Scamming an Artist – Part 3: Dude! The FBI!

I know many of you have been following this story, especially those who have come close to being victims themselves until they tickled the google and ended up right here at this blog. One of my new correspondents, Tom Hanlon, went the extra mile and actually made a complaint to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), and also, as of this writing, has made a complaint to the Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov .

Below is the FBI report in full, except for redacting some of Tom’s personal info. I won’t put links in here for the two earlier posts because they’re linked in the official report.

We all hope this will have some effect on the perpetrators or at least help to spread the word about this and, hopefully, other related scams. They are operating thick and fast and although we all want to be smart about it, there seems to be no way to completely avoid having some stranger with a laptop getting their hooks in you. All I ask is that you share these posts and be aware of every piece of email you get. I regularly get emails asking me to download and sign some attached documents, with some reference to receiving payment. These I immediately delete.

My ISP is Network Solutions, which I find dependable. My wife Vicki and I have separate email addresses with them, and she is constantly getting emails from “Network Solutions” saying her password is expiring and she needs to click here to update it, and I’ve explained to her more than once that since I’m the account holder, she shouldn’t be getting emails about the account, and in any case, passwords do not expire! But it’s slick and hard to ignore.

Down below after the FBI report, there’s a little Easter Egg about how I got roped into this initially, through a well-meaning friend who I have no reason to believe is any part of the scam. He recommended me after the scammer found his payment demands too insane to comply with. Maybe there’s a lesson there!

Your IC3 Complaint

Submission ID:
1bdcc65bc956469db66a109d26914edf

Date Filed:
6/20/2025 10:46:34 AM EST

Were you the one affected in this incident? 
Yes

Your Contact Information 
Name:
Tom Hanlon

Phone Number:
xxx-xxx-xxxx

Email Address:
tom@hanloncomm.com

Complainant Information 
Name:
Tom Hanlon

Age:
Over 60

Address:
xxxx xxxxxxxx xxx

City:
Mahomet

Country:
United States of America

State:
Illinois

Zip Code/Route:
xxxxx

Phone Number:
xxx-xxx-xxxx

Email Address:
tom@hanloncomm.com

Business Information
Is this on behalf of a business that was targeted by a Cyber incident? 
Yes

Business Name:
Thomas Hanlon Communications

Is the incident currently impacting business operations? 
No

Financial Transaction(s) 
Did you send or lose money in the incident? 
No

Information About The Subject(s) 
Name:
April Castillo

Phone Number:
8042774994

Email Address:
aprilcast1980@aol.com

Description of Incident 

Provide a description of the incident and how you (or those you are filling this out on behalf of) were victimized. Provide information not captured elsewhere in this complaint form: 

On April 9, 2025, a person going by “April Castillo” (I know this is not her real name because others who have been scammed by this person with the same phone number reported she used the name “Madison Combs” or various other aliases) emailed me and asked if I’d be interested in writing two articles for an upcoming webinar. I would be paid $1.75/word (a very high rate; suspicion #1) and make $4,900 for 2,800 words. She gave me a brief outline for the two articles (“Social media and mental health” and “Internet and youth development”), which would be easy to write, meaning it would be doubly tempting for any capable writer (suspicion #2). Interestingly, in the email exchange, she says “I maintain a minimal online presence with no digital footprint and I prefer to keep it that way.” But she said she was “creating a temporary website for the program and will share the URL” with me once it was completed (suspicion #s 3 and 4). In her next email to me, after I indicated interest, she said she wanted to pay me early and had communicated with the sponsor, who would issue a cashier’s check for either partial or full payment (suspicion #5; quite suspicious that they would pay in full before receiving a single word from me). She requested my address and phone so she could send the check. At this point, my suspicions fully aroused, I googled “April Castillo scam” and found this article: https://gerrymooneyillustratingdickens.com/2024/11/18/how-to-scam-a-commercial-artist/. As you can see from that article, another artist had been scammed by “April,” who listed this almost certainly false contact info: 198 Primrose Dr Blacksburg, VA 24060, USA, 703-410-2085. That article details the precise scam that “April” was (and probably still is) operating. A brief summary of the scam: The victim receives the money (in full, before beginning the project!). The victim then receives an email saying the project is paused. The “sponsor” is demanding their money back. In the case cited in the above URL, the victim was paid $3,950 and needed to send a money order by FedEx or priority overnight mail for $2,960. The victim was then encouraged to Zelle the money to 732-239-8946, to Anthony Moore (the supposed “sponsor”; all of this is in the article). In the meantime, the $3,950 check the victim had received bounced. Thankfully, the victim didn’t send any money back. I contacted the victim, saying I too had been the target of the scam, but had not participated. He sent me this article as well, which details others who had been approached by “April Castillo,” “Madison Combs,” “Juliette Simon,” “Brian Nathan-Lewis,” or “Hannah McGrady,” etc., all trying to operate the same scam. https://gerrymooneyillustratingdickens.com/2025/04/30/scamming-an-artist-part-2/ The number 804-277-4994 and the city of Blacksburg, VA was often used, regardless of false name. 

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Okay, now for the promised humorous coda, the initial response from my friend, who will remain nameless, and the inability of the scammer to play along:

I’d like payment in checks made out to, and sent to, my young grandsons, at their address (to be used for their education). This is an essential condition, since any kind of earned income, direct or indirect, raises hell with medical insurance and related stuff. I’ve learned the hard way to not have any income beyond what I get from social security. 

I’d also like a clear idea of exactly how you intend to use these images — type of printing, approx. print run, format of publication if it’s a booklet or calendar or stand-alone prints (letter-size mini=-posters? or trading cards, or??? … Is this Bulletin to be an on-going monthly publication? A four-page direct-mail piece? Or a one-time magazine-format thing containing all these images at once on various pages (and/or front and back covers)… Sharing this info with me in no way affects the fee — it just helps me visualize how the images will look in print (and/or online)… For instance, will they be seen as a group, or singly, or in pairs or what? Does the style have to be entirely consistent or are variations on a style okay, etc etc

At the age of 76, I think I’ve finally arrived at an individual style, and now that it’s happened, It can’t easily unhappen. The upside is that I do figures in action with more energy and conviction and intensity than ever before. However the downside is that my recent work is almost exclusively done with black ink on a white background, using very special gold-nibbed antique pens (or sometimes rare red sable brushes dipped in black ink). If pale muted colors can be added digitally, leaving the black outlines strong  that might work well. I can do the coloring digitally. Almost all my figure drawings these days are done from life, but that’s a plus rather than a minus—it means that anything I draw will look and feel alive. My characters always have a distinct individual personality, whether they’re drawn from life, from a photo-reference, or out of my head. I long ago swore off doing bland generic anonymous faces. 

If all that sounds good to you, count me in.  If not let me know and I might be able to recommend someone else for the job.

all the best

And the scammer’s response:

Hello xxx,
Thanks for the elaborate response. I would love to work with you but your payment terms are beyond me. I cannot tell my sponsor to send payments to different people that are not directly linked to the project. So I will pass. I’d appreciate it if you recommend someone else. Thanks once again.
Warm regards.

I hope we have all learned something valuable here! Leave a comment below, or email me at dickens@mooneyart.com