A 51-year-old Greek woman from Melbourne, was one of the many victims of a psychic scam. During the period of seven months the woman gave a fake medium 90,000 dollars.
According to the newspaper Herald Sun, the woman initially visited the supposed psychic named Habib Bamba after she read an his ad in a newspaper.
She was convinced about his “powers” when during the first reading the spiritualist accurately started talking to her about her medical problems.
She was told that she was possessed by “evil spirits” and in order to get rid of them and protect herself, she was repeatedly told that to send him up to 5,000 dollars. The psychic was also trying to convince her that if she stopped paying, bad things would happen to her. The woman believed him and she even started getting loans to pay him.
Unfortunately, when she decided to report him to the police, Habib Bamba had disappeared.
During the past year the Consumer Affairs Victoria had received 13 complaints for psychic fraud. However they estimate that the number is much higher and that many victims do not report the incidents.
Claire Noone, the director for Consumer Affairs Victoria, says that fake mediums exploit people’s insecurities and problems. They “foresee” that something bad will happen and claim that they can prevent it in return for money. They often threaten the victims telling them that if they stop paying something tragic will happen.