"You believe these people:" But the so-called grant writers were actually con-men



MILWAUKEE -- A woman and her husband were duped out of half of their retirement savings. It sounded like a legitimate business deal -- but it was a carefully crafted scheme.

"I can`t even tell people I did this because I`m embarrassed," Lisa Cooley said.

Lisa Cooley



Cooley still can't believe she was duped by a couple claiming they could help her secure a grant for her business.

"I was new to real estate, and we needed some money lenders and they were going to write us a grant to help us out and we thought 'let`s go for it,'" Cooley said.

Cooley met the so-called grant writers at conferences and conventions she was attending.

For $30,000, they would help Cooley secure a $1 million grant to invest in her real estate business.

In reality, they were con-men.

"You believe these people. They were real -- and you see they have documents with us -- letters, people I called. I found out later that the people I called as referrals were her daughter," Cooley said.

Investment scheme



Cooley and her husband lost half their retirement savings.

"I went against my husband and caused us a lot of problems because I really felt it was the real deal. He didn`t want me to do this, but I did it, behind his back. I feel horrible. I really thought this was going to turn out," Cooley said.

"Many of the victims took out loans and took out withdrawals from their savings account and that was all lost," Frank Schissler, United States postal inspector said.

Cooley says she still finds herself asking why?

"How many people have they done this too? How many people? Devastating," Cooley said.

Investment scheme



When you're making an investment, you've got to do the research first.

If someone tells you they're an expert, you should be able to find their licenses online by going to the state's website, or by simply doing a Google search.