• News
  • Film and TV
  • Music
  • Tech
  • Features
  • Celebrity
  • Politics
  • Weird
  • Community
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
TikTok
YouTube
Submit Your Content
Woman issues warning after she was scammed out of entire life savings by one phone call

Home> Community

Published 16:03 23 Mar 2025 GMT

Woman issues warning after she was scammed out of entire life savings by one phone call

The woman admitted she and her husband were 'fools' for falling for the scam

Gerrard Kaonga

Gerrard Kaonga

A woman has confessed to making a series of errors that resulted in her life savings being stolen after her husband received a concerning phone call demanding he take action.

Scammers aren’t anything new and people have always needed to be vigilant against their antics and schemes to get your money.

But one TikTok star explained how she and her husband got scammed out of their money after an elaborate scheme.

The woman, 28-year-old Amelia Mandeville-Marinaro, explained what happened and admitted that she and her husband should have spotted something wasn't right.

Advert

While holding back tears, she insisted she was making the video to ensure other people don’t fall for a similar scam and can learn from their mistakes.

Speaking in a TikTok video on her page, @winnieandminnie0, she said: “Today, we were scammed which meant that we’ve lost our savings which is, you know, scary because I’m on maternity leave but I wanted to do this video so that other people learn from our mistakes.

The mum issued a warning to her followers (TikTok/@winnieandminnie0)
The mum issued a warning to her followers (TikTok/@winnieandminnie0)

“I know people are going to be like, ‘why are you so stupid, it’s obvious it’s a scam’ but I think sometimes, in the moments, you don’t realise it and I’m not doing this video to say we weren’t stupid.”

She noted that her husband, Pete, received a phone call from someone with no call ID who told him that 'someone’s hacked your account, we need to act fast'.

He proceeded to text Amelia and tell her there was an issue but that he was on the phone sorting it.

He asked her to send her bank details, which she did however this did spark some concern as she thought that the bank would surely already know her details.

Her concerns were raised further when her husband said that she would need to approve a payment as the person on the phone was in the process of moving their money to another account to make it ‘safe’.

As this was starting to sound fishy, she checked their online account which informed her that the bank was not currently contacting them.

Pete explained that this was a deliberate message by the bank to throw off the person who had access to their account.

The mum realises she missed some red flags (TikTok/@winnieandminnie0)
The mum realises she missed some red flags (TikTok/@winnieandminnie0)

Despite saying that ‘alarm bells were ringing’, she approved the payment and immediately felt regret and said that the whole situation sounded ‘dodgy’.

Amelia said ‘we have just paid someone all of our savings and it was, it was silly, it was stupid of us’ before having to stop the video as she became overwhelmed with anguish.

Pete insisted that they knew a lot of details about their account and came across very convincingly.

Answering people on social media, Amelia said the bank is currently looking into the issue and the pair are hoping they will be able to get their money back.

Featured Image Credit: TikTok/@winnieandminnie0

Topics: Viral, TikTok

Gerrard Kaonga
Gerrard Kaonga

Gerrard is a Journalist at UNILAD and has dived headfirst into covering everything from breaking global stories to trending entertainment news. He has a bachelors in English Literature from Brunel University and has written across a number of different national and international publications. Most notably the Financial Times, Daily Express, Evening Standard and Newsweek.

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

4 hours ago
6 hours ago
a day ago
2 days ago
  • Getty Images/Goldfinch4ever
    4 hours ago

    Atheist who had near-death experience explains what they saw as they realized there is 'something after death'

    The atheist opened up on what they saw 'after death' in a post on Reddit

    Community
  • Don Juan Moore/Getty Images
    6 hours ago

    Super Bowl has a whole other meaning on social media that's perfect if NFL isn't for you

    If you're looking to escape chatter about the Seahawks and the Patriots, I've got the superbowl page you need

    Community
  • The Diary of a CEO/YouTube/Jungle Keepers
    a day ago

    Explorer reveals the one heartbreaking question uncontacted tribe asked him as he shares rare footage

    The Amazonian tribe is believed to be one of 400 in the rainforest, but they have largely been uncontacted

    Community
  • Getty Stock Image
    2 days ago

    People are only just learning what the tiny hole in nail clippers is actually for

    We all have them but clearly we don't know everything about them

    Community
  • Expert issues warning to activate one mobile phone setting that could save your life
  • Harry Potter star issues warning about AI fakes after fan was almost scammed into selling her home
  • Burger King employee who was fired after running entire store alone for 12 hours issues life update to supporters
  • Woman who went viral for using 'clear phone' that left people shocked reveals what it really is