We all know the story of Robin Hood, robbing from the rich to give to the poor. He goes up against the Sheriff of Nottingham, who supports Prince John in taking over the kingdom while King Richard is away. Robin remains loyal to the true king, takes a rebellious stand, has a band of “merry-men,” and gets the girl (Maid Marian). The story has been done up many times in film, including the animated 1972 Disney movie, a 1976 Sean Connery film, the 1993 Mel Brooks comedy, and a 2010 retelling with Russell Crowe. Those are just a few.
The story has been inspiring people for better or worse over the years. It can be a tale that leads those consciously equipped to take stands against tyranny and rebel in virtuous ways. It can also lead to justification to steal things. The latter is the focus of this article.
Meet Hoodie Robbins. We don’t know his real name, but that suits him well enough. Hoodie Robbins believes himself Robin Hood reincarnate. He finds himself in direct opposition to law enforcement and he steals from the rich…or at least the ‘relatively’ rich to give to the poor, himself.
“It is all a matter of one’s perspective,” comments Hoodie, while shifting the feather in his cap. “We live in a time of enormous wealth. The poorest people today in America still have a better standard of living than most people throughout history. By that logic, they are all relatively rich and, therefore, should be stolen from.”
Robbins also concludes that taking the money for himself is like giving to the poor by comparing his life to current multi-billionaires. These flipflopping comparisons are how Hoodie Robbins justifies his crimes as a scammer.
With his band of ‘semi-merry’ men and his good friend, Diminutive Jonathan, Hoodie Robbins operate various fraud rings, exploiting people when he can, and practices archery in his free time to be more like his idol. Robbins even has a girlfriend who goes by Made Marry-em, a sweetheart scammer who breaks the hearts and wallets of desperate men looking for love.
She also has broken a few records within the scam community. At one point she was communicating with 34 prospective victims at one time. She has also successfully run sweetheart scams further than anyone else in the industry. Going beyond faked weddings and sham marriages, she has convinced a few of her victims to then divorce (collecting alimony in the process). And if she doesn’t play that game, she fakes her own death, leaving her scam victims thinking they are widowers. We live in a screwed-up world as evidenced by Robbins and Marry-em.
“Do I feel bad about what I do?” Hoodie reflects. “The people I scam had it coming. Some of them were bad people, you must believe me. Many had a ton of money just sitting in their savings accounts. They were naïve about it all, so they didn’t really deserve the money. And the business’ I’ve defrauded along the way? They’ve got plenty of money too and are all corporate stooges.”
Hoodie’s perspective didn’t really change when scam checks were brought up. In a scam involving counterfeit checks, the scammer gives their victim a bad check that is deposited into their bank account. Funds are withdrawn prior to the return, creating an overdraft scenario for the victim. It is a way for scammers to defraud people who don’t necessarily have money.
“What really is poor anyway? Those who don’t have money can still be rich. Sure, it might seem like a crime to cause a wheelchair bound and deaf great-grandmother to overdraw her account by $50,000, but she has family to take care of that, right? So really, if you think about it logically, I am helping her grow closer to her family. Yeah, I’m actually doing a public service here.”
Hoodie’s Rationalization Is Out of Control
The Fraud Triangle is divided into three factors: pressure, opportunity, and rationalization. Pressure refers to the need or want the perpetrator can get by defrauding. Opportunity is what is available to the fraudster. In this case, Hoodie, his band of ‘semi-merry’ men and Made Marry-em focus on scamming. They have many opportunities with unsuspecting and vulnerable consumers.
Rationalization is how the criminal justifies what they are doing. In the case of Hoodie, there are many excuses he makes. He downplays the crime and the associated victimization. He believes he is entitled to other people’s money and even blames the victims. He also makes illogical conclusions about the state he leaves his 'scammees' in. They will be fine really doesn’t cut it when you are talking about ruining people’s financial lives.
What Can Be Done to Fight Hoodie Robbins and His Kind?
First, we must acknowledge that Hoodie Robbins and those like him are nothing like Robin Hood and his band of Merry Men. These scammers do not have principles behind what they do. Scamming (and fraud in general) should not be justified, even when selecting guilty people or people who can handle taking a financial hit.
Second, scam education needs to reach more people, especially the most vulnerable. Scammers look to the vulnerable because they are easy to control. And if they can control the person, it is much easier to convince them to send money (whether it is a good funds or a bad funds scenario). It is a fallacy to think that Hoodie is wrong about people being naïve. People can be downright stupid when it comes to these scams. Obviously, it does not mean they should be defrauded. Rather, it means they need to be better equipped to recognize these schemes to be able to fight against them.
Third, these crimes need to be seen as culturally unacceptable. There needs to be more public outcry and disgust surrounding the issue. Scammers need to get their comeuppance in more ways than just prison stints; the act of scamming other people should generate cultural backlash that puts the crime in check (at least deterring some of the potential scammers).
Fight Hoodie Robbins and his band of scammers.