The Shaky Lady! (fraud story)

[d1abolic]

Have any of you guys heard of the infamous Shaky Lady? She is an old woman who begged for money on the streets of downtown Toronto until recently. She would just sit in her wheelchair and shake, holding a cardboard sign that said "Please help me. I'm sick and poor. I will pray for you."

She was recently spotted by a reporter for the Toronto SUN, who spent a few hours watching her. She made $500CDN in about 5 hours. She then got up, stashed her wheelchair in an alleyway, sat into a brand new car and told her chauffeur to drive her home. The reporter followed her to her apartment, which was complete with a big-screen TV and leather couches. After the story made the front page of the paper, the Shaky Lady disappeared. Only to reappear with a prestigious Bay St. lawyer who is now trying to clean up her image.

Think of that next time you give money to a homeless person, you gullible softies.

And before you ask, no, there aren't any pics. But how about a video?

And finally, her so-called "thyroid condition" is completely fake. A doctor who watched the video already told that to the papers.

 

[Nefrodite]

um yea, but how many homeless people actually are that sneaky? heh

thats twisted anyways

 

[d1abolic]

I'd say about 95%? Somewhere in the high 90's.

 

[AzNmAnJLH]

the video is sad

 

[Mookow]

I remember a Sherlock Holmes story about a guy who was, IIRC, Lord SomethingOrOther, but who made his income by begging. All you really need is a "hook" to set you apart from the crowd...

 

[kranky]

d1abolic, do you personally know any homeless people? The ones I know are not faking anything. They are only trying to survive in a miserable situation. I'd like to know how you came up with the fact that the number of homeless people who are scamming is in the "high 90's", because I think it's certain you are clueless on this subject.

If some of them are scamming (no doubt that is true), does that make it right to never help any of the homeless? Doesn't it make you a little upset when people stereotype you? Your post could have been about the one dishonest person who was caught, but you seem to think that's the way all of them are.

I surely hope you never find yourself in that situation. Because when you try to get help from "gullible softies", you might run into people just like you.

Yes, some of what I give to the homeless might end up with people who are faking. You know what? I don't care. The rest is helping people who are desperate for help, and for that I am thankful to be able to help in a small way.

 

[AzNmAnJLH]

old and homeless? probably got two checks a month from the government in the states

 

[Amused]

Her claim is that the nice stuff in the Apt is not her's, but her son's. Now, if her freakin' son can afford leather sofas and a big screen TV, he can afford to take care of his mother. If I heard my mother was begging on the streets, I'd be horrified.

This whole thing disgusts me.

I have helped truely disabled (physically and psychologically) homeless folks, and people like this piss them off too.

 

[veryape]

<< Have any of you guys heard of the infamous Shaky Lady? She is an old woman who begged for money on the streets of downtown Toronto until recently. She would just sit in her wheelchair and shake, holding a cardboard sign that said "Please help me. I'm sick and poor. I will pray for you."

She was recently spotted by a reporter for the Toronto SUN, who spent a few hours watching her. She made $500CDN in about 5 hours. She then got up, stashed her wheelchair in an alleyway, sat into a brand new car and told her chauffeur to drive her home. The reporter followed her to her apartment, which was complete with a big-screen TV and leather couches. After the story made the front page of the paper, the Shaky Lady disappeared. Only to reappear with a prestigious Bay St. lawyer who is now trying to clean up her image.

Think of that next time you give money to a homeless person, you gullible softies.

And before you ask, no, there aren't any pics. But how about a video?

And finally, her so-called "thyroid condition" is completely fake. A doctor who watched the video already told that to the papers. >>

Now that is just stupid to let one ,albeit disgusting abuse of people's compassion and goodheartedness, stop you from helping someone who might really need the help. I'm not at all saying to give to the homeless, just that if you do don't let this one case make you think all homeless people are that way, because most of them certainly would rather be elsewhere.

Only a small percentage of the homeless are there because they think it's better to be homeless then work. Most of them have had terrible luck and can see no way out.

It's kind of like saying to stop buying used cars because there are some shady dealers out there, it's just foolish. Like I said, I am not homeless and could care less if you give them a quarter, a dollar or a pile of dung, just don't act like they are all scammers.

No, I am not a liberal for those that would call me a bleeding heart.

