Results tagged “scams”

Joseph Wesley Torma, aka "Plasma Pat," ran a racket near Tampa, Florida, wherein he'd approach Wal-Mart customers outside the store, claim to be a store employee, and offer to share his employee discounts to purchase televisions for the victims. Once accepted, Torma would take cash from the would-be bargain shoppers and walk into the store — then promptly vanish.

Once, I heard the writer Walter Kirn interviewed on Fresh Air and he was saying how, when he was a teenager, Mormons came to the door and his parents let them in and before you know it, they converted. And Terry Gross was like, Whoa, Walter, hang on a minute, who lets Mormons in and then buys what they’re saying? And Walter said something like, You know, Terry, of the eighty qua-billion Make Your Penis Enormous spams that go out, there are at least a couple of takers. His parents happened to be in one of those vulnerable places so they fell for the crap. (Note: I am entitled to pronounce Mormonism crap. I was, I am not shitting you, once married to a Mormon. Fucking really.)