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- [00:02]
Patia Eaton
This is exactly right.
- [00:06]
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- [01:25]
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- [02:02]
Hannah Smith
contains adult content and language. Listener discretion is advised. Welcome to the Knife Off Record. I'm Hann Hannah Smith.
- [02:25]
Patia Eaton
I'm Patia Eaton. This week we have a follow up episode to last week's interview. And if you haven't listened to last week's episode, pause and go listen to that one first. Otherwise you won't have any idea what we're talking about.
- [02:39]
Hannah Smith
This week we're going to cover another fraud case related to the death of Toledo Officer Anthony Dia, and then we're going to Talk about yet another victim of Lisa Tickemeyer, who has a totally different story than Dee.
- [02:52]
Patia Eaton
Don't forget to follow us on Instagram and Blueskyenife podcast. You can also email us@the knifexactlyrightmedia.com and if you're enjoying the podcast, you can rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, which helps us a lot. So thank you.
- [03:06]
Hannah Smith
Great. Let's get into the episode. Okay, so before we get into the new fraud and the new victim, let's just give you a little reminder of what last week's episode was about, since it's been been about a week probably since you've listened. So last week our episode was called Cancer Scam, and we interviewed a woman named Dee Lynn. She lives in Toledo, Ohio, and is really involved in her community. Starting probably in 2020, she started volunteering a lot, running fundraisers and just helping out neighbors in need. There was a lot of people who needed help in the face of COVID and losing their jobs. But then there were also multiple tragedies that struck, and Dee got really involved helping out with that as well.
- [03:54]
Patia Eaton
One of those tragedies was the death of Toledo police officer Anthony Dia, who was shot and killed in July of 2020. And this really rocked the entire city. And Dee and many others came together to support his family in the wake of his death. Through Dee's volunteering efforts is how she met Lisa Ticktameyer. And they became friends. And pretty early on in their friendship, Lisa confided in Dee that she had been diagnosed with cancer with non Hodgkin's lymphoma. And over the next year, Dee and the community supported Lisa both financially and emotionally. But it eventually came to light that Lisa did not have cancer.
- [04:37]
Hannah Smith
She was faking it the whole time. And Dee talks about sort of being suspicious that Lisa's faking cancer, but that's one of those things that, you know, you better be pretty sure if you're gonna accuse before you say something. And eventually there was an investigation, and Lisa did admit to investigators that she never had cancer. She tried to say at first that she used the money that she raised for other, like, medical needs, but, I mean, it doesn't really matter.
- [05:08]
Patia Eaton
Yeah, she lied.
- [05:10]
Hannah Smith
The community raised thousands of dollars. Like, I can't remember exactly what the estimated number was. Maybe around like, $25,000.
- [05:19]
Patia Eaton
Yeah, I think because it was donations given at fundraisers, donations given individually by people. And then there were also goods and services donated to her.
- [05:30]
Hannah Smith
Yeah, people's time also, like, people's, like, emotions. People Felt really bad for her and, like, showed up for her. It's horrible. So on June 13, 2024, Lisa pleaded guilty to felony theft related to the cancer scheme. She was sentenced to six months in jail, two years of probation, and 200 hours of community service, and ordered to pay more than 25,000 DOL and restitution. And then that was kind of like, okay, that's wrapped up. But it wasn't, because new information came to light after this case, and there was yet another case because investigators continued digging, and I believe through, like, some forensic accounting, they looked into the hot cocoa fundraiser that Lisa threw. We talked about this in the episode. Last week, she held a fundraiser for another fallen Toledo police officer, Brandon Stocker. And she did a hot cocoa fundraiser that Dee attended, but she didn't turn over all of the money to Brandon Stocker's family. She kept some of that money, which is so sinister.
- [06:31]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. I mean, to do it once, awful to do it twice, and then not even including her cancer scheme. Mind blowing.
- [06:38]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. This was a totally different scheme. And so In August of 2025, she was charged again. She pled guilty to theft of first degree misdemeanor and received 180 day jail sentence, one year probation, and additional community service.
- [06:54]
Patia Eaton
So in our interview with Dee, we touch on the name Tony Dia, who is the father of Anthony Dia, the police officer who was killed in July of 2020. And Tony Dia, as we got further into researching what happened here, had his own fraud investigation. So I did some research. Hannah, you have your own piece of this to talk about that I'm less familiar with. So we're gonna get into it. And then after that, I'm gonna talk about a second victim of Lisa's.
- [07:25]
Hannah Smith
I'm looking forward to hearing about it. I haven't heard a lot about his case. Dee did mention it, but we didn't have, you know, enough information to include it in the episode. So I'm looking forward to hearing what you found.
- [07:35]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. So during our interview with Dee, she's telling us about all of these different times that she ran into Lisa at community events. And one of those events was a cookout that was hosted by Tony Dia, Anthony Dia's father. And Tony was wanting to show appreciation for local first responders in this cookout that took place in 20 after Anthony Diaz passing, was to raise money for first responders and just to show the support of the community because Tony so appreciated what they did for his son.
- [08:09]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [08:09]
Patia Eaton
You know, you're thinking about when someone dies, obviously there's A lot of different relationships that are mourning their loss. This is his father. Like, his father has lost his son in this incredibly tragic way.
- [08:22]
Hannah Smith
Horrible.
- [08:22]
Patia Eaton
Horrible. And so, naturally, the community wanted to really rally around him.
- [08:27]
Starbucks Advertiser
And.
- [08:27]
Patia Eaton
And during this cookout, Dee tells us that Tony mentioned to her that he wanted to start a nonprofit. He wanted to call it the Officer Anthony Dia Foundation. And the mission would be to provide support and assistance to all first responders and their families with a focus on youth and community outreach programs. And so Tony does go on to establish this foundation, and he sets up a Facebook page and starts putting together fundraiser auctions. One of those was a raffle. And the Officer Anthony Dia foundation was raffling off tickets to win a Harley Davidson motorcycle.
- [09:04]
Hannah Smith
Okay.
- [09:05]
Patia Eaton
The tickets were a hundred dollars each.
- [09:07]
Hannah Smith
That's kind of an expensive ticket.
- [09:09]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. Like, you gotta really be, you know, saying, okay, this is a great cause.
- [09:14]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [09:14]
Patia Eaton
Because, I mean, I'm sure you're not saying, I'm gonna win this motorcycle.
- [09:17]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. You're like. You're basically like, I'm donating $100, you know, toward this cause.
- [09:22]
Patia Eaton
Right. And the timing of all of this is a lot of financial uncertainty. We're on the heels of COVID You know, this is late 2020, early 2021. So the Officer Anthony Dia foundation that Tony Dia was starting up and really establishing the community was primarily gathering on a Facebook page. That's where he notified people about fundraisers. That's where people were notified about this raffle. And that's where he would update people as things were kicking off. So suddenly, the raffle is canceled, and thousands of dollars in raffle tickets have been purchased. And the foundation doesn't offer much of an explanation for this cancellation of the raffle, but they offer a couple of options to those who had already purchased tickets. They say, you can have them refunded. You can consider it a donation, or you can hang on to that ticket, and we'll put it toward a future raffle. And so people wanted their money back. And when they emailed the foundation to say, you know, I'd like option one, I'd like a refund, that money never came. And months passed, and so at least one of those people reported the foundation to the Ohio Attorney General's office.
- [10:35]
Hannah Smith
Really?
- [10:36]
Patia Eaton
Yeah.
- [10:36]
Hannah Smith
Interesting. So that's how they first kind of got alerted to what Tony Dia was doing.
- [10:41]
Patia Eaton
Yes. And they start investigating, and they obtain two search warrants, one from Apple and one from Facebook, because this is all taking place digitally. And so they put together a timeline of claims that Tony was making about the foundation that do not align with where they find that the money was actually going. It turns out that Tony had been misappropriating funds over $20,000 spent on personal expenses. One report listed that Tony spent the money at gas station convenience stores, sent money to. These are their words, not mine. Females.
