Podcast Summary: "This is Criminal Fraud"

Podcast: The Ramsey Show Highlights
Date: November 23, 2025
Host(s): The Ramsey Network (Primary: Dave Ramsey, with co-host Dr. John Delony)
Episode Length: ~8 minutes

Main Theme

The episode centers on a caller’s troubling discovery: her father-in-law has been conducting investment activity using her husband’s Social Security number—without consent. The situation quickly escalates from a family issue to a potential legal crisis, as hosts Dave Ramsey and Dr. John Delony deliver urgent, unfiltered advice about financial boundaries, familial dysfunction, and taking legal action against fraud—even when the criminal is a family member.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Caller’s Story: “Our In-Laws Used My Husband’s Identity” (00:06–01:04)

• The caller (“B”) and her husband found his Social Security number already linked to investment accounts recommended by their in-laws.
• Despite repeated, firm requests to disentangle, investments are still being made in his name.
• They continue to receive “refund checks” for taxes on these investments—even after asking for it to stop.
• The in-laws insist they are doing this “for your future” and suggest not pursuing the issue.

2. Host Reaction: Zero-Tolerance for Family Fraud (01:04–02:46)

• Dave Ramsey immediately brands the behavior as criminal:

  "So your father in law is a con artist. I mean, yeah, he's a criminal. This is criminal freaking fraud." (01:39, Dave Ramsey)

• Strong warning: What’s happening isn’t just unethical, it’s illegal—potential grounds for SEC involvement and jail time.
• Dave emphasizes the seriousness by contrasting his outrage with the caller’s relative passivity:

  "See the difference in how I reacted and how y' all reacted? We've been told we're not to talk about this. Well, you by God, better. You can talk about it from cell block C if you want." (02:14, Dave Ramsey)

3. Boundary-Setting and Taking Action (02:46–04:47)

• Firm advice: The husband needs to demand (again) that all accounts be shut down within 48 hours, or file a police report.
• The caller confirms they’ve requested accounts be closed, but haven’t threatened legal action.
• Dave and Dr. Delony chastise both the caller and her husband for lack of backbone and urgency:

  "I got a plan for you. I don't want you in my future because my future looks like jail time right next to you, and I don't need a future that involves you." (03:36, Dave Ramsey)

• Urges that only the husband—whose identity is at risk—should confront the parents head-on.

4. The Need for Accountability—Even Toward Family (04:47–05:55)

• Dave and John highlight the gravity of being “complicit” by not acting immediately.
• Dr. Delony delivers a sobering perspective:

  "You're complicit in this now. ... And I'm not trying to be a downer. She was nervous. Well, but it's not funny. There's actually nothing funny about this. I hope you hear the urgency." (05:09, Dr. John Delony)

• Both hosts recommend an urgent, serious confrontation and swift follow-up with law enforcement.

5. Larger Context: Family Dysfunction and Legal Dangers (05:55–07:33)

• Dave points out this isn’t an isolated case—identity theft within families happens and is still a crime:

  "Your family has no idea how the legal system works in America today. And when you're doing investments, you're now involving the Securities and Exchange Commission. It's not simply banking laws." (07:08, Dave Ramsey)

• Expands on past examples: comparing to cases of parents opening credit cards in a child’s name, emphasizing denial and justification within families.

6. The Legal and Emotional Urgency (07:33–End)

• Dr. Delony stresses that financial regulators will “love to make examples” of such cases; the risk is real and imminent.
• Dave’s advice: immediately call the investment firm to prove identity ownership and discover the true extent of the fraud—then follow up with authorities.
• He critiques the “family script” of secrecy and avoidance:

  "I'm here to say the emperor has no clothes. Your family script is cuckoo." (08:07, Dave Ramsey)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Dave Ramsey, on bold boundary-setting:
  "You have 48 hours to send us proof that you've shut down all of these accounts or, Mom, I'm filing a police report on you and dad. Do you understand here? And this is your husband doing it, not you, because it's his freaking parents. Good Lord." (04:10)

• Dr. John Delony’s blunt wake-up call:
  "You're complicit in this now. ... and I'm not trying to be a downer...but it's not funny. There's actually nothing funny about this. I hope you hear the urgency." (05:09)

• Dave Ramsey’s dismissal of in-law justification:
  'Oh, we're doing this for your future.' Kiss my butt." (03:25)

Important Timestamps

• 00:06–01:04: Caller explains the in-law identity theft situation
• 01:39: Dave first calls out the behavior as “criminal freaking fraud”
• 02:14: Dave drives home the severity versus the caller’s passivity
• 03:36: Dave dramatizes the consequences—“jail time right next to you”
• 04:10: Dave outlines the ultimatum to the in-laws
• 05:09: Dr. Delony addresses complicity and urgency
• 07:08: Dave breaks down the legal implications (beyond “just family”)
• 08:07: Dave denounces the family’s culture of secrecy

Tone & Delivery

The tone is classic Ramsey—blunt, humorous in its exasperation, but deeply serious about consequences. Both hosts balance tough love with urgent practical advice, making it clear the stakes are legal and emotional—far beyond awkward family holidays.

Takeaways for Listeners

• Protect Your Identity: Even family can (and sometimes do) commit financial fraud. Ignoring it doesn’t make you “nice”—it makes you vulnerable and potentially complicit.
• Set Hard Boundaries: Act firmly and directly, especially if the law is being broken.
• Don’t Let Family Scripts Override Legal Reality: The law is clear—financial crime is crime, no matter how loving (or insistent) the perpetrator.
• Seek Help and Take Action Fast: Contact institutions, seek legal advice, and don’t delay action out of politeness or fear of conflict.

Final Thoughts

This episode serves as both a warning and an urgent call to action for anyone facing financial abuse or fraud within their family. The Ramsey Network’s hosts cut through denial and inertia with clarity (and a little comic relief), urging all listeners: don’t let “dysfunction” become “complicity.”