Archive Episode: Knock Knock, Where’s My Puppy?

The Perfect Scam

AARP

True Crime, Aarp, Fraud, Society & Culture, Scam, Crime, Bobsullivan

4.5 • 980 Ratings

🗓️ 20 June 2025

⏱️ 49 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this 2021 episode, Rochelle scores a great deal on a house in northern Virginia, only to have her dream home transformed a few months later into Pet Scam Central. Day after day, strangers show up on her doorstep, claiming they’ve arrived to pick up a puppy they paid for. Some have driven over six or twelve hours with their family. Unfortunately, Rochelle must break the news that she has no puppies to sell, and the hopeful would-be owners leave heartbroken, confused and out hundreds of dollars. Even worse, over the course of a year, Rochelle finds herself accused of being the con artist. Desperate, she turns to a local news station for help in putting an end to the scam.

Transcript

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0:00.0	This week on the perfect scam.
0:04.0	Only all news for a local family desperate for help after finding themselves caught up in a puppy scam.
0:10.0	We drive five or six hours.
0:12.0	Faith McCrary lives in Mount Airy, North Carolina and didn't care how long the drive was.
0:18.0	She was going to get the puppy she fell in love with online.
0:22.6	It looked legitimate. They had several different pictures of puppies, so I'd give them a $250 deposit.
0:28.6	That's when the Dallens learned their address was being used to pull off a puppy scam.
0:34.6	It is like a psychotic lack of empathy.
0:39.1	I would be honest here, I'm not saying that that is the scammer themselves, but that is the
0:43.3	scammer mentality.
0:44.8	And they all adopt this.
0:46.4	So they will all go to whatever level that will get the money.
0:58.2	Welcome back to The Perfect Scam.
1:00.1	I'm your host, Bob Sullivan.
1:03.7	Bang, bang, bang, where's my puppy?
1:14.0	Imagine hearing that day after day and having no idea who these people are or why they keep showing up at your front door.
1:17.5	Anyone can be the victim of a scam.
1:20.4	We say that all the time here at the perfect scam.
1:24.5	And still, I bet some of you don't quite believe it.
1:27.4	Well, today's story will change your mind, I bet. It's about a couple who buy
1:29.1	their dream house in suburban Virginia, but not long after they move in, they discover their house
1:35.2	is haunted by a puppy scam. At first, it's a single knock at the door from someone demanding
	...

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