In Part 1 of KSFR’s story about on-line dating scams, reporter Mary Lou Cooper spoke with AARP fraud specialist Dr. Doug Shadel. Shadel told the story of “Amy,” a widow who lost hundreds of thousands of dollars to an anonymous romance scammer. In today’s follow-up piece, we learn more about Amy and about the love con artists who prey on vulnerable men and women.
Mary Lou Cooper has reported for KSFR for over a decade, focusing on consumer issues, health, politics, and more. She is a former US Congressional staffer and remains a political junkie to this day. Cooper has received journalism awards from the Society of Professional Journalists, Associated Press, National Federation of Press Women and New Mexico Press Women. She grew up in Oak Ridge, TN and received her BA from Emory University in Atlanta and her MA from the University of Texas Austin. She holds fiction and screenwriting certificates from the University of Washington.