- [11:25]
Hannah Smith
Oh, boy.
- [11:25]
Patia Eaton
And also put the money into cryptocurrency accounts.
- [11:29]
Hannah Smith
Huh.
- [11:30]
Patia Eaton
So this is fraud.
- [11:32]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. It's not like he had a separate bank account for the nonprofit. He's just putting the money into his own account, I'm guessing.
- [11:40]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. These are personal accounts. This is not money going where he said it was going, which would be to support the community and first responders.
- [11:47]
Hannah Smith
Right.
- [11:48]
Patia Eaton
They also found that Tony Dia he had sent money to women, and he had sent that money using apps. And the description was always something like a kiss face emoji. Like, I mean, like, okay, I think we can all sort of interpret that or however we want. But it additionally comes out through this investigation that The Officer Anthony Dia foundation was not a 501c3 nonprofit. It was a Facebook page.
- [12:14]
Hannah Smith
Wow.
- [12:14]
Patia Eaton
Yeah.
- [12:15]
Odoo Advertiser
Wow.
- [12:15]
Patia Eaton
And so Tony Dia later apologizes and says, well, I assumed that because I had this vision for it, that I didn't need to register it as a nonprofit. But it's obviously really misleading if you're going around asking people for money. And this Facebook page has since been taken down. So I don't know if he used the word nonprofit, but that was legally what it was decided he was portraying. And that certainly was the understanding of the public.
- [12:43]
Hannah Smith
I mean, using the word foundation.
- [12:45]
Patia Eaton
Yeah.
- [12:46]
Hannah Smith
Is so synonymous with a 501C3. I think you would assume it's a nonprofit.
- [12:51]
Patia Eaton
Absolutely. Yeah. I would never assume that was someone pocketing money.
- [12:55]
Hannah Smith
Right.
- [12:56]
Patia Eaton
Especially when you're talking about the kind of mission that he had behind it. And so Tony makes this Facebook post telling people that he's sorry for the lack of communication and confusion, but that he didn't steal any of the money. He dissolves the foundation. But just before that, he also says, well, we did some good. We renovated a boxing gym. We sent children Easter baskets. We covered funeral expenses for multiple families in need. But he dissolves it. He closes the Facebook page, and he's done with the foundation, but the damage has been done. He's already lied and stolen money. So on February 10, 2025, this took many years. He was finally charged in Lucas county, which is the same county that Lisa Titkamire was charged in, and he's charged with grand theft, a Fourth degree felony and telecommunications fraud. And then In March of 2025, he makes his first court appearance. He's booked into jail, and he's released on bond.
- [13:53]
Hannah Smith
Okay.
- [13:54]
Patia Eaton
It wasn't clear, like, exactly what was gonna happen if he was gonna plead or go to trial. He ultimately accepted a plea deal, pled guilty, and was sentenced to 180 days in jail, plus three years probation and restitution. He expressed a lot of remorse for his actions. He said, I'm very sorry. I'm sorry to the community that trusted me to do the right thing. I wanted to do the right thing, and I messed everything up. I'm sorry. I'm embarrassed. I'm ashamed. I messed everything up. And I think that remorse is better than no remorse. But when something transpires over many years and it's so blatantly misleading, that something pretty hard to understand. And then you have this aspect of the Officer Anthony Dia Foundation. This is his son who died. His son, like. And then to exploit that for financial gain. It's very, very hard to understand.
- [14:51]
Hannah Smith
Yeah, it's horrible.
- [14:53]
Patia Eaton
It's horrible. And you and I have seen a lot of times how fraud can start really small and start to snowball. But it sounds like this started pretty early on, that he wasn't doing things the right way, you know, not registering as a nonprofit, for example.
- [15:09]
Hannah Smith
Mm. Yeah.
- [15:10]
Patia Eaton
It seems like he was somewhat remorseful. And I want to acknowledge that Anthony Diaz, widow, had no involvement with the foundation, not responsible, nor was she ever aware of what he was doing. Yeah. So that's what I learned about Tony Dia. But I know you have a little bit more to share.
- [15:30]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. So that's also interesting to hear. I saw that. Jamie Dia. So she's Anthony Dia's widow, and they have two children together. Made a video. It's 45 minutes long. I watched it all, and that she posted this video in May of 2025. So it's interesting hearing you break down the timeline. So this was after he was charged, but maybe before he was sentenced. It's a wild video. Yeah. So she basically comes on there and says, I've been dealing with all of this now for, like, at that point, it'd been almost five years because her husband was shot and killed July 4, 2020. And she says this activity or, like, some of this stuff with Tony Diaz starts the very next day, July 5, 2020.
- [16:21]
Patia Eaton
The very next day. Oh, my God.
- [16:23]
Hannah Smith
That's what she says in the video. She says she's been dealing with this for almost 5 years and has been Staying quiet because she's kind of like, just trying to keep the peace. She's like, also a single mom and been grieving her husband's death. So it's just been a lot. But she said finally she wanted to come out and make this video because all of this fraud now is associated with her late husband's name, Anthony Dia. And so she's upset that Tony did this and basically, like, from her perspective, threw Anthony's name, like, through the mud because now this foundation with his name on it is linked to this fraud case. And she's like, that's a horrible thing to do for her husband, who she says was a very upstanding guy and deserved better than that.
- [17:12]
Patia Eaton
Which is exactly what we heard from Dee that Anthony Dia was a highly respected police officer.
- [17:18]
Hannah Smith
Yeah, yeah. I'll try to kind of just do the highlights of this video because it was long. But she talks about how, you know, the day after her husband died, she started to get a lot of texts from people saying that they wanted to, like, donate things to her, drop off donations, and, you know, she's overwhelmed. And so it ends up that people decide to start dropping things off at Tony Diaz car lot is how she called it. So he had some kind of business to do with vehicles, and people started donating and dropping off things for Jamie and Jamie and Anthony's children, Tony's grandchildren at Tony Diaz car lot. She knew this was happening. People would text her and say, hey, I dropped off an envelope with some money in it, or I dropped off, you know, whatever for you. But over the next few days and then weeks, Tony doesn't say anything to her about anything being dropped off, and he never gives any of it to her.
- [18:17]
Patia Eaton
Oh, my gosh. It's like, imagine a more vulnerable position in that moment than being this, like, grieving widow who still has to be strong for your children. People want to help you and your own father in law. I mean, I think we can all assume stealing what's being donated to you.
- [18:39]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [18:39]
Patia Eaton
Like, how violating is that?
- [18:41]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. And she doesn't confront him about it because she's like, whatever. He's also grieving. Like, this doesn't really matter in the long run. I'm dealing with so much more right now. You know, I'm trying to figure out how to, like, keep my kids okay and, like, live my life. Yeah. But then eventually she says that Tony calls a family meeting because maybe she had asked a few family members about it or something. And Tony confronts her and says that she implied that he's been stealing from her. And she says, no, I just. I haven't seen any of the donations that were dropped off for us, for Anthony's family. People said they were giving us things. And she says that at that family meeting, he looked around and said something to the effect of, I loved Anthony more than any of you and he would want his dad taken care of.
- [19:31]
Patia Eaton
Oh, my gosh.
- [19:33]
Hannah Smith
And so he makes it clear that he thinks these donations are to support him, not Anthony's widow and his grandchildren.
- [19:44]
Patia Eaton
That's insane.
- [19:45]
Hannah Smith
This is what she said.
- [19:46]
Patia Eaton
That's such a wild thing to say. But it's also like, okay, this is that personality type. Right. Where you know you've done something wrong. So you call the family meeting.
