles away from me, and they know my reach is not that far.
So for them to talk to me was not a big deal.
No, they’re not afraid at all?
[00:10:02] Det.
Pierce: No, not afraid.
[00:10:03] Bob: Brad is worried his dad is helping facilitate crimes, maybe even committing crimes.
Maybe that’s part of why he keeps going, Heidi thinks.
I know that my dad was, you know, life was beginning to slow down a bit.
My mom was suffering from memory loss.
Grandkids lived far away.
In a different way.
[00:11:20] Heidi Tjeltveit: Yep.
[00:11:22] Bob: Heidi feels powerless to stop it all.
Any efforts to talk with her dad just feel like running into a brick wall.
They have it all figured out.
So what do you say?
[00:11:56] Heidi Tjeltveit: Stop it.
That wasn’t going to work.
[00:11:58] Bob: Yeah.
[00:12:00] Bob: A couple of years pass.
Paul is still sending money to the criminals.
Piles of mail keep arriving at the house, and mom’s condition keeps deteriorating.
And then in 2012, she passes away.
Paul is so wrapped up in the scam even the funeral services don’t stop him.
Asked me for money the day of my mother’s memorial service.
[00:12:45] Bob: That’s so painful.
It was… it was like he hadn’t said it.
He hadn’t heard it.
I’m like, oh my gosh.
[00:13:19] Bob: That sounds so painful for you.
I’m so sorry.
[00:13:28] Heidi Tjeltveit: Yeah.
It, I mean, thanks, it was just something that tells you how far gone he was.
[00:13:59] Bob: I hear that story from a lot of people.
[00:14:41] Brad Simpson: Yeah, absolutely.
And he was very high functioning too which presented its own set of challenges uh in our case.
The account where dad’s Social Security check is automatically deposited has a negative balance.
I want them sent someplace else."
[00:15:45] Bob: But while that investigation is quick, fixing the problem takes forever.
Brad makes several appeals to the Social Security Administration to stop this redirection of his benefit checks.
And he’s rejected.
[00:15:58] Brad Simpson: I mean it just; I was just confounded.
I, you know, I just, I couldn’t believe it.
[00:16:04] Bob: How many Social Security checks went to the wrong place?
[00:16:07] Brad Simpson: 18.
[00:16:09] Bob: So 18 monthly checks.
[00:16:11] Brad Simpson: Yes.
How many checks after you first started complaining?
[00:16:18] Brad Simpson: Um, 17.
It was for the 17 following months.
You, you told them, and they kept doing it.
[00:16:45] Brad Simpson: Yep.
Would he look embarrassed?
Would he look angry at you?
And he knew I knew what he was doing.
And, so he was just, he just kind of did it matter-of-factly.
[00:18:08] Brad Simpson: Absolutely.
[00:18:21] Heidi Tjeltveit: I think my brother probably mentioned that my father was an optimist.
[00:18:54] Bob: Right till the end he thought he was going to get his money back.
[00:18:56] Heidi Tjeltveit: Right till the end.
So it wasn’t necessarily for his own personal gain but for, for other people.
That’s who he was.
And I didn’t see any point at that time uh, yeah, so.
[00:20:12] Bob: In 2018, at age 92, Paul dies.
The lottery winnings, well they never arrive.
[00:20:26] Brad Simpson: Yeah.
So, yes, I was, I was relieved.
[00:20:42] Bob: The ordeal lasted more than 10 years.
[00:20:45] Det.
Pierce: I have to give a lot of credit to Brad.
Brad was very proactive.
Brad identified the problem early on.
[00:21:17] Bob: And it probably could have been worse without him, right?
[00:21:20] Det.
Pierce: There’s no doubt about it.
It would have been worse.
But the global pandemic put a dent in those plans.
I uh, that’s something I, I may take up again.
[00:22:00] Bob: Is there any way to avoid a 10-year ordeal like this?
Pierce has a lot to say about that.
[00:22:15] Det.
Pierce: you’re able to’t win a sweepstake or a lottery you never signed up for.
And we, we know for a fact that Paul never did.
And the critical thing is, be stingy with your personal information.
Avoid any solicitation or random telephone calls when a person calls you trying to give away money.
No one gives away money, period.
That just doesn’t happen.
They’re trying to gain your trust so that they can put their hands into your pocketbook and wallet.
Pierce is how the criminals just never seem to give up.
[00:23:27] Det.
Pierce: These individuals are relentless.
This is their job.
This is what they do every single day.
They coach–, just like a random solicitor trying to sell us a product.
This is what they do.
They’re very good at it.
And they have a way to manipulate and gain the trust of their victims.
Just be aware of that.
And also, be aware of the instructions that seemingly may sound bizarre.
If you think it doesn’t sound right, more than likely it’s not going to be right.
And give a shot to avoid and give a shot to distance yourself from people like that.
Is there, is there anything you might think to say to that person?
[00:24:49] Heidi Tjeltveit: Don’t be ashamed.
It, everybody makes mistakes.
These, these criminals are very, very, very sophisticated.
They know, they know how to get through to people.
They know how to manipulate people.
They are geniuses at this.
I think why I didn’t do that, I’m not really sure.
Now all I have to do is be conservator.
[00:26:16] Bob: The last 10 years really took a lot out of Brad.
[00:27:29] Bob: Brad is obviously an amazing son.
Chronic fraud victims experience more intense emotional swings, the report found.
These kinds of stories underscore the importance of preventing engagement with fraud to begin with.
[00:28:49] Bob: So how are you now?
[00:28:51] Brad Simpson: I’m doing good.
I’m doing good.
It’s, it’s certainly not.
[00:29:20] Bob: Okay, well I want to give listeners that to hold onto too.
So tell me another chapter of your dad’s life.
A, a good memory from when you were younger.
And I thought that was great, and I thought that was a good example for me.
And that’s, that’s something I have a go at do.
[00:30:41] Bob: Disappointment is inevitable, but discouragement is a choice.
[00:30:45] Brad Simpson: Yes.
[00:30:47] Bob: That’s fantastic.
Here’s what the email said.
In this case, I chose to fight."
Call the AARP Fraud Watch data pipe Helpline at 877-908-3360.
Their trained fraud specialists can provide you with free support and guidance on what to do next.
Be sure to find us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
For AARP’s The Perfect Scam, I’m Bob Sullivan.
