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An 85-year-old woman from Florida got totally screwed over by a scam so cold-blooded it could’ve been ripped from a TV crime show. She’s now flat broke, and the ones to blame are a 25-year-old chick from New York and her sidekick. Shania Baptiste and Neilson Brooks allegedly tricked this poor lady from Daytona Beach Shores out of every dime she’d saved up—more than $35,000—using some bogus lottery con. People are pissed, the cops are on their tails, and there’s a manhunt going down with a kinda bittersweet twist to the latest news.
The scheme kicked off last June when the duo convinced the victim she’d hit the jackpot: a $1 million prize from the Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes. All she had to do was fork over “taxes and fees” to claim her winnings. First, she tried wiring $20,000 through her bank, but a sharp-eyed teller flagged it as a scam. Undeterred, Baptiste and Brooks coached her to lie at a second bank, claiming the cash was for family home repairs in New York. It worked—her savings vanished into the scammers’ hands.
Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood didn’t mince words: “If we find you on U.S. soil, you’re coming back here so everyone can see what a lowlife scam artist you are for targeting our elderly.” He added a fiery wish: “There’s a special place in hell for you.” The sheriff’s fury echoed across social media, where users branded Baptiste a “scumbag scam artist” and worse.
Here’s where it gets wild: the cops are closing in. The NYPD’s financial crimes crew teamed up to snag Baptiste, and she got hauled back to Florida. Brooks? He strolled into custody on February 15, 2025, but was out on bail just hours later like it was nothing. Both are staring down charges of organized fraud and grand theft—over $20,000 worth. In a small victory, they managed to get $20,000 back to the victim, but the rest of her money’s still locked up until the trial’s done.
As of today, February 23, 2025, this messy story of greed and guts is still playing out. Are these jerks gonna get what’s coming to them, or will they weasel their way out? Guess we’ll see.
