Scam Goddess Podcast: The Curious Case of Benja-Scam Button w/ Josh Brekhus (Fraud Friday)

Release Date: April 10, 2026
Host: Laci Mosley
Guest: Josh Brekhus

Episode Overview

This riotous episode of Scam Goddess includes fan-favorite guest and improv partner Josh Brekhus joining Laci for another edition of "Fraud Fridays," wherein classic episodes are revived from behind the paywall for all to enjoy. The conversation orbits around personal histories with scams, hilarious retail tales, listener letters exposing layered cons, a deep-dive into one of history’s wildest impersonators, and a chess cheating controversy that shook the internet. Throughout, Laci and Josh serve up improv-style banter, sharp social commentary, and a whole lot of laughter focused on the weird, wild, and ingenious world of scams.

Key Segments & Discussion Points

1. Warm-Up: Scammy Jobs & Improv (01:01 - 16:51)

• Laci and Josh quickly settle into comedic rapport, with Laci introducing Josh as fellow improv artist and comedy scene stalwart.

• They unpack the reputation of improv ("Improv gets roasted... it's a scam. They're hating on us." - Laci, 02:38) and poke fun at their “cult” devotion to the form.

• Josh’s Scamming Evolution:

  • Raised with strict Lutheran values, he once saw scams as "the devil's work" (03:42), but after working for Enterprise Rent-A-Car, his perspective shifted.
  • Retail Scams Revealed:
    • The pressure to push unnecessary rental insurance and GPS was rampant, especially onto vulnerable customers (elderly or accident victims) (04:08 - 10:19).
    • Shady tactics included omitting existing car damages so customers could be dinged later. Josh shares:

      "My manager... was like, you can just put a scuff on there. So when they come back, we can kind of ding them for it." (07:20)

    • Laci's advice: “Take a video when they're marking the scuffs... so you have proof it wasn't there yet.” (07:38)
  • They commiserate over the grind of commission-less up-selling, comparing the work culture to an MLM for cars (11:49).

• Other Odd Scamming Venues:

  • Laci recounts working unwittingly for a drug front bar adjacent to a porn shop, underscoring how businesses can be fronts for something more nefarious (13:04 - 15:41).
  • Josh describes the “Bladder Busters” bar promotion—penny beers until someone breaks the bathroom seal, which led to bathroom brawls (15:41-16:51).

2. Listener Letter: The Layered Lemonade Stand Scam (18:27 - 31:39)

Timestamp: 18:27 – 31:39

• Letter from "Susan":

  • An 11-year-old boy with a fancy lemonade stand gets passed a fake $100 bill, gives $85 in real change, and is left scammed.
  • His family then sets up a GoFundMe — not just for the missing $85, but for $250. Ultimately, the campaign goes viral and nets $23,000.

• Laci’s Take:

  • On part one: “If your kid wants to get into business, you're raising a scammer.” (20:16)
  • On the GoFundMe: “I feel like 250 ain't crazy. If this was truly a child in need... but... it's giving a rich family trying to teach work ethic.” (21:24)
  • Noticing the racial optics: “...Of course the man is black... they're trying to be like, these negroes robbed our sweet baby White boy Y. This is why our lives matter...” (26:10)
  • On virality: “GoFundMe just says GoFundMe. They don't say you gotta gofund my medical bills or hardship... If you got some bullshit, put it on GoFundMe and people want to throw you a coin.” (28:14)

• Josh: “$23,000 is... what does an unemployed baby need $23,000 for?” (27:41)

• Notable Laughs:

  • Dissecting the kid’s “rich” haircut,
  • Critiquing the over-the-top, Wayfair-esque lemonade stand décor,
  • Laci: "Honestly, though, a lemonade stand like this, I'm not buying from it. It's too nice. I need to see the struggle." (31:06)

3. Historic Hoodwink: The Tale of ‘The Chameleon’ aka Frédéric Bourdin (33:01 - 67:40)

Timestamp: 33:01 – 67:40

• Overview:

  • Laci guides Josh through the outrageous career of Frédéric Bourdin, aka “The Chameleon of Nantes,” a French serial imposter who assumed nearly 500 identities across Europe and the US, most often impersonating abused or orphaned children—sometimes even successfully duping families and authorities.