- [19:56]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [19:57]
Patia Eaton
And you try to pretend like you're the one who's like, let's get this out in the open. I would never do that. You know, I'm gonna take those head on. That's like just trying to come off as innocent. Yeah.
- [20:09]
Hannah Smith
And these are his grandchildren too. Yeah. That's. Wow.
- [20:14]
Patia Eaton
Another level.
- [20:15]
Hannah Smith
And I don't think that Jamie was working at the time. And so she basically said in the video, we lost our provider. So Anthony was the family provider through his work. And, you know, I don't know what kind of money she was given after he died. I know there was a gofundme that she talks about later in the video that she puts in a trust for her sons. She doesn't touch it. It's in a trust for them when they turn 18 to do whatever with, you know, And I don't know if there's life insurance. There is some money for them. But at the same time, her whole future has changed because she was a stay at home mom. And now they don't have anyone in the family bringing in money. And that's why, you know, one of the reasons the community was coming together to support them. But not a lot of that money was reaching Jamie and the boys because Tony was taking it. According to Jamie's video, which I totally
- [21:12]
Patia Eaton
believe now, knowing what we know about him.
- [21:15]
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- [21:20]
Patia Eaton
Hey, stay in your lane.
- [21:21]
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- [21:49]
Malcolm Glebel
hello? Hello, this is Malcolm Glabel from Smart Talks with IBM. Today we're diving into a fascinating conversation with Stefano Pallard, head of fan development for Scuderia Ferrari hp.
- [22:01]
Stefano Pallard
Your pronunciation is strongly American. It's more Scuderia Ferrari.
- [22:06]
Malcolm Glebel
I'm still working on rolling my R's, but what I was able to learn from Stefano was the importance of engaging the to fosi the Ferrari superfans in the digital age.
- [22:16]
Stefano Pallard
Ferrari fans and super fans want to be part of something, want to belong to something. So they want to be part of a community and ultimately they want to be part of a winning team.
- [22:27]
Malcolm Glebel
You've got Ferrari, which, which has a long history, design history, and now you're interacting in a kind of digital space. And I'm curious how you balance those two traditions.
- [22:41]
Stefano Pallard
When it comes to fan engagement, it's really digital technology. And digital channels are being able to create a deeper connection with our fans.
- [22:49]
Malcolm Glebel
To learn more about how Ferrari and IBM are using technology to build deeper connections with fans, visit IBM.com ferrari
- [23:01]
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- [23:01]
Patia Eaton
is it always chaos when we link up?
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- [23:45]
Hannah Smith
So it's interesting, like, I don't know that any of this that she's talking about is included in the fraud and the indictment because I don't. She never, like, reported any of it. She was like, this is my family. We can figure it out. But she was just dealing with this for years. So she said. He announced that he wanted to start this foundation. He told the family. Jamie, along with like other people in the family, said this is a great idea and we would love to be involved. But then In December of 2020, he made a Facebook page and announced the board members and she said she didn't know any of the people on the board. She wasn't told or asked to Be on the board or asked to be involved in the foundation at all.
- [24:26]
Patia Eaton
Probably because he knew she would try to do the right thing with all the money.
- [24:30]
Hannah Smith
Probably. Yeah. So she was like, okay, whatever. Earlier that summer, In August of 2020, he, like, texted a bunch of family members, including her, and said, hey, I have a big announcement meet today in the Home Depot parking lot. And this was a big deal because she explained the parking space where he was shot and killed. Home Depot, I believe, was making a memorial for him. And they were working on a bench, you know, a really nice, like, iron or some kind of metal bench that would have a plaque with his name on it, and that was gonna be reserved, so that wouldn't be a parking spot anymore. So they had been told about this and were excited, and she thought, oh, my gosh, I bet the bench is ready. This is so exciting. So she gets her sons. They, you know, go to Home Depot. The news is there. Like, he's alerted everybody.
- [25:20]
Patia Eaton
Oh, okay.
- [25:20]
Hannah Smith
And his announcement has nothing to do with the memorial. Instead, he announces that he's going to run for city council.
- [25:28]
Patia Eaton
Um, okay. So he's going to this scene of where his own son was shot in the line of duty, killed in the line of duty, to announce a bid for city council. I mean, it's like, how many ways can you exploit the death of your own child?
- [25:46]
Hannah Smith
It's truly so gross.
- [25:48]
Patia Eaton
So gross.
- [25:48]
Hannah Smith
And she talks about feeling like, why did you drag us out here for this?
- [25:53]
Patia Eaton
Probably because he wanted to appear like they were all on the same side and that he was beloved by Anthony Diaz. Wife and children.
- [26:02]
Hannah Smith
Probably like, here they are supporting me. But she's like, we had no idea that this is what he was gonna say. And she didn't like the fact that he did it at Home Depot where Anthony was killed. She thought that was exploitative and weird.
- [26:15]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. I think in the episode with Dee, we just refer to it as a hardware store, but it was a Home Depot.
- [26:20]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. So then In September of 2020, remember, Anthony was killed in July. Jamie says that Tony reached out to her and asked her to borrow $10,000 and said he would pay her back in three checks, that this was something to do with his business or, you know, helping him financially. She agreed for whatever reason, as far as life insurance or whatever, she had some money. She agrees to let him borrow it. She says the first check he sent went through. The next one was in November and it bounced, which made her bank charge her. You know, she waited a couple days. She contacted him. Oh, you know, Sorry, there was a snafu just deposited again. She does and it bounces again. So then she said by the time, like Christmas comes around, she's just like, tells him, look, you don't have to pay me the rest back. You paid me a third of it back. Merry Christmas. I don't want to have drama with you. I want you to have a really good relationship with your grandchildren. Like, she's being very gracious because he has not been very gracious to her. But she's just like, look, I want us all to like, be okay and be on the same page. But then it just continues on, you know, in 2021, he's like throwing another fundraiser for the Anthony Dia Foundation. And he gets onto her about how she's not contributing enough to it.
- [27:41]
Patia Eaton
It's like, let her just rebuild her life.
- [27:44]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. So she says they had two cars because she had a car and Anthony had a car. Anthony's car was newer. So she decided, I'll drive that one and keep it and I'll donate my Hyundai Santa Fe to the fundraiser so that Toni can auction it off and that this can be money for the foundation.
- [28:01]
Patia Eaton
Wow, that is very generous.
- [28:03]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. So she donates a car to this auction. She goes and she like buys a ticket and is super supportive. And it just sounds like whatever she does, it's never enough. In October of 2021, they're invited to this thing called police week in Washington D.C. she said she went and it was great. It was very emotional though, you know, like she spoke. There were all these different families there and she was just like overwhelmed with emotion. And then that night they all went out to dinner and Tony Dia was there as well. And she said it was that night that he approached her when like, they were really, like connected and everyone was feeling really good and emotional and they just honored Anthony and like, connected with other family members who had experienced loss in their family.
- [28:49]
Patia Eaton
Like a difficult moment, but maybe pretty cathartic.
- [28:52]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. And where like you can imagine that all of the disagreements you have had with your father in law, you're kind of able to let them go because, like, compared to life and death, it's not as big of a deal. Right. Yeah. When he approaches her and is like, hey, can you do me a favor? And then she says, he says, no pressure, but if you can't, I'm gonna lose my house. I need to consolidate my truck loans for my company. Would you co sign on a loan with me?
- [29:18]
Patia Eaton
No pressure, but if you don't, I might lose my house. It's like, can he give her a break? I mean, think about, like, what this woman has been through and how strong she has to be right now for her children and losing the breadwinner in the household. Just obviously the emotional toll of losing him, but the practical toll.
- [29:39]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [29:39]
Patia Eaton
The unbelievable amount of stress I would imagine she's under at this time.
