It’s not always easy to tell a scammer at first because if they’re any good, they can be pretty convincing. But some people who claim they need money for some sort of emergency situation are literally just staying that. They’re lying.

What would you do if you thought someone was trying to scam you but you weren’t 100% sure. Would you give them the money or keep saying no?

In this story, one couple is in that situation, and they keep saying no. Yet, there’s a tiny part of them that wonders if it’s not a scam.

Let’s read the whole story.

AITA for not trusting a woman who’s begging for money for her “critically ill mother” because of how she scammed my partner in the past?

About two years ago, my partner (23NB, they/them) visited a (now former) friend of theirs.

She cooked for them, then started crying about being in debt to some scary loan shark who was threatening her.

She had a younger sister and said her mother didn’t know anything about it.

Then she started touching my partner’s feet (personally not a fan of it but it’s a gesture for respect or pleading in India)

She sounds like a scammer.

My partner got really uncomfortable and overwhelmed and lent her ₹30k (~$400) just to escape the situation

Before they left, her sister stole another ₹5k (~$60) from their bag. So total of ₹35k and she never returned a single rupee. After that, she completely ghosted my partner

Today outta nowhere, around 5 am, she suddenly calls again.

He wasn’t going to be scammed so easily the next time.

She’s crying about her mother being critically ill and hospitals are refusing to admit her unless she pays ₹30k upfront.

Government hospitals in India don’t usually refuse to admit someone in a critical condition if you don’t pay right away.

That already sounded weird af. Government hospitals are literally where patients without enough money for private hospitals go for treatment

Still, my partner stayed calm and told her they couldn’t lend her any money. Instead, they gave her helpline numbers and contact info for government hospitals and charities.

She didn’t give up.

But she wouldn’t stop. She kept calling over and over again for hours

She kept begging which was so weird because if her mother was really dying, why was she spending two hours on the phone instead of getting help or contacting the resources my partner already sent her?

Okay maybe, just maybe, emotional distress over the situation

Then it went completely unhinged.

She’s seriously not giving up.

She asked my partner to take a loan for her.

When they said no, she asked if I, someone she’s never even met or talked to, could take out a loan to give her.

And when that didn’t work, she even told my partner to ask their freaking boss for money.

Like what the actual heck?

Finally, he called her out on her messed up priorities.

After being told no several times, my partner finally told her maybe being on call for hours wasn’t the best thing she could do when her mother was dying. S

he cut off saying she’ll call back.

My partner blocked her

But that wasn’t the end of it.

Then some time later, she called again using a different number.

She said her mother had been admitted to a govt hospital, but she still needed the same amount of money anyway.

During that call, she randomly mentioned a friend of mine that my partner had talked about in passing two years ago because they lived around the same area. She doesn’t even know his name but still somehow remebers him and begs my partner to ask him for money

She also said she had money in her bank account but for some reason couldn’t withdraw it???

A tiny part of her wonders if it’s not a scam.

I honestly don’t believe a single thing she says.

But a small part of me, as well as my partner, wonders if we’re being too harsh and if there’s a chance she’s actually in trouble

So AITA for not believing her and for wanting to just be done with her?

I don’t believe my partner is ever getting back that ₹35k ever either

It’s a scam. If she really needed the money for her mother’s hospital bills, she’d call someone else or call one of the resources OP’s boyfriend mentioned.

Let’s see how Reddit reacted to this story.

This is a good idea.

Even if she’s not a scammer, her family is not their responsibility.

Exactly. She sees him as an easy target.

Time to call the police.

They need to trust their instincts.

If you liked that post, check out this one about an employee that got revenge on HR when they refused to reimburse his travel.