A MOM’S wicked scam, where she faked a cancer diagnosis for seven years and swindled $105,000 from donors, was never about money but rather a desire for attention, an investigative journalist has said.
Beginning in 2012, Amanda Riley used her online blog to document her seemingly long battle with cancer and slowly began manipulating her community, friends, and family.
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Riley, a mom of two from San Jose, California, claimed to her blog followers that she had been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma and used her platform to fundraise for her phony treatment.
Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a rare cancer that affects the lymphatic system, which is part of the body’s immune system.
SCAMANDA
Riley flooded her blog, Support Amanda, with photos of herself in hospital beds, hooked up to IVs, and pictures of all the medications she had been prescribed.
She kept her online community informed of her latest health updates, including when she was in remission and when her cancer had supposedly returned.
Riley went to extreme lengths to safeguard her claims, including shaving her head, falsifying medical records, and forging physicians’ letters, among other acts.
She organized several in-person events at her local Christian church in San Jose to raise money for her bogus cancer treatments.
Her seemingly courageous battles with cancer inspired her church community to the point where her supporters praised her as “God’s gift.”
This is a really deep, subtle manipulation.
Charlie Webster.
Journalist Charlie Webster, who, along with producer Nancy Moscatiello, unraveled the web of lies in the podcast Scamanda, recalled to The U.S. Sun Riley’s cunning facades.
“This is a really deep, subtle manipulation,” Webster said.
“I think it’s very hard to see because if you question somebody that’s got cancer, that’s in front of you, showing you that she’s got cancer. She didn’t just sit behind a keyboard.
“She did the thing that showed what cancer looked like. She went to hospitals, she had IVs in her arms.”
Webster described getting a behind-the-scenes glimpse into Riley’s community, including the dozens of supporters who donated thousands at her fundraisers and to her online website.
“People were being very hurt, and they were scared of Amanda, really scared,” she said.
“I spent some time, and I found out who was a part of Amanda’s community and friendship, and I had to be really careful because, at this time, some people still believed Amanda.
“People believed Amanda right up until the sentencing day, and sometimes I was speaking to people, and they really didn’t know what I knew. They really didn’t know she was faking cancer.”
One victim, Rebecca Cathero, donated over $30,000 to Riley’s cause, but according to Webster, it was the tip of the iceberg of how much was contributed.
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‘NONEXISTENT MEDICAL CONDITION’
“[Cathero] gave her flights, her points on flights – she signed Amanda up for these nutrition websites every month so she can get a free range of Rebecca’s account,” she told The U.S. Sun.
“[Amanda] could spend as much as she wanted every money. The justice system got Amanda for wire fraud, but only for the money that was donated through her website.
“So, imagine what it must be if you include everything else, and cash. None of that, cash, checks, all of these things that weren’t directly through the website weren’t counted.”
Riley’s seven-year scheme came crashing down in 2020 when the IRS’ criminal division began investigating her story after it garnered attention on social media.
“Riley carefully cultivated a social media presence, using Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and a blog,” the Justice Department said in May 2022.
“She used her presence on these sites to ‘document’ her nonexistent medical condition, and to aggressively solicit donations, supposedly to cover her medical expenses.
“In truth, Riley had no medical expenses. The donations she received were deposited into her personal bank accounts and used to pay her living expenses.”
The Department of Justice said at least 349 people and entities contributed to Riley’s fabricated medical expenses between 2012 and 2019, totaling $105,513.
“And [Amanda] did say to me, ‘Look at where I’m at now. If I would’ve just stopped, but now I have lost everything. Look at me now.’
Charlie Webster.
On May 3, 2022, Riley was sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to wire fraud.
Charlie Webster, who covered Riley’s trial in 2021, has kept in touch with Riley since being incarcerated.
Webster told The U.S. Sun that Riley is remorseful about what she did and admits it was “something that got carried away.”
“[Amanda] has opened up to me over this period of time, and she’s said to me that she is sorry,” Webster said.
“She was extremely upset about what she’s done, that she regrets it, and that she’s sorry and she’s accountable.
“[Amanda] said that she wants to serve her time, and she takes the sentence and responsibility, and the punishment, and she wants to try and mend things with her children, be a mom, and try to figure out how to work through this.
“She has told me that this is something that got carried away and she tried to stop, but she was worried about everybody finding out, and people hating her, and her losing everything.
“And she did say to me, ‘But look at where I’m at now. If I would’ve just stopped, but now I have lost everything. Look at me now.’”
From everything and from everybody’s testimony and from speaking to Amanda, I believe, and from what Amanda’s told me and everybody else, it wasn’t about the money.
Charlie Webster.
Webster believes the root cause of Riley’s scheme began during her childhood, and for her, it was never about money.
“One of my big questions was why and how did this happened. I looked into her childhood, I spoke to many friends of hers from childhood to try to understand what she was like and is this something that came from a younger age,” Webster said.
“From everybody I spoke to, they all said there was a need for attention when [Amanda] was younger.
“There was these small white lies. One of her childhood friends also said [Amanda’s] bedroom was filled with tiaras, and these trophies from dance or from cheer [cheerleading] or things like that.
“And she kind of sought out attention rather than peer attention, which I think is interesting because, okay, this is something that developed from a young age.
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‘THE ANOINTED ONE’
“From everything and from everybody’s testimony and from speaking to Amanda, I believe, and from what Amanda’s told me and everybody else, it wasn’t about the money.
“From everything that I’ve been told and from Amanda it was very much about attention.
“If you think about it, she stood on stage in front of thousands of people from a family Christian community church, and she gave testimony, and people clapped, and people adored her.
“She was like this mini-celebrity. She was even called ‘the anointed one’ at church.
“Imagine the feeling of, ‘Wow, this woman is special,’ she was somebody, and she was actually inspiring people.
“If you listen to her speak, she’s a very good speaker. I could just see that there’s this feeling of ‘I am worth something.’
“For me, it was all about that need, and then it became almost like an addiction, almost like ‘I need more, and people love me,’ and she felt good about herself.”
Riley’s story, as well as those of her victims, will be portrayed on the ABC docuseries Scamanda.
The Scamanda docuseries is expected to premiere on ABC in 2025.
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