- [29:44]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. And also making a real effort to make sure that her kids still have a really good relationship with their grandparents and, like, his side of the family. So she agrees because she has good credit. So the next week or so, they go to the bank, and she says, the guy at the bank and Toni tell her the same thing. They say that she's one of two co signers on this loan because she says, she asked, okay, what happens if he doesn't start paying the loan back? And they say they'll go after Tony first, and then they'll go after the other co signers second. And you would be third. So, like, this is very low risk to you. She goes, okay, so she agrees. Then in 2023 is this Harley Davidson raffle that you talked about. And you know, Jamie's mom bought one of the $100 tickets.
- [30:30]
Nissan Advertiser
Oh.
- [30:31]
Hannah Smith
And then it was canceled. And she said her mom said she wanted a refund. So she messaged Tony and he said, yeah, yeah, message me Tuesday. So she does. And he just ghosts her, never responds to her.
- [30:44]
Patia Eaton
She has just co signed on a loan to help him to not lose his house. And he can't even respond to her.
- [30:50]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [30:51]
Patia Eaton
Cold.
- [30:52]
Hannah Smith
Well, this is her mom who's texting him. Jamie's mom.
- [30:56]
Patia Eaton
But still, she can't even respond to her mom. It's like, yeah, that's mind blowing to me.
- [31:01]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. She said this is the first time that she started to have suspicions. And Jamie's like, mom, I don't know. Like, I just hear I can pay you the hundred dollars. Like, I don't want to. And she said her mom was like, no, Jamie, listen, if he's running a foundation, he should have a separate bank account for any money that's given to the foundation, and it should be sitting in that account. So, like, there should never be an issue of returning the money, you know, if the event fell through, because it should still just be sitting in that account, so why would he not be returning it? And this is the first time that she thought, hmm, yeah, that is really weird. Like, what is going on there? And then, you know, they would have, like, a family thing, and she noticed that Tony would walk in and, like, A new pair of Yeezys and expensive jeans. And, like, it's clear that he's been shopping. And his wardrobe looks expensive.
- [31:56]
Patia Eaton
Not a good look if you're asking people for money.
- [31:59]
Hannah Smith
No. So then In October of 2023, she got a letter of delinquent funds from this loan that she'd signed, and they were suing her. And the total was $481,000.
- [32:12]
Patia Eaton
Can you even imagine getting sued for almost half a million dollars ever, and then let alone, like, within a few years of losing your husband and trying to just, like, you know, get your life in order and figure out what your new future can even look like? That's just devastating.
- [32:32]
Hannah Smith
And it's a family member. It's your family. It's a father. Yeah. And I'm sure her. Her feelings are complicated because it's like this is the father of the man that she loved and was married to, but then he's acting like this. Right.
- [32:45]
Patia Eaton
And, like, we've seen this when we think about, like, fraud stories or when we've reported on fraud stories. She signed the loan. So, like, there is some level of responsibility there. But sounds like the person at the bank told her the same thing Tony did. This is ultra low risk.
- [33:03]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. And they were going after her first because she said she had to put her assets down for the loans. And she's like, I didn't have money, but I did have that go fund me that people had given that I had put in a trust for my children, so that had to be listed as an asset. So when there was delinquent funds, like, the bank starts coming after me first. She ends up hiring a lawyer and being able to get her name off of this contract. She has to Pay, like, almost $30,000 in the end for lawyer fees and all of this stuff, which she didn't have $30,000 lying around. Yeah. But she said if she didn't do it, then it would have wiped out completely the trust that she had for her sons, for their future. And that was, like, her one nest egg.
- [33:54]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. And I have to imagine that Tony Dio was well aware of this trust and maybe just thought, whatever, it's money given to her, so it should have been given to me. Like, that's how he was acting.
- [34:06]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [34:07]
Patia Eaton
Well, I'm glad she got out of that. But still, 30 grand, that is a ton of money.
- [34:13]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. So then, like, over the next couple years, before he's investigated, she basically cuts ties with him, and he, like, uninvites her to holidays because she took her name off this loan. And he looked at that as a betrayal. And she starts thinking that he is stealing money from people and is convinced that there's something fishy going on with this foundation. But he's denying this and basically saying that she's betrayed him. Why would she believe these bad things about him? So, you know, because this is in 2023. And then I think you said he was investigated in, like, 2025 or. That's when the charges happened.
- [34:54]
Patia Eaton
That's when the charges happened.
- [34:55]
Hannah Smith
Mm. So there's like a year and a half where the community doesn't know what to believe. The rest of her family doesn't know what to believe. And so she's just sort of in this weird position where she knows that he's doing. I mean, just from what she's. He's done to her, she's like, he's not acting above board here. And I'm worried that he's doing the same thing with this foundation. But, like, most people don't believe her or just still stand by him until eventually, you know, the truth comes out. And so she, you know, made this video just to say this whole thing has put her and her son's back in the limelight in this really negative way, which, you know, is really unfortunate because she's like, my main thing is to honor my husband's memory and to not have it tarnished with all of this, like, fraud.
- [35:48]
Malcolm Glebel
Right.
- [35:48]
Patia Eaton
Because eventually, you know, your kids get older and they're gonna know everything that happened. They're gonna be able to read about it. And it's like, this is their dad's legacy. And it's also just so disappointing. I mean, I can see why she fought for that relationship. Like, they have lost their father and think, you know, it's reasonable to hope that your father in law could step in and be close with them and be a source of support and a role model. And I can see why she fought for that and maybe pushed aside or rationalized his bad behavior. But, I mean, to think about doing that to anyone, let alone someone in her position, is just like, okay, that makes me take back anything I think about him having had any actual remorse, honestly.
- [36:36]
Hannah Smith
And it was pretty enlightening and damning for Tony Dia, I had to say.
- [36:40]
Patia Eaton
I have to say, yeah, that's pretty bad.
- [36:43]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. So obviously that was, like, too much for us to fit into the Dylan episode, But that was the whole separate fraud to do with Anthony Dia's murder? Unfortunately. Yeah.
- [36:53]
Patia Eaton
I mean, his name came up a few times, and we Knew there was more. But Dee also had this, like, explosive story of her own. And that's just what it is, sometimes making these weekly episodes. But another part of the Lisa story is that I interviewed a man named Pete who had a romantic relationship with Lisa, and I'm gonna tell you all about it.
- [37:17]
Hannah Smith
Wow. Okay, I'm ready to hear it.
- [37:20]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. So Pete lives in Toledo. He is a single dad. He has two daughters, and he drives a freight truck. He used to be in it. He wanted a change of pace, so he started driving a truck. And he loves it. He also has some prior military service. He is the nicest person. He said he absolutely loves his job. He's super close with his daughters and is a really involved parent. And at the time this all transpires, which is mostly in 2023, his youngest daughter is 9 and his oldest daughter is about 16. They have different mothers. And this all starts in early 2023. And Pete is in the process of a custody battle with his youngest daughter's mother. And they had had an 11 year relationship. So this was pretty tangled, and it was a stressful time. But by the spring of 2023, things were starting to stabilize. I mean, they were still ongoing legal proceedings, but he was fine. And so his youngest daughter had a school play, and she was also on the school soccer team. So he was at school pretty regularly. And his daughter actually attended the same school as Lisa's two sons.
- [38:41]
Hannah Smith
Okay.
- [38:42]
Patia Eaton
So he would run into Lisa at school, and Lisa was also his daughter's soccer coach.
- [38:48]
Hannah Smith
Ooh. Okay. I do remember something from the D episode about a soccer team, like helping with a fundraiser. So this is.
- [38:55]
Patia Eaton
Yeah.
- [38:55]
Hannah Smith
Ringing a bell. Okay.
- [38:57]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. So he knew Lisa in, like, a very, very surface level way where you might interact with your kid's school soccer coach and not beyond that. He hadn't really thought about her romantically at all, but he did have some memory of thinking that she was married. And that was it for him. This was just his daughter's soccer coach. And then slowly, Lisa starts contacting Pete through this app that for the soccer coach to communicate with the parents of children on the team.
