Tree Farmers, Watch Out for Psychics

The sordid tale begins ten years ago in the tiny town of Gaston, when Rachel Lee made the acquaintance of the farmer and eventually gained access to his circle of trust. When the farmer’s father had a stroke, Lee first became his full-time caretaker, then took control of the family business, then gained access to all the business accounts, then pretended to be the farmer’s fiancee so as to open a joint checking account and begin spending.

Crazy, right? Nope, just getting started. About five years after the scheme began, Lee pulled in her daughter, Porsha (of course her name is Porsha), who then perpetrated the following deceits:

1. Donned a blonde wig, glasses, and a British accent, assumed the moniker “Mary Marks,” and convinced the farmer that they should marry before she was deported.

2. Told the man she had given birth to his son, “proving” it by “borrowing” a child from a third family member.

The whole thing eventually unraveled, as schemes involving disguises and false names and mooched babies often do.

It’s totally unclear how the farmer’s fake fiancee felt about his other fake fiancee and their fake baby, but then, that’s between mother and daughter. One thing they did agree on: how to spend the dough. The pair bought designer clothes, traveled, and tooled around town in a Bentley and a Ferrari, respectively — which, we’re sure, totally didn’t cause a stir in a town of 637 people with a per capita income of $17,758. (Although that tree farmer was doing pretty well!)

The whole thing eventually unraveled, as schemes involving false names and disguises and mooched babies often do. The elder Lee was charged with wire fraud, money laundering and failure to file personal income taxes and currently faces up to nine years in prison; the daughter is currently negotiating a separate plea deal.

Proof that even psychics can lack foresight.