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LETTER: Warning others so they aren't scammed too

Saved from scammers because she didn't know how to send a screenshot
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Linda Meyer admits to almost being scammed, if not for cautious Telus staff.

Dear Editor,

Re: How I was scammed and how I was rescued.  
 
I feel compelled to tell the Maple Ridge public how I was scammed. I don’t want anyone else to experience what I did.

I went down a rabbit hole while I traversed Never Never Land via my smartphone.

I feel embarrassed, depressed, violated, and redeemed.

I am addicted to the American reality show Skinwalker Ranch. The 512-acre ranch is located in Utah and UFO’s regularly appear on the ranch.

The star of the show is Dr. Travis Taylor. He is an astrophysicist and has two PhD’s one in optical science, and the other in engineering. He has also written many science fiction books and several textbooks.
 
Dr. Taylor has an imposter who led me down a rabbit hole.

He knew a lot about Dr. Taylor, probably from watching Skinwalker Ranch. The imposter was convincing. He also wanted me to send money, so I could purchase a fan membership card, which I did.

Moreover, Dr. Taylor’s imposter wanted me to send money by way of Western Union, gift cards, bitcoin, or Paypal.  

I thought it was weird that gift cards and bitcoin were accepted as payment for a fan membership card.

Had I investigated a bit, I would have realized it was a scam.

After I sent the money via Western Union, I was supposed to send a screenshot to a person who lived in Texas.

I wanted to be an official, card-carrying fan of Skinwalker Ranch so, bad I let my guard down.

My savior was the fact I didn’t know how to send a screenshot. So, I went to the Maple Ridge Telus store to see if a Telus employee could help me.

Every Telus employee told me the same thing – that it was a scam. Also, they all flatly refused to help me, which was for my own good.

By this point in time, I was about 51 per cent convinced they were right.

They told me to go back to the store where I bought the Western Union money transfer from, which I did, and get my money back. I got my money back.

The staff at the Maple Ridge Telus store, and, in particular, the manager rescued me.
 
After I got home, I got a video call from a man claiming to be Dr. Travis Taylor.

The man had an East Indian accent. Dr. Travis Taylor is from Alabama and has a southern U.S. accent. I laughed. I said to the imposter: “You are not Dr. Travis Taylor.” I hung up my phone.
 
Linda Meyer, Maple Ridge