- [39:31]
Hannah Smith
Okay.
- [39:32]
Patia Eaton
At first, it's just updates. Like, your daughter did really good at practice today. She's really loving it. She's doing great. Pete thinks nothing of it. He's like, okay, cool, thanks. Like, good to know. And then the communication from Lisa moves off of the app and she starts to text him. And Pete's a single dad, but he thinks Lisa is married, so he's a little bit Confused, she starts sending him messages. Like just little things you might send someone that you were interested in. Little updates on your day or asking how they're doing. Pretty benign, sort of flirty. I think it's like that moment in a relationship where you're kind of taking a temp check, like, hey, I'm talking to you a little more than I might talk to someone I'm not interested in, but nothing like super forward. And then she tells Pete that she's actually getting a divorce and everything will be finalized by August of 2023.
- [40:32]
Hannah Smith
Okay.
- [40:33]
Patia Eaton
And then she says, so you should take me out for a drink.
- [40:36]
Hannah Smith
Wow. Okay. Making the first move.
- [40:39]
Patia Eaton
Uh huh. And we're still in the spring of 2023, and Pete's telling me about this moment and he remembers, I think he used the words like I was grinning ear to ear. Like he felt chemistry with her. He was excited about this. And once he realized, oh, she doesn't have a husband, maybe legally, but they're divorced. Okay, I have the go ahead here. We're flirting, like, let's do this. And so they go out and totally hit it off. And he just felt chemistry with her immediately and is really excited and happy. And here's this person who also already knows his youngest daughter. She's clearly like, she's a mother of her own children. You know, they're connecting on being parents and it's just going really well.
- [41:29]
Hannah Smith
Yeah, that's gotta feel exciting. Someone already knows and has a good relationship with your child.
- [41:34]
Patia Eaton
Totally. And Lisa wasn't wearing her wedding ring. I mean, he had no reason to suspect that she was lying at all. At this point, you're locked into a
- [41:43]
Boost Mobile Advertiser (Alternate)
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- [41:46]
Patia Eaton
Hey, stay in your lane.
- [41:47]
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- [42:15]
Malcolm Glebel
hello? Hello, this is Malcolm Glebel from Smart talks with IBM. Today we're diving into a fascinating conversation with Stefano Pallard, head of fan development for Scuderia Ferrari hp.
- [42:27]
Stefano Pallard
Your pronunciation is strongly American. It's more Scuderia Ferrari.
- [42:32]
Malcolm Glebel
I'm still working on rolling my R's, but what I was able to learn from Stefano was the importance of engaging the tifos, the Ferrari superfans. In the digital age.
- [42:42]
Stefano Pallard
Ferrari fans and super fans want to be part of something, want to belong to something. So they want to be part of a community, and ultimately they want to be part of a winning team.
- [42:54]
Malcolm Glebel
You've got Ferrari, which has a long history, design history, and now you're interacting in a kind of digital space. I'm curious how you balance those two traditions.
- [43:07]
Stefano Pallard
When it comes to fan engagement, it's really digital technology. And digital channels are being able to create a deeper connection with our fans.
- [43:15]
Malcolm Glebel
To learn more about how Ferrari and IBM are using technology to build deeper connections with fans, visit IBM.com Ferrari
- [43:27]
Nissan Advertiser
Bro. From the show last night to this
- [43:29]
Patia Eaton
drive, why is it never chill?
- [43:31]
Nissan Advertiser
Because this is our live backstage on the road. It's loud, messy, real. And that's the best part. Whole crew, no plan, just moving. Good thing. Nissan builds for that kind of chaos. Not just test tracks, real life scenes, late nights, road trips, all of it. That's why it holds up. Nissan was ranked number one in initial quality among mainstream brands by J.D. power. Yeah, you can tell. 2026 Nissan Rogue. Built for what really happened for J.D.
- [43:59]
Patia Eaton
power.
- [43:59]
Nissan Advertiser
2025 U.S. initial Quality Study Award information. Visit jdpower.com awards awards based on 2025 model year. Newer models may be shown.
- [44:14]
Patia Eaton
So they begin hanging out pretty much every single day. They would either hang out at his house, go to dinner. Within two months, they're saying that they love each other.
- [44:25]
Hannah Smith
Oh, my gosh.
- [44:26]
Patia Eaton
Yeah, so it's a little bit fast and furious, but, you know, I think when people get a little older and you already have children, like, you just know more about yourself and what you're looking for. So it's like, yeah, two months could feel fast, but if you're spending every day together, I don't know. And he's like, yeah, okay, I love you. And she says it back. And he's so excited. And he's like, well, I was invited to this wedding in August. Would you come with me? And she's like, absolutely, yes. And so the school gets out, summer is happening. He's taking her to family barbecues. He's excited about the wedding. And now at this point, he is aware that Lisa once had cancer.
- [45:13]
Hannah Smith
Okay, what does she tell him about that?
- [45:16]
Patia Eaton
Yeah, so she tells him, look, I. I had cancer. I don't have cancer right now. I'm in remission or however, she worded. But I regularly have to go get, you know, checked up on about it.
- [45:28]
Hannah Smith
Okay.
- [45:28]
Patia Eaton
And he's like, wow, I had no idea. He was not aware of anything with fundraisers for her. He's like, I work a lot. I'm not online. I didn't see that stuff. He would later tell me that his mom, when she started meeting Lisa, his mom appeared really supportive to him, but later said, you know, something felt off. Just something felt off. There was so much going on with this person, and she didn't want to ruin it for Pete because she could see how happy he was. She also didn't know, you know, kind of similar to that little voice Dee had. She didn't know. And you don't want to be wrong about that, for sure.
- [46:10]
Hannah Smith
Are their kids hanging out with them as well when they're hanging out so often?
- [46:14]
Patia Eaton
Yes, but Pete said that they just weren't affectionate around the younger kids. He said his older daughter was. Okay, I know that you guys are dating, but if you really like her. I really like her, and I'm really happy for you. So they kept it pretty chill around the littler kids.
- [46:32]
Hannah Smith
So maybe Lisa's son didn't know that they were dating.
- [46:35]
Patia Eaton
Right. And I think they were primarily at Pete's house.
- [46:38]
Hannah Smith
Okay.
- [46:39]
Patia Eaton
They had times where all the kids were together, but it was primarily just with Pete and his children.
- [46:44]
Hannah Smith
Okay, interesting.
- [46:46]
Patia Eaton
So this part of the story for me was like, what? And so basically, he's going through these legal proceedings, custody battle with his ex, and Lisa is so supportive. She's like, I want to go to the meetings with your lawyer, and I want to help you however I can. And he's like, okay. And so she goes to breakfast with him and his attorney, and she's like, I can help you pay these legal fees. And he's like, well, I didn't ask you for help paying these legal fees. Like, I've been paying these legal fees.
- [47:17]
Hannah Smith
Why is she getting involved in this at all?
- [47:20]
Patia Eaton
Okay, so. Good question. Apparently, you know, I can't fully close the loop on this, but what he could tell me is that Lisa and his ex were friends, and they had a falling out.
- [47:34]
Hannah Smith
She already knew the ex?
- [47:36]
Patia Eaton
Yes. And they had a falling out. Shortly before, Lisa starts flirting with Pete.
- [47:42]
Hannah Smith
What?
- [47:43]
Patia Eaton
I know.
- [47:44]
Hannah Smith
Oh, my gosh.
- [47:45]
Patia Eaton
Bananas. So Lisa just starts insisting, you need to let me pay your legal fees. Like, I make so much money. She says she has this really great job working remotely for the ymca, which, you know, I don't know how much the YMCA pays But I don't think it's like a million bucks. Like, she's working remotely for the YMCA is what she says. He's like, okay, I don't need you to cover these bills. But he said that telling her no was like, she just would become so insistent that he was like, okay, okay, like, you can help me. It's fine if you're so insistent on helping and interesting. They're talking about their future together. They're spending every day together. It feels much more like a long term partnership than just someone you're dating at this point. And so Midsummer, Leisa tells Pete that her cancer is back.
