A woman who defrauded her loved ones out of more than $600,000 by feigning ill health was spending the money travelling, clothes, and makeup, a Channel 4 documentary has revealed.
Sabrina Taylor from Tacoma claimed to have Multiple sclerosis (MS) - a chronic disease affecting the central nervous system - to con her former partner into running up huge debts to fund treatment, before falsely accusing him of domestic violence.
The fraudster threatened to kill herself in Japan unless her acquaintances raised $20,000 that she had claimed had been stolen, which is when friends began to question her truth and the FBI got involved.
In 2022, Sabrina, then 40, pleaded guilty to stealing the hefty sum of money from 2013 to July 2019, including $60,000 for trips to Japan and Korea, $29,000 on clothing, and nearly $16,000 for make-up, and last year, she was sentenced to 27 months in prison, despite initially facing 20 years.
Now, in a Channel 4 documentary Love Cheats, Sabrina's former partner Aaron has spoken on the ordeal, saying: 'I can't put a price on the emotional toll...
payday loans no credit check amount of money will ever get that amount trust that I had in other people back'.
Channel 4 documentary Love Cheats follows Aaron (pictured), who was scammed out of thousands of pounds by his former partner, who lied to him and claimed she had MS
Aaron, a software engineer, explained how he was longing for a relationship, and because there was only one woman in his class, he found his options limited.
In a bid to find a romantic connection, he went on Craigslist, which is where he stumbled upon a post by Sabrina, claiming that white men in Seattle were afraid to date black women.
Aaron replied to the post and started conversing with Sabrina. Soon after, the pair started sending pictures back and forth before they met up for a first date at an off-leash dog park.
'My first impressions of Sabrina is that she was super cute, she was nerdy, she was interested in all the things that I was,' Aaron said. He continued: 'We chatted about anime, comic books, it was a breath of fresh air meeting a woman like that'.
Sabrina told Aaron that she was finishing her studies in health and was looking to go to medical school - a plan that he thought was 'really awesome'.
The relationship progressed and the pair started seeing each other more, and at one month in, they visited their first anime and book con together - Sakura-Con.
Aaron said: 'Sabrina made me feel wanted'. He added: 'Because we had so many things in common, it made me feel less alone'.
As the relationship progressed, Aaron became the primary earner in their relationship, and he would pay for all their dates. He noted that Sabrina had expensive taste and shopped at high end clothing stores.
Sabrina Taylor (pictured) from Tacoma was sentenced to 27 months in prison in January 2023 at the age of 41
Aaron and Sabrina (pictured) quickly formed a relationship with each other after meeting on Craigslist
After nine months of dating, Aaron and Sabrina moved in together, which is when she started complaining about her back hurting and other pain issues.
When she went to the doctor, Aaron was at work and unable to accompany her to the visit. After the appointment, she told him that she thought she had MS. Aaron recalled: 'It was terrifying to me because that's what killed my dad's dad'.
He added: 'We were sobbing because it's definitely something that can shorten your life'.Aaron started to collect her depression and anxiety medication: 'I would regularly go to the pharmacy and be told her insurance doesn't work anymore'. Aaron recalled the moment he rang Sabrina to ask her what to do, saying: 'She eventually says, if you can't get this, I should just kill myself'.
