Conmen use prayer to trick old woman - Gives up $100,000 after being hypnotised

An elderly woman believes that she was hypnotised by two men who made off with more than $100,000 that they forced her to withdraw from an account she had at a financial institution last Thursday.

Overcome with emotions, Mary Brown* recounted the mysterious events that led to her handing over the large sum of money to the men, who she said she had never met before.

While on her way home after visiting an ophthalmologist in Cross Roads, St Andrew, Brown, who has been diagnosed with glaucoma, said that she was approached by a man who asked her to assist him.

"Him say to me that him pockets full of money and him want to buy a real estate house," she told THE STAR.

Brown, 69, said that the man proceeded to put his hand into his pockets to show her the funds, but she told him that she didn't want to see his money.

Brown said that she was about to walk away, when another man drove on to the scene.

"Him call the man, and I asked him if he knew the man, and he said no. Then the man came over and introduced himself as Pastor Williams," she explained.

She said she told 'Pastor Williams' of the man's plight and was about to walk away, when 'Pastor Williams' stopped her.

"Him hold on to mi hand and said: 'Let us pray for him', and him rest him hand on my head. From that, I don't know what went on more than I heard him say: 'Sit in the car', and I found myself going to the bank," she told THE STAR.

After withdrawing a sum of money, Brown said that she became conscious of where she was but only for a moment.

FINANCIAL INSTITUTION

"I said: 'What am I doing here? I should be going home,' and is like mi nuh know miself, and him said: 'Come'," she said.

Then, the next thing she claimed she remembered was that she was standing close to Heroes Circle.

Confused about how she got to the location, she said she searched her bag and realised that J$12,000, US$50 and her prescription were all gone.

"A lucky thing mi find $600 inna mi pocket fi go home," she said.

"When mi deh pon di bus a go home, mi start cry cause mi think a dream mi did a dream. But when mi realise say a reality, mi start cry," a tearful Brown said.

Brown added that when she got to her home in rural St Andrew, her daughter accompanied her to the police station to make a report, but she was directed to Cross Roads, St Andrew, close to where the incident took place.

Afterwards, she said they went to the financial institution, and a customer service representative confirmed that Brown had made two withdrawals amounting to $100,000.

Traumatised by her ordeal, Brown said that she is afraid to be in public by herself.

"I am scared and I am afraid. But although I lose the money, I am happy that I have life," she said, vowing never to help a stranger in the future.

* NAME CHANGED