- [48:41]
Hannah Smith
Oh, my God.
- [48:42]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. And he said, here we go, here we go. He said they were, I think, at a park, just hanging out, like, laying down and, like, having this, like, nice moment. And she's like, my cancer's returned. And he was devastated and scared and didn't know what that would mean for her. And, you know, he works a job where you can't just, like, leave and go to her appointments with her.
- [49:06]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [49:06]
Patia Eaton
And so she was keeping him updated, just telling him what was going on. But he said that she would send photos of an IV in her arm and with these, like, emotional messages following. And it's like, okay, the arm, the picture is very cropped. Her face is not in it. And it just feels like, you know, there's no right or wrong way to share with someone that you're going through something as scary as a cancer diagnosis. But I honestly feel like even if I didn't know her whole backstory, it seems so disingenuous.
- [49:45]
Hannah Smith
Hmm.
- [49:45]
Patia Eaton
Like telling someone that's really excited about their future with you that your cancer is back. I think any normal person would acknowledge that that's gonna be a difficult thing for them to learn.
- [49:56]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [49:57]
Patia Eaton
Like, that's gonna hurt them. And doesn't mean you shouldn't say it like, that's what you're going through. But didn't seem like she was worried about that. Seemed like she kind of wanted it to upset him, like make him sad.
- [50:09]
Hannah Smith
She was getting something out of that. Emotional manipulation.
- [50:14]
Patia Eaton
Yeah, that's what it seems like to me. So he just tries to support her as best he can. He's still working full time and they're just moving through the motions. She's still coming over. She seems to still be able to, like, you know, participate in their day to day life, and she's managing it. Okay.
- [50:32]
Hannah Smith
Does she still have her hair?
- [50:34]
Patia Eaton
Yeah, she still had her hair. Okay.
- [50:36]
Hannah Smith
Okay. So she didn't Shave her head?
- [50:38]
Patia Eaton
No, this time she didn't shave her head. Well, they had a wedding coming up.
- [50:43]
Hannah Smith
Wow.
- [50:44]
Patia Eaton
Okay. Yeah. So Pete's attorney, who he's now been working for a long time and they have a good rapport, calls him and he's like, hey, Lisa didn't pay. I know she said she was going to, but I haven't received anything from her. And so Pete calls Lisa and he's like, hey, what's going on with this? Because I didn't ask you to pay. And if you're having trouble paying, I'm happy to just pay it. But just what's happening here? Like, what are you not telling me? And she's like, oh, I don't know what happened. I'll get it to him right away. And so she does end up eventually getting him a check, but it's like, what on earth?
- [51:21]
Hannah Smith
So she does pay it.
- [51:23]
Patia Eaton
She eventually does pay it. Not all of it, but she sends him some of the money.
- [51:28]
Hannah Smith
Okay.
- [51:29]
Patia Eaton
Just like, so strange. And in the meantime, Lisa's also building this relationship with Pete's oldest daughter, who's 16. And she's like, you know, I work at the YMCA remotely. I can get you a great job there. I'm gonna help you out. So she's like, okay, Great. Here's this 16 year old who's being told she's gonna make like, I don't know, it was somewhere between 15 and $20 an hour. And this was a good opportunity for someone who's, you know, only 16 to be getting a sort of a job. Like, I worked at a tanning salon, you know, like, yeah. So Leisa gets her a laptop and sets her up with these online training courses. And she's like, okay, W2. The whole nine yards. And so she's like, you need to do these courses, and then after that, you'll be fully employed. But this is like your training period. And she's like, okay, so Pete's daughter is doing this. She's logging onto this portal. She's doing all these classes and trainings,
- [52:38]
Hannah Smith
which is like a YMCA portal.
- [52:40]
Patia Eaton
You know, he didn't know what kind of portal it was, but he was like, she had to log into something. Like, she filled out a W2 and do a training. Yeah, and do, like, training classes.
- [52:53]
Hannah Smith
Filling out a W2 means she's giving Lisa her Social Security number.
- [52:57]
Patia Eaton
Yep. It really does, doesn't it? It's bad.
- [53:00]
Hannah Smith
Ugh.
- [53:00]
Patia Eaton
But this is paid training, right? As it legally has to be. And so she's doing it, and then her Paycheck's just not coming. And Lisa, she's like, it didn't direct deposit. And she's like, there must be an issue. Let me see what's going on. And she sends them a picture of the pay stub, which I don't know why she would have a picture of it, but they wouldn't have had it mailed to them. And she's like, oh, here's the pay stub. So I know they're trying to send it. Let me figure out what's happening. And she's like, oh, your background check. Something went wrong with the background check. So it's. It bumped you out of the system. We're gonna resolve it. So she's like, okay, we'll just wait a little bit. I mean, this girl is 16. What's she gonna do? And then it still just doesn't come. This money never comes. And so she's like, lisa, I need to get paid for this. You said I would. Which at 16, I'm like, wow. You go like, that's good for her. Good for her.
- [53:57]
Hannah Smith
Stand up for yourself.
- [53:58]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. And Lisa's like, you're right. I'm gonna take you to the corporate office, and we're gonna ask them what's going on, and we're gonna have them deal with this. And she's like, okay, let's go. So they get in the car, and at this point, Pete's daughter is like, I don't trust this person, but I'm gonna go figure out where my paycheck is. And they get to the parking lot of the ymca, and Lisa gets a call, and she answers the phone. So I don't know, did her phone ring? Was it on silent? And she starts talking to it. We don't know.
- [54:36]
Hannah Smith
Are they just going to a local YMCA or is she going to some kind of corporate office?
- [54:40]
Patia Eaton
I don't know exactly where they went, but I don't think it was, like, headquarters. I think it was just, like, some place where they could talk to someone.
- [54:50]
Hannah Smith
Okay.
- [54:51]
Patia Eaton
But it is like, a ymca. And so they're in the parking lot. Lisa answers this call really hastily. And Pete said the whole phone call, according to his daughter, was, like, 20 seconds, but that when Lisa got off the phone, she had way more than 20 seconds worth of information. And she's like, oh, my gosh, this person. She's not there today, or we can't actually do this today. I can't believe this. Like, Lisa's acting angry that this has happened and that they've wasted their time. And. And Pete's daughter is not buying it.
- [55:22]
Hannah Smith
She's like, you're faking this woman?
- [55:24]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. You're a liar. So she says, oh, well, I have to use the bathroom, so I'm gonna go inside.
- [55:28]
Hannah Smith
Good for her.
- [55:29]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. And Lisa waits outside. And so you're thinking, like, why wouldn't you just walk in? Right? Like, you work there, don't you? So Pete's 16 year old daughter walks in, she goes to a receptionist and she's like, hi, I have been training now and I have not received my paycheck. I heard it's something to do with my background check, but can we just figure it out? And she's like, yeah, give me your name. So she gives the woman her name, and this person looks at her and she's like, who hired you? And she says, lisa Titkomire. And the woman's face just falls and she's like, okay, you're not in our system. Lisa has not worked for the YMCA since December 2022. So many months since Lisa's even worked there. And Lisa has told Pete that she works remotely for the ymca. So that's why she's been able to be at his house so much. She would be there during the day, supposedly working remotely while Pete was driving the truck.
- [56:31]
Boost Mobile Advertiser (Alternate)
Wow.
- [56:32]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. And so his daughter is reasonably pissed.
- [56:37]
Hannah Smith
And she's like, okay, I love his daughter. Me too. I'm going in there and I'm figuring this out.