 

[sharkeeper]

Like most anything else, it's the cases like this that make the entire group look bad. :|

Cheers!

 

[StinkyMeat]

That lawyer seems really slimey, like most. Funny how the translator tries to answer all the questions himself before being told to ask Shaky Lady. I can't say whether this is a fraud or legit, but it's quite the strange situation.

 

[stonecold3169]

Some beggers are good enough to be entertainers. When I was in NYC about 6 months ago, waiting to get on the ferry to Ellis Island for a tour, there was a Jamacian guy begging. This guy knew his stuff, and knew that being an "immigrant", placed by a ferry to see the famous portal to america, people would be more sympathetic to him.

Anyways, this guy was good, he had a guitar, and he'd ask all of the people in the audience he was begging from to give him something to sing about, and he'd make up on the spot a song about anything, it was really, really cool. About the best $5 I've ever spent

 

[kranky]

If someone is making up songs for an audience and playing the guitar, I'd say he's not begging. He's working, and good for him.

 

[yobarman]

We have a "shaky guy" outside of Franklin Mills mall in philadelphia. My friends mom gives the guy like 10 dollars almost every weekend. But he's still shaking!

 

[Amused]

<< We have a "shaky guy" outside of Franklin Mills mall in philadelphia. My friends mom gives the guy like 10 dollars almost every weekend. But he's still shaking! >>



LOL, I don't know why that's funny, but it is

 

[Rudee]

The "chauffeur" as you refer to, was actually her son. By the way, this is nothing compared to the thousands or people who scam the Welfare system each year. Not including all the bogus Workers Compensation claims that are made on a daily basis in Canada.

 

[Valhalla1]

just got back from a spring break trip to Europe... talk about sneaky beggars!

in Paris hanging out around the Notre Dame there are tons of beggars holding postcards saying they are from Bosnia and need money.. we must have been approached by 20 Bosnians at the notre dame.. makes u a little suspicious, wonder just how many Bosnians are in Paris. and i wont even get into the freaky bums in Amsterdam we saw

 

[dakata24]

here's a very small pic... Link

edit: uh.. she's considering stopping panhandling.. who's gonna give money to her after this story..??

 

[Kipper]

I don't give homeless people $. I give them food.

 

[Dhawk]

This kind of reminds me of a guy where I use to live. We called him "shakin George". He looked like death warmed over and would shake as he walked. He would walk up and down the street stopping at garbage cans picking at scraps of food. I saw him pick up a half eaten sandwich once and brush off the ants then eat it. The difference between him and the lady in Canada was he wasn't faking it and he wouldn't beg for money.

I tried to give Shakin George $5.00 once and he got mad at me. I was later told that he has lots of money and was at one time a college professor. He just got what we concider weird.

d1abolic - You must live a sheltered life if you think that 90% of the homeless people are con artist. I have been through the slums in enough big cities and observed enough homeless people to tell you that is not the case. Maybe you would be more enlightened if you volunteered some of your time at a homeless mission.

 

[Martin]

I remember this story. Disgusting :|


But there are more like her. I don't know if any of you Torontonians have seen this guy on the south-western corner of Nathan Phillips square. For (at least) the last 3 years, he's been there, on the same spot, with the same "Need money, don't have a job" sign, reading books.

 

[911paramedic]

I don't give homeless people $. I give them food.

Ditto. There was a news report that studied and watched some of these "roadside beggers" (with the cardboard signs) that estimated their daily total at around $200 US. That was estimating each bill as a ONE as well.

Scams of any sort make me ill.

 

[ThaGrandCow]

<< We have a "shaky guy" outside of Franklin Mills mall in philadelphia. My friends mom gives the guy like 10 dollars almost every weekend. But he's still shaking! >>



Thats so wrong, but funny at the same time

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Haha. Dumb, old, cheapskating, foreign woman. I bet you she speaks clear English and has more than one house.

 

[Nocturnal]

there are tons of these guys here where i live. a radio station even had ppl call up and talk about this one guy. there were tons of reports that they said they seen him limping while holding a sign for money, but yet they've seen him getting onto and off buses fine, no limp, clean shaven, so fourt. also when i see this guy, hes clean like you and i would be clean. he isnt dirty, he is clean shaven, he has nice shoes.

yeah be careful the next time you give money to a homeless guy who looks really clean lol.