Jonathan Walton describes himself as a ‘con-hunter’ but that’s not what he set out to be. The tv producer turned vigilante after he was scammed by con artist Marianne Smyth, the so-called ‘Queen of Con’. Over several years he had handed his supposed best friend Smyth, who claimed to be an Irish heiress, over $100,000. She was a lifelong con-artist, using a range of strategies, lies and aliases – posing as Jennifer Anniston, becoming a satanic priestess, claiming to be on the IRA’s army council, pretending to have cancer. Smyth was sentenced in September to 4 years in jail at Downpatrick crown court as it was revealed that she had scammed over £100,000 from people in Northern Ireland.
Jonathan Walton has written a book on his experience with the fraudster. It’s called ‘ Anatomy of a Con Artist: The 14 Red Flags to Spot Scammers, Grifters, and Thieves and is host of the hit podcast Queen of the Con, he joined Ciarán Dunbar on the BelTel.
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