- [56:41]
Patia Eaton
I mean, she's a detective. Like, if we could hire her, we would.
- [56:45]
Hannah Smith
Yes.
- [56:46]
Patia Eaton
So she then goes outside and she does not hide her feelings from Lisa. She's like, I'm not getting back in the car with you. I know that you're lying about something. This is what they told me. And she calls her cousin to come pick her up. And Lisa is also freaking out. Like, no, I have an explanation. Like, I can figure this out for you. Eye roll, eye roll. And so she's like, no, I'm not doing it. Well, Pete then gets a call from his daughter, and she knows what kind of job he has, that he can't just be on the phone. But she's like, call me when you can. He calls her, she tells him this is what's going on. And he's like, okay, well, I'll talk to Lisa. There must be some explanation.
- [57:30]
Hannah Smith
Pete.
- [57:31]
Patia Eaton
Pete.
- [57:32]
Hannah Smith
I hope Pete believes his daughter and doesn't get wrapped up in Lisa's lies.
- [57:36]
Patia Eaton
Well, I talked to him about this because he just seems like such a good. And I think he also thought it was a bit odd, but the question of this whole thing that made him sort of pretty convinced that there must be an explanation is that what was Lisa gaining? Yeah, this 16 year old girl is not doing assistant work for her. She's not paying to take these classes. She didn't pay for this laptop. Like, what would she have had to gain? It's so odd.
- [58:09]
Hannah Smith
Did Lysa give her a laptop?
- [58:11]
Patia Eaton
Yeah, Lysa provided everything. And so he's like, there must be an explanation. Let me talk to Lisa. Lisa convinces him that there's an explanation, and then it all comes back to this background check. So he just sort of calms things with his daughter and is like, we're gonna figure this out, but I'm gonna help figure it out.
- [58:31]
Hannah Smith
Why would there be a problem with a 16 year old's background check?
- [58:34]
Patia Eaton
Oh, I mean, it's such a bad lie. It's such a bad lie, but okay,
- [58:38]
Hannah Smith
you know, also, you have a relationship with this woman and you have these ideas and dreams about this future you're gonna have. So he has a lot of incentive to try to believe her at this point.
- [58:48]
Patia Eaton
Right. It'd be one thing if his daughter had been like, well, I gave her $500 to do this training or something. But that wasn't the case.
- [58:55]
Hannah Smith
Right.
- [58:55]
Patia Eaton
And so things kind of mellow out for a minute. They go to this August wedding together. The wedding is for one of Pete's friends. He said that everyone just loved Lisa, thought they were so great together. And they come back and things are a little more. A little better with his oldest daughter. But she still wants to know why she hasn't been paid. And over the course of the summer, Lisa had been talking to Pete and Pete's oldest daughter about also getting her car. And like, you can imagine where this is going. But Lisa just buys a used car, puts it in the driveway for his daughter. She's elated. Pete had no idea the purchase was happening.
- [59:40]
Hannah Smith
Oh, my gosh.
- [59:41]
Patia Eaton
She's like, okay, you're forgiven. You know, maybe not fully, but she was like, okay, I'm happy to accept this car. And what 16 year old wouldn't be happy about that? So she's driving the car around for about a week and. And they get a knock on the door. And it's a man who owns a local used car lot. And he's like, lisa, you never paid for the car. And she's like, I don't know what's going on. Let me go to the ATM.
- [60:11]
Hannah Smith
Let me go to the ATM.
- [60:12]
Patia Eaton
Yeah, she literally says, the ATM. I guess she goes to the ATM to get him 500 bucks to, like, hold him over before she can get him, like, the full amount the next day or something.
- [60:23]
Hannah Smith
So he comes to Lisa's house or to Pete's house.
- [60:25]
Patia Eaton
To Pete's house, because that's where.
- [60:27]
Hannah Smith
But Lisa's there.
- [60:28]
Patia Eaton
Yeah.
- [60:28]
Hannah Smith
Okay.
- [60:29]
Patia Eaton
So this is a real point of fracture in the relationship, because now it's like, okay, whatever she's lying about, she is lying about something. And I don't know why or what, because we didn't ask for this car. We didn't ask for these legal fees. We didn't ask for this job at the ymca. Like, what's going on? And so Pete is really frustrated, and he's like, lysa, I don't think you're being truthful with me. She's like, I am. There's just something going on in my personal life I can't talk about yet. And he's like, well, then you just need to take a beat and go back home until you can talk to me, because this is very not fair to my kids. And so one morning, while Pete's getting ready for work, shortly after this, she calls him and she says, the police are raiding my house with a search warrant, and this was actually happening. But she tells him that.
- [61:25]
Hannah Smith
For the cancer fraud investigation.
- [61:27]
Patia Eaton
For the cancer fraud investigation. But she tells him it's all to do with Tony Dia and D. Lynn.
- [61:34]
Hannah Smith
Oh, my gosh.
- [61:36]
Patia Eaton
She's like, these people were in cahoots about a fraud, but because I corresponded with them, they need my phone and my ex husband's phone, and that's why they're. And she's claiming that her husband had shady financial dealings with Tony Diaz that were under investigation. That's not true at all. And, you know, she's bringing up D. Lynn, saying that she's some sort of reason for this because the police raid is actually happening. Pete doesn't really doubt her because fraud wasn't on his mind at all. It was like, okay, so Tony Dia is doing something wrong. And maybe that is what this is all about.
- [62:15]
Hannah Smith
And it's also true. Tony Dia was doing something wrong, Right?
- [62:20]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. And so then Lisa just sort of disappears for a second, probably. This is when she's arrested, and she sends Pete an email that just says, don't contact me.
- [62:31]
Hannah Smith
Wow.
- [62:32]
Patia Eaton
Cryptic at the time. Pete's like, this doesn't sound like Lisa. This must be like her mom. Like, this is so strange. But he's like, okay, I won't Contact you? Well, it turns out that, you know, when her phone was taken and then searched, they find all this correspondence with Pete, and they know that she's married. So he's then being reached out to by Detective Ryan. And Ryan tells him, look, this is who this person is. This is what she has done.
- [63:04]
Hannah Smith
He tells him we're investigating her for this fraud.
- [63:08]
Patia Eaton
Yeah, he tells him everything. Everything. He can tell him that, yeah, Lisa's under investigation for fraud. She's not divorced. There is no divorce. She's been lying to you.
- [63:19]
Hannah Smith
Can you imagine getting that call?
- [63:21]
Patia Eaton
No. I mean, he said it was like his vision became a tunnel. Like everything went black around him, and he was just like, what are you telling me right now? Like, who is this person who has been spending every single day at his house telling him that she had a job that she didn't have? So basically, he's figuring out that she told her husband that she was going to work, but she wasn't going to work. She was going to Pete's house.
- [63:48]
Hannah Smith
So she's spending mostly days at Pete's house. But isn't Pete at work during the day?
- [63:54]
Patia Eaton
Yeah, but she's, you know, they're pretty comfortable, pretty fast. So she's got a key, she's letting herself in.
- [63:59]
Hannah Smith
But then, like, she's spending some evenings with Pete. And what is she telling her husband?
- [64:05]
Patia Eaton
He still doesn't know what she told her husband, but he said that she would often leave and come back. Leave and come back throughout the evening, like, oh, I have to run home and really? Yeah. Take care of my sons or something. Like, basically he thought that her soon to be ex, which was actually just her husband, they were still living under the same roof because financially, you know, immediately getting two living spaces, especially when you have children, that's really hard.
- [64:35]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [64:35]
Patia Eaton
And so he was like, yeah, divorce is messy. That's what's happening.
- [64:38]
Hannah Smith
So they lived close to each other.
- [64:40]
Patia Eaton
Yeah.
- [64:41]
Hannah Smith
And so she would be like, running back, like, oh, I gotta go take care of this thing. I'll be back in an hour.
