When you walk by a storefront and see a little sign that says “Psychic,” you probably think people are going in there, paying $5 to have their palms read, and laughing it off as a form of entertainment. What you don’t know is that there’s a scam being pulled off that’s part of a criminal enterprise that rips off millions of dollars a year from vulnerable victims. Kyle Swenson investigated the world of these fortunetellers for an extensive story in Miami New Times, so I invited him to join me on America Weekend to discuss what he uncovered.
I asked Kyle who both the scammers and targets tend to be, how they convince victims to turn over large sums of money (some lose six or seven figures!), why prosecutors rarely go after these criminals, and to explain the culture behind this organized crime. Listen to our conversation here.