Who was Maria Duval? Her son says she had a gift, an ability to see people’s futures. She helped locate missing people and worked with the French elite, befriending Jacques Chirac and Brigitte Bardot. In the late 80s, when two businessmen approached Maria Duval with a life-changing deal, her name becomes synonymous with one of the greatest scams ever written ... Show More
Aug 2024
The Greatest Scam Ever Written | 5. The Runner
U.S. Postal Inspector Clayton Gerber discovers that the letters are entering the country via Albany, NY, and that they’re originating from a company in Montreal. Locating criminals across the border for extradition is no simple task, but eventually Clayton finds two of the scam’s ... Show More
37m 45s
May 2024
My Psychic, She Wrote Me a Letter: Maria Duval
If you have psychic powers, you should see a scam coming a mile away. Not so for Maria Duval. The French psychic only wanted to use her powers for good, but three shady dealers used her name to create one of the world’s longest-running cons. Just because a letter has a coffee sta ... Show More
51m 29s
Oct 2023
Psychic Mail Fraud Scheme Enabled by Data Firm
<p class="MsoNormal">In 2018, The Perfect Scam brought you the story of the French psychic Maria Duval mail fraud impostor scheme. For decades, criminals, led by a man named Patrice Runner, used Duval's name and image on letters sent all over the U.S. and the world, promising goo ... Show More
57m 24s
Jul 2022
The Cunning Clairvoyant w/ Eric Mosley
What’s poppin’ con-gregation? This week, we got Eric Mosley discussing how a psychic conned Vera Pratt, a well-traveled heiress, out of her inheritance under the guise of curing her of demons. Plus, one wife of former California State Senator is in hot water after a Bay Area news ... Show More
1h 11m
Nov 2023
Fade to Black I 2. Crocodile Tears
After a visit from a CIA officer claiming to be Gary’s friend, Wendy starts to wonder: Who was Gary Devore and could he have been leading a double life? The search continues as friends, family, and even Hollywood action stars form their own search party.
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44m 59s
Sep 2025
This Fake Psychic Got Exposed - The Gina Marks Story
Gina Marks, often dubbed the “Psychic Scam Queen,” was a self-proclaimed psychic who conned multiple clients out of hundreds of thousands of dollars by claiming she could lift curses, reunite lovers, and cleanse their lives of bad luck.
8m 26s
Jul 2023
Archive Episode: The Hidden World of Psychic Scams, Part 2
<p class="MsoNormal">In Part 2 of this 2019 episode, after losing her job and breaking up with her boyfriend in the same day, a distraught Debra pays a visit to a psychic. Little does Debra know that the shop is part of a larger criminal organization, and psychic Sylvia Mitchell ... Show More
15m 17s