• Key Beats:

  • Origins: Bourdin’s childhood was marked by instability and abandonment, prompting him to invent wild stories about his identity from a young age (47:38).
  • Methodology:
    • He’d present as runaways, amnesiacs, or abuse victims, using made-up names like "Francisco Hernandez Fernandez" (35:41, 41:02), often wearing hats to disguise a receding hairline passed off as “burn” scars.
    • He even convinced a doctor he was a 14-year-old (44:24)!
  • Infamous Acts:
    • At 23, he steals the identity of a missing American boy, Nicholas Barclay, ultimately moving in with Barclay’s family and interacting with a PI and media (54:52-65:39).
    • Hair color, accent, and physical features eventually expose him.
    • During arrest, the ruse falls: "She's not my mother. You know it." (64:40)
  • Motive: Emotional satisfaction, not financial gain. As one prosecutor notes:

    "Usually people con for money. His profits seem to have been purely emotional." (47:02)

• Memorable Moments & Quotes:

  • Laci, on his names: "Hernandez Fernandez... Dr Seuss? You got your shit from the rhyming dictionary?" (41:13)
  • Josh on youthful looks: "I've had physicals, how do you do that?" (44:28)
  • Laugh-out-loud at the police discovering his receding hairline: "He said, I gotta wear this cap because of my fire scars. And literally, it was because this nigga was balding." (42:41)

• Finale:

  • Bourdin, after prison, settles down, has five children. Laci:

    "...He just wanted to hang out and go to school and look, I think as an adult, if I went to school, I would appreciate it more. No bills. Rent paid." (67:16)

4. Scammer of the Week: Booty Beads & Chess Cheating (68:44 - 78:45)

Timestamp: 68:44 – 78:45

• The Controversy:

  • 19-year-old chess grandmaster Hans Niemann is accused of cheating using vibrating anal beads which—allegedly—were wirelessly connected to a chess supercomputer, providing him signals for the best moves.

• Breakdown & Jokes:

  • Laci: “You don't just have that kind of concentration if something ain't in your booty. That's a toilet face.” (69:13)
  • Josh: "He looks like... if my prostate was getting basically massaged during this, you would know." (76:34)
  • Laci on security: "They're checking your hands, we're patting you down... but they can't check your booty hole." (74:39)

• Broader Reflections:

  • Josh: “It's the most creative thing I've ever heard about in sport.” (77:46)
  • Tangent into other possible uses: frat boys using "booty Morse code" to pass multiple choice exams and the hypothetical “Booty Scantrons” (78:15).
  • Laci: “How they gonna check you, boo? What they gonna do, check a booty hole at the chess competition? They’re not gonna do that.” (78:45)

Notable Quotes & Moments (w/ Timestamps)

• “If you go to Hertz, you better make that car hurt on the way back.”
  — Laci Mosley (05:35)
• “I was flirting with old women. Like, you can handle it. You handled all this lifetime. You can handle it.”
  — Josh Brekhus (07:01)
• “The manager...was like, 'You can just put a scuff on there... so we can kind of ding them for it.'”
  — Josh Brekhus (07:20)
• “Any kid that’s like, ‘I need some income’—You’re raising a scammer.”
  — Laci (20:16)
• “Honestly, though, a lemonade stand like this, I’m not buying from it. It’s too nice. I need to see the struggle behind the lemonade.”
  — Laci on the fancy setup (31:06)
• “He said, I gotta wear this cap because of my fire scars. And literally, it was because this nigga was balding.”
  — Laci (42:41)
• “Her booty was buzzing every time I hit the ball.”
  — Laci, riffing on hypothetical sports cheating (77:23)

Quick Reference: Important Topics & Timestamps

| Segment | Timestamp | |--------------------------------------------|:--------------:| | Scammy jobs, Enterprise, Improv banter | 01:01–16:51 | | Listener Lemonade Stand GoFundMe scam | 18:27–31:39 | | "Historic Hoodwink": Frédéric Bourdin | 33:01–67:40 | | Scammer of the Week: Chess/Booty Beads | 68:44–78:45 |

Final Thoughts & Tone

Throughout, the episode is spirited, fast-paced, and improvisational, with both hosts gleefully exposing the ridiculousness of scams—from petty retail gouges to international impersonations and bizarre cheating tech in board games. The humor is irreverent, with expert asides on race, culture, and “the game” of scam artistry, all while inviting the audience to laugh at both the scammers and the scammed.

As always: Stay schemin’!