Review: ‘Scam Goddess,’ starring Laci Mosley

January 17, 2025

by Carla Hay

Laci Mosley in “Scam Goddess” (Photo courtesy of Freeform)

“Scam Goddess”

Culture Representation: The documentary/reality series “Scam Goddess” features a predominantly white group of people (with some people of color) talking about well-known fraud crimes that took place in various parts of the United States.

Culture Clash: Laci Mosley, the show’s host, explores and discusses the cultures and mindsets that led to the scammers conning their victims.

Culture Audience: “Scam Goddess” will appeal primarily to people who are interested in true crime documentaries about fraud and theft, but the comedic approach to this subject matter can be very off-putting to this frequently tacky show.

Laci Mosley in “Scam Goddess” (Photo courtesy of Freeform)

“Scam Goddess” seems more like an imprudent showcase for host Laci Mosley’s aspiring acting career than a worthwhile true crime docuseries. The show’s scripted comedy elements are awkward, stupid and borderline disrespectful to the victims of these crimes. The “Scam Goddess” narration and contrived scenarios often make Mosley look like an immature teenager who sees true crime as a way for her to dress up in different costumes and tell bad jokes that she thinks are hilarious.

“Scam Goddess” is produced by ABC News Studios in association with The Intellectual Property Corporation (IPC), a part of Sony Pictures Television. David Sloan is senior executive producer. Executive producers are Carrie Cook, Eli Holzman, Aaron Saidman and John Henshaw. Mosley, who is also the host of the “Scam Goddess” podcast, describes herself as a comedian, actress and an “expert” in true crime cases involving fraud and theft. Whatever “expertise” she has is not on display in this TV series, which makes her look more like a goofy fangirl of true crime rather than a professional “expert” in anything.

The first “Scam Goddess” TV episode, titled “The Horseplay Heist,” tells the story of convicted embezzler Rita Crundwell, who stole $53.7 million from 1990 to 2012 from the small city of Dixon, Illinois (population: about 15,000 people, as of the 2020 census), where she worked as the city’s treasurer and comptroller at the same time. If you know anything about city government, then you probably know that it’s a huge conflict of interest for anyone to be a treasurer and comptroller at the same time. Crundwell (who was born in 1953) was arrested in 2012. The episode mentions the outcome of her case.

Crundwell, a divorcée with no children, came from a farm family in Dixon. She started as an intern for the city when she was a teenager. She eventually got a full-time job in 1983 as the city’s treasurer and later added the title comptroller. Crundwell flaunted her lavish spending with high-priced purchases, such as show horses, custom furnishings for her house, expensive jewelry and a $2 million recreational motor home.

Crundwell was a fanatic about horses (she reportedly owned about 400 horses at the same time) and prided herself on buying, selling and breeding champion show horses. She stole money from the city by creating a secret bank account in the city’s name. And because she was the only person with the authority to be a signer on this account, she withdrew funds from this secret bank account for her spending sprees. Crundwell’s salary for her city government job was only $80,000 a year. Dixon people interviewed in this episode say that they assumed her wealth came from her horse business and/or other investments.

The episode shows Mosley in Dixon, where she interviews some of the residents to find out more about why Crundwell got away with this crime spree for so long. Among the people she interviews are Jim Dixon, a descendant of the city’s founders; Tom Wadsworth, a former high school classmate of Crundwell’s; Matthew Heckman, Dixon’s public works director; Danny Langloss, Dixon’s city manager; a woman only identified as Kathy, a former Dixon journalist; and Kathe Swanson, Dixon’s former deputy treasurer, who worked with Crundwell for about 20 years and was the one who discovered and reported Crundwell’s embezzlement.

The people interviewed all describe Crundwell as a master manipulator who was able to gain people’s trust and who was very skilled at coming up with believable lies if anyone questioned her about anything suspicious. Crundwell had so much unchecked power over the city’s finances, she ordered her staff for years to keep cutting budgets because she said that the city couldn’t afford many of the things that were needed. It wasn’t until Swanson discovered the secret bank account that it was clear where a lot of the city’s money was really going.

The word “interview” is a very loose description of what Mosley does on this show. She changes wigs and outfits for each interview, which she treats more like a “look at me” comedy skit where she asks basic questions. It should come as no surprise in a story about a con artist who’s obsessed with horses, Mosley dresses up in a cowgirl outfit and rides a horse in the episode. These antics have nothing to do with the actual crimes but are just an example of the show’s tasteless and unfunny tone. Mosley’s scripted narration for the show is overbearing and cringeworthy. At one point, she describes Crundwell’s scam as “iconic,” which is an inappropriate way to describe a crime spree that hurt many people.

When Mosley first arrives in Dixon (whose main claim to fame is being the childhood hometown of U.S. President Ronald Reagan), she makes mocking commentary about all the Ronald Reagan memorabilia and Ronald Reagan tributes in the city. When she goes to a bar to interview some locals, a man named Norman walks in, and people call out his name. “This is ‘Cheers,'” Mosley quips, in reference to how the bar customers in the TV sitcom “Cheers” would call out the name of regular customer Norm every time he entered the bar. The Norman scene in “Scam Goddess” looks very fake and scripted.

In case there’s any doubt that Mosley has a tone-deaf approach to this subject matter, there’s a scene in this episode that confirms it. Langloss tells Mosley that when Crundwell was Dixon’s treasurer/comptroller, the Dixon Police Department had outdated communications equipment and requested upgraded equipment because the outdated equipment wasn’t working in certain parts of the city. Crundwell turned down the request because she said the city didn’t have the money for this upgrade.

After Mosley hears this sobering fact, she admits out loud to Langloss that she thought the story of Crundwell’s fraud was laughably funny until she realized that Crundwell’s theft directly impacted the ability of a police department to help people and potentially save lives. It’s quite appalling that someone who’s a self-proclaimed “scam goddess” hasn’t figured out that these crimes are not a joke and can do real damage to people. Anyone who watches “Scam Goddess” can easily figure out that this time-wasting series is just a way to exploit these crimes for cheap and crass entertainment.

Freeform premiered “Scam Goddess” on January 15, 2025.

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