i just recieved a phone call from a guy named Lawerence Corn. He informed me he had visited my church a few weeks ago with his two cute little daughters. He told me he was in Florida and had just attended his mother's funeral. She was killed in a drunk driving accident. He was on his way back home and needed $124.12 to purchase a greyhound bus ticket. I hung up with him and called my treasurer to ask his opinion and decided to check out Larry's story and his phone number. He called back and I asked him which town he was coming into and he couldn't say the name of my town correctly. So, I then knew something was not right. I traced his number on Google and came to this website. I was shocked to read all the similar stories. He tried to call back a 3rd time and I told him to go to the nearest police station and they would help him get in contact with the local Ministerial Alliance. He got disconnected and didn't call back. Please be aware of this scam.
He called me (Aug 6 about 10:30 PM)in Indiana and told me he was in my church and drunk driver killed his mother. Her funeral was the day before. I told him he was a liar. When I started to pray for him, he hung up.
Called saying he had been at my church about 4-5 weeks previous. Went down to Florida for his mom's funeral. His car threw a rod and was unrepairable. Needed money for a greyhound bus. I used *69 to get the phone number. My church is completely surrounded by a cemetery and when asked he said it was surrounded by trees. He said his cell phone was going dead and asked if I would call him at the hotel he was staying at (La Quinta Inn in Orlando, FL...407-645-5600...room 406.) When I called back...after immediately calling back to the front desk because I was believing it was a scam...the front desk clerk said room 406 had checked out 10 minutes prior to me calling...I was on the phone with this man (calling himself Scott Benett) for 20 minutes. It was impossible that he had checked out 10 minutes prior to me calling the front desk when I was on the phone with him.
this call came into my parsonage/office phone around 10:30pm 8/7/07. I am a pastor so the call sounded so real, i had just moved here about a month ago so I wasnt sure if I had met this person or not. they said that they had came to my church/ which one i don't know cause i have four. and that I thought his 2 and 4 year old daughters were cuties, which is something I would have said. and then he went on to talk about his mother dying. and the funeral in florida. and how they were on interstate 4 in florida and the car had broken down. was rambling about grey hound and not having enough money, and couldnt get to the station to buy a ticket. Then the phone got disconnected. but before he hung up, "Larry" as he called himself, did ask for prayer!!!. I dont know... this call was very creepy to me. how did they get my number to call? I do feel unsafe because i am new to this community and a single female.
A man calling himself Larry (Lauarn Korn) called my cell and said he had been at my chuech a fre weeks back. He said he had two daughters and I had called them "cute." He then went on to say his mother had died and on the way back his car threw a rod. He said he needed help with bus fare. Just like the two previous messages he called from the La Quinta. How he got my number I don't know. Hopefully You aren't reading this after you helped him.
Got a call about 8:40 PM EDT on August 10, 2007 to my parsonage in Suburban Indianapolis, Indiana.
"Larry Corn" said he and his 2 daughters, "Jessica and Denise" were in my church 4 or 5 weeks ago and I commented that they were real sweathearts.
"You remember us, don't you?"
I knew what was coming next, I have gotten two of these before in two different churches over the past ten years.
His mother was killed by a drunk driver...he didn't understand why these things were happening...life doesn't make sense...Now tryng to sourt out his mother's things...having to put some stuff in temporary storage....etc.
I didn't confront him yet, because I was waiting for the request for money...
The call got disconnected before he got to that place in the scam pitch...