- [64:46]
Patia Eaton
Yep.
- [64:47]
Hannah Smith
And then she's running home and telling her husband some other kind of story that, oh, I have to go back out for work or whatever.
- [64:54]
Pedigree Advertiser
Yeah.
- [64:55]
Patia Eaton
And so as this is all coming to light, Pete's oldest daughter says, you know, I'm missing a lot of cash I had saved up in my room. Yeah. So Lisa took money from her.
- [65:08]
Hannah Smith
That is so sinister. She's stealing from this teenager and already, like, conned this teenager, like, into this fake job and this car and, like, all just like. That is so truly dark.
- [65:21]
Patia Eaton
And for what? Like, she never asked you for a job. She never asked you for a car. She was just happy her dad found someone he connected with. So the amount of money that she stole from his daughter is the amount of money she paid the attorney.
- [65:37]
Hannah Smith
Oh, my gosh.
- [65:39]
Patia Eaton
Can you imagine? Like, what the hell?
- [65:44]
Hannah Smith
It's like, what is Lisa getting out of this? She must just love, I don't know, this emotional manipulation.
- [65:53]
Patia Eaton
Maybe she gets some kind of high.
- [65:55]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. Like, these fake worlds. To me, it sounds so stressful. You're, like, creating these narratives. You're running back and forth.
- [66:02]
Patia Eaton
Yeah.
- [66:03]
Hannah Smith
She clearly liked doing all of this.
- [66:05]
Patia Eaton
Well, and I asked Pete the same question, like, why. Why do you think she did this? And he said that after, you know, reflecting on this now for a long time, this relationship took place in 2023. He recalled a moment in the car with her where she said, sometimes I just create these scenarios in my head, and they just feel so real to me.
- [66:30]
Hannah Smith
Wow.
- [66:30]
Patia Eaton
Wow. He's like, okay. I mean, what? Yeah. Whatever context she said it in, it didn't feel like this major red flag at the time. But now looking back, it's like, yeah, she was creating all of these fake realities. Like, oh, she's this person battling cancer. She's this mom divorcing her husband, who she then told Pete had been abusing her. But that was never.
- [66:56]
Hannah Smith
Oh, my gosh.
- [66:57]
Patia Eaton
You know, Pete has never found anything to say that that's been true at all. But Lysa had said that to him.
- [67:04]
Hannah Smith
She's this potential new stepmom who gets to, like, buy her stepdaughter a car.
- [67:10]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. Like, loves being a hero.
- [67:12]
Hannah Smith
Like, is it the fantasy that she's just, like, loving that it must be
- [67:18]
Patia Eaton
this high from, like, similar to Dee with the shed. It's like, look at these things I'm doing for you so that you won't question me. Just so bizarre. But.
- [67:30]
Hannah Smith
And no foresight to think that, like, if you make a promise about a job or to pay some legal fees or you take a car without paying for it, like, that will come back in the end. That's not just gonna go away.
- [67:44]
Patia Eaton
The stress that she must be living with to just live her life this way with just compounding lies.
- [67:51]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [67:51]
Patia Eaton
I mean, they went to dinner with both of their children. Like, Pete's daughters and her sons. They once did, like, a whole dinner.
- [67:58]
Hannah Smith
And the boys could have said anything.
- [68:00]
Patia Eaton
They could have said anything.
- [68:01]
Hannah Smith
They could have been like, you're not divorced from our dad. Yeah.
- [68:04]
Patia Eaton
Pete actually said that there was a moment at that dinner where he was under the impression Lisa was in the process of moving out. And he almost asked one of her sons, how's the move going? Just trying to make conversation, but he just decided not to ask because you never know how a kid is feeling in those moments. And he's like, what if I would have asked? What would they have said? Would they have said, what move were you talking about? Yeah, probably, like, so strange.
- [68:31]
Hannah Smith
Ugh. Those poor kids.
- [68:33]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. I mean, it's a wild story, but, yeah, Pete basically said it took him a year to really emotionally recover. He had a lot of conversations with the detective, Ryan, and he really credited Ryan to being a source of emotional support through that process, because he said Ryan would take the time to talk to him and say, this is what happened. This is what she was doing. And, you know, sometimes people who have been lied to, scammed, whatever, it's like they have been living in this person's fake reality, and to step out of it takes a lot of hard work because you know it all to be true.
- [69:12]
Hannah Smith
It takes time to process that and really get it through your brain from people we've talked to of like, wait, was this real? Was this real? Was this. And then to be like, oh, no, it was all a lie.
- [69:25]
Patia Eaton
I know.
- [69:26]
Hannah Smith
And, yeah, that's really great that this detective was willing to, like, have those conversations with him and walk him through all his questions. I'm sure that was really helpful.
- [69:36]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. And acknowledge him as a victim.
- [69:38]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [69:39]
Patia Eaton
Like, that is huge. And I'm happy to say that today, Pete and both his daughters are doing really well. He did tell me his oldest daughter, who's now 20, bought a motorcycle, which he's pretty nervous about. He was like, yeah, they're doing good, and we're doing good. And he still has some complicated feelings for Lisa, but just hopes that she gets help and wanted to share his story so that others could recognize warning signs.
- [70:04]
Hannah Smith
Yeah. Did Lisa ever try to reach back out to him?
- [70:08]
Patia Eaton
He said that they have not spoken.
- [70:10]
Hannah Smith
Yeah.
- [70:11]
Patia Eaton
So I don't know if she's tried. And he hasn't, but they have not spoken.
- [70:14]
Hannah Smith
He cut things off.
- [70:16]
Patia Eaton
Yeah.
- [70:17]
Hannah Smith
Good for him.
- [70:18]
Patia Eaton
Yeah. I imagine it's like, mess with me, but, like, mess with my kids. Like, what are.
- [70:23]
Hannah Smith
What so sad? Because, like, I don't know then, like, how do you date again and trust someone?
- [70:29]
Patia Eaton
I know. And he was, like, the nicest person. I mean, he works long hours and sat on the phone and told me his whole story, and I'M like, wow, wow.
- [70:39]
Hannah Smith
I'm so glad you were able to speak with him and that they got away from Lisa, that they're doing well.
- [70:46]
Patia Eaton
Yeah, seriously.
- [70:48]
Hannah Smith
So that was our episode today. Follow up to last week's and if we get any more updates about Lisa and what she's up to, we will keep you updated.
- [70:58]
Patia Eaton
Thanks for listening.
- [70:59]
Hannah Smith
We'll be back next week.
- [71:02]
Patia Eaton
If you have a story for us, we would love to hear it. Our email is the knifexactlyrightmedia.com or you can follow us on Instagram henifepodcast or bluesky athenifepodcast.
- [71:13]
Hannah Smith
This has been an exactly right production. Hosted and produced by me, Hannah Smith
- [71:17]
Patia Eaton
and me, Patia Eaton. Our producers are Tom Breyfogel and Alexis Amorosi.
- [71:22]
Hannah Smith
This episode this episode was mixed by Tom Breifogel.
- [71:24]
Patia Eaton
Our associate producer is Christina Chamberlain.
- [71:26]
Hannah Smith
Our theme music is by Birds in the Airport.
- [71:29]
Patia Eaton
Artwork by Vanessa Lilac.
- [71:30]
Hannah Smith
Executive produced by Karen Kilgariff, Georgia Hardstark and Danielle Kramer.
- [71:43]
Nissan Advertiser
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Starbucks Advertiser
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Nissan Advertiser
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Hannah Smith
Sisters you've always liked, a little drama,
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Nissan Advertiser
plus a whole new world of movies like Gladiator 2.
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Patia Eaton
Now I will control an empire.
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Patia Eaton
Just make sure we protect each other.
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Nissan Advertiser
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Patia Eaton
Welcome to the history books.
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Nissan Advertiser
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