November 9, 2026 at 3:35 pm

Strangers Keep Asking Him for Money. His New Friends Think He’s Mean for Saying No

by Jayne Elliott

frustrated young man holding a cell phone

Shutterstock

Imagine getting a text from someone you don’t know asking you for money. Scam alert, right?

What if a stranger on the street asked you for money? Would you give them your spare change?

In this story, one college student recently dealt with both of these scenarios, and in both situations, he refused to give the strangers money.

Now, his friends are mad at him, and he’s wondering if he actually did something wrong.

I think his friends are crazy. Keep reading to see if you agree.

AITA for not giving out free money?

Ok, let me explain.

A while ago when I was in college, I had a random woman text me. I had no idea who this was and I didn’t recognise their number.

The woman proceeded to text me saying things like “Please could you give me $2000?” Or “You should respect your women, Give me some moneyyyy help a girl out”

OP really didn’t have any extra money.

Some backstory: I had just moved to a college in extremely far away from my home country and I was very very poor, I could barely afford to pay rent and eat, sometimes I even had to only eat one meal a day.

To put it it short I was extremely poor.

So now that you know that, back to the main story : So this random woman is begging for money and I keep telling her the same thing, “Sorry Ma’am, I won’t be able to give you money as I don’t have much myself.”

But she wouldn’t stop, I had no idea how she even got my number.

He tried blocking the number.

So after a while of this happening I decide to block her.

I think nothing of it and carry on with my life, but only a few hours later my phone starts blowing up again and I’m pretty sure it was the same person, But they changed their number JUST TO BEG FOR MONEY AGAIN.

At this point I’m starting to get mad so I block that number as well.

Fast forward a week or 2 and I havent got any texts so I can finally relax.

Here’s another situation where someone asked him for money.

The next day I decide to go outside with some of the friends I had made at college. We go for a walk and a man walks up to me asking for some spare change.

You may be thinking I’m a jerk right now because they are probably homeless, but no. They were wearing a perfect suit, had a clean shave, and were standing next to a GTR.

I ask him what he needs the money for.

He says he doesn’t need it and just wants more money. I don’t give him anything and I go back.

His friends sound crazy.

All of my friends were mad at me and even more upset after I told them about the woman that was asking for money.

For the rest of my time there they all called me a jerk.

AITA for not giving people free money to people?

These both sound like scammers. OP’s friends sound pretty stupid. OP was smart not to give them money.

Let’s see if Reddit agrees.

This person is confused.

2026 11 07 at 12.56.52 PM Strangers Keep Asking Him for Money. His New Friends Think He’s Mean for Saying No

Another person knows OP didn’t do anything wrong.

2026 11 07 at 12.57.02 PM Strangers Keep Asking Him for Money. His New Friends Think He’s Mean for Saying No

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a neighbor who sees the chance for revenge after a neighbor who refuses to share wifi needs help with a parking issue.

This person knows they were both scammers.

2026 11 07 at 12.57.12 PM Strangers Keep Asking Him for Money. His New Friends Think He’s Mean for Saying No

Nobody thinks he should’ve given the strangers money.

2026 11 07 at 12.57.42 PM Strangers Keep Asking Him for Money. His New Friends Think He’s Mean for Saying No

His friends aren’t very bright if they don’t realize these strangers are scammers. He did the right thing by saying “no.” I honestly worry a little for his friends if they think it would’ve been a good idea to give the scammers money.

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Jayne Elliott | Contributing Writer, Life & Drama

Jayne Elliott is a contributing writer and editor for TwistedSifter specializing in human interest stories, internet culture, and family dynamics. With over 12 years of editorial experience in digital publishing, Jayne excels at analyzing complex online communities and transforming viral social debates into thoughtful, highly engaging narratives.

Rather than simply aggregating internet drama, Jayne brings a sharp, empathetic editorial eye to everyday dilemmas. She has a unique talent for unpacking the nuances of pop culture and online conflicts, providing readers with relatable, well-researched commentary.

Based in California, Jayne spends her free time outside the newsroom exploring theme parks with her family or beach-combing along the coast.

Follow Jayne's adventures and connect with her on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.