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It's one thing to believe the the supernatural. It's another to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to a storefront psychic. But that's what happened to a stock trader when he came into contact with Tammy Mitchell, who ran a fortune telling business in Midtown.
The Post calls the victim, Douglas Lonneker, a "free-spirited, successful entrepreneur from tony Wilson, Wyo." Apparently last year he visited Mitchell at her East 32nd Street storefront, where she told him he was cursed and he was free-spirited with his money, shelling out $487,000 to rid himself of the evil.
Mitchell has scammed many people all over the country and her techniques were featured on an episode of 20/20. One way Mitchell would get to victims is to be supportive and simply sell a set of candles for $75 - and then she'd rope 'em in with threats like, "This is the spirit of God, my child. You must follow and obey my word. You must have $63,000 to suffer in place of you. If not, Satan will take someone." [Disclosure: We've visited a "fortune teller" before and fallen for the $75 candle scam, but luckily got out before the "pay thousands or else someone you love dies." We know - naive!]
The publisher of Skeptic magazine Michael Shermer told 20/20, "All of us are potentially gullible. Smart people on some level are even more gullible if you can get them past their initial level of skepticism."
Now Mitchell faces charges of "grand larceny and fortune-telling" (who knew that was illegal!). Her neighbors told the Post the supposed psychic was very convincing when she would tell them evil lurked around them.
Photograph by imjustsayin' on Filckr
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Idiots! Plain and simple. Why didn't he just ask her what stocks to invest in for the best return?
Jen, you've gotten taken on the candle scam? You HAVE to tell that story!
Myself, I went to a storefront psychic on a whim years ago, and 2 minutes in she asked me to spend 20 dollars on a candle. I was out of there.
Wow. Just wow. Even wow about paying for $75 candles.
Not believing in spirits is the best.
Rocknrope - it's a very embarrassing moment in my life. An old co-worker (who is highly superstitious) and I visited a storefront psychic in the East Village. Somehow, we managed to escalate from $5 palm or tarot card readings to the candles and, for my friend, an insane amount of extortion. (The psychic managed to prey upon my friend's worries about her mom's failing health.)
clearly, I am in the wrong profession
I don't need to pay $75 to a "fortune teller" tell me I'm cursed. eventually, you get used to it and just accept it.
and, stay away from highly superstitious people. You'll meet many of them if a loved one died.
Jen also fell for that Patrick Moberg nygirlofmydreams nonsense. A little skepticism is a good thing.
I see poisoned money in your bank accounts. Send me all of it and I will cleanse it for you and return it after it has been cleansed. Send cash only, wire transfers have evil spirits and can not be cleansed.
I can't even imagine why this would be illegal. If someone is foolish enough to fall for this crap they deserve to be parted with their money. It's not any worse than pi**ing your money away on other tangible crap they hook you in on like miracle fat burners that are actually sugar pills and those idiotic foot pads you stick on and pulls the toxins and viruses out of your body. If people spending their money on fake things makes them feel better for whatever reason (medical cures or evil demons) then I say let them spend away.
People need a fortune teller to convince them that evil lurks around them?
Had the fortune teller invested $50 online for some kind of official minister certificate, she'd have that money free and clear. God bless America!
Had the fortune teller invested $50 online for some kind of official minister certificate, she'd have that money free and clear. God bless America!
You pay $75 for candles (or $5 for a palm reading) and then you criticize people that don't believe in evolution?!?
I am always curious why the fortune tellers themselves live (or appear to live) in poverty (their shops are always so shabby). They can give you the lottery numbers, but can't use that info for themselves?
Let her have the money! That Lonnecker idiot didn't deserve to keep it. A sucker is born every minute, but that giant fool must've fallen out of elephant's uterus.
Great point 24gotham. Maybe there is a "curse" on predicting one's own numbers?
I once went to a psychic in the West Village (on a lark) and she said that I was going to come back and give her a million dollars. Seriously, this was her prediction.
Mitchell does her scam in God's name, prays to Jesus and quotes scripture. I hope there is a special place in Hell for someone who preys on people while fronting as a deeply spiritual person. I hope she is prosecuted to the max and that the law shuts down these store front gypsy mafia operations nation-wide. Maybe Lonneker can push that agenda. He seems like a guy who was trying to do the right thing for his family and who isn't afraid of being called a sucker by morons.
To rcltrh who can't even believe this type of action would be illegal:
If a stranger were to call your home and address you and your family by name with a familiarity that gave you chills, if that stranger were then to threaten your family and demand a ransom to keep them safe, then would that not be considered a crime?
This fortune teller preys on the beliefs and fears of her victims. Like a social parasite she feeds on these fears. Yes, it is hard to imagine how one believes the threat of spiritual warfare when one does not believe in the presence of demons (as I do not).
A religious person, though, who does believe in the possibility of spirits unseen would have to take a smaller leap of faith to believe these threats of otherworldly things.
Whether one believes in the possibility of curses, demons, or angels is not what is the central dilemna here. The real issue at hand is whether it should be legal for a vendor to peddle their wares under false pretenses. Is it morally or legally right to use someone's faith to extort from them not only their worldly wealth but their spiritual well-being?
Think on that before you judge so quickly.
To rcltrh who can't even believe this type of action would be illegal:
If a stranger were to call your home and address you and your family by name with a familiarity that gave you chills, if that stranger were then to threaten your family and demand a ransom to keep them safe, then would that not be considered a crime?
This fortune teller preys on the beliefs and fears of her victims. Like a social parasite she feeds on these fears. Yes, it is hard to imagine how one believes the threat of spiritual warfare when one does not believe in the presence of demons (as I do not).
A religious person, though, who does believe in the possibility of spirits unseen would have to take a smaller leap of faith to believe these threats of otherworldly things.
Whether one believes in the possibility of curses, demons, or angels is not what is the central dilemna here. The real issue at hand is whether it should be legal for a vendor to peddle their wares under false pretenses. Is it morally or legally right to use someone's faith to extort from them not only their worldly wealth but their spiritual well-being?
Think on that before you judge so quickly.
To rcltrh who can't even believe this type of action would be illegal:
If a stranger were to call your home and address you and your family by name with a familiarity that gave you chills, if that stranger were then to threaten your family and demand a ransom to keep them safe, then would that not be considered a crime?
This fortune teller preys on the beliefs and fears of her victims. Like a social parasite she feeds on these fears. Yes, it is hard to imagine how one believes the threat of spiritual warfare when one does not believe in the presence of demons (as I do not).
A religious person, though, who does believe in the possibility of spirits unseen would have to take a smaller leap of faith to believe these threats of otherworldly things.
Whether one believes in the possibility of curses, demons, or angels is not what is the central dilemna here. The real issue at hand is whether it should be legal for a vendor to peddle their wares under false pretenses. Is it morally or legally right to use someone's faith to extort from them not only their worldly wealth but their spiritual well-being?
Think on that before you judge so quickly.
I think it took alot of courage and bravery for this man to stand up to this scumbag. She preyed upon his love and desire to protect his family, she preyed upon his spirit and virtue, using god as a mask for her evil craft. Her spirit is ugly. And to all of these stone-throwers calling him names, and saying he deserved to be ripped off... your spirits are ugly too. To laugh, namecall, put down a human being for his misfortune is barbaric. You keep the world down just like her. BE KIND TO OTHER PEOPLE!
I wish this man peace and recovery from the scumbag scammer, and all of the losers who actually take time out of their day to put him down.
Peace