Hello. I'm David and I'm sharing my true story how I
was duped by Linda Lobo whom I met on the internet dating service Match.com. Our marriage was over in 24 days but we
continued live together for 71 days. Linda was previously married three
other times to Ronald, Dale and Dennis. Linda also dated two other men
before me, Lance and Randy. Linda was engaged to Randy before she
married Dennis. From what little information I've been able to gather,
it appears Linda duped them as well. I was also duped by a woman
claiming to be an attorney. She served almost a year in state prison after a business
acquaintance and I conducted an investigation and my filing of a 17 page
report to the local police. She is now on parole. And considering what I've discovered about
Linda and the alleged criminal activities she has committed, she could be
next. Hence the domain name DoubleDuped.com. (Linda Lobo: Spanish translation is
Pretty Wolf)
I am in no way proud to publish this information. This ordeal revealed
I'm human, how naïve I was and the stupidity that occurs when you are
blindsided, painfully heart broken and verbally abused. As much as I
thought I was doing the right thing and trying to be the husband I knew
to be and being the trusting individual I normally was, I was duped in
the process with a financial loss of over $90,000.00. I don't know if
Linda preplanned her actions or just realized an opportunity to take
advantage of me. Or maybe Linda's daughter is correct in saying her Mom
is a "known crazy ass mom" and she didn't have a clue as to what
she was doing to me. You can develop your own opinion. If Linda ever takes
time to read this Website and wishes to respond, I will gladly publish
her response letter or she can add her comments in the
Double Duped
Forum.
I was happily married to
the best wife a man could have or dream of. Terri and I met in
the chapel at Fort Sam Houston, TX were I worked at the time, in
October 1980. By mid December I asked her to marry me and on
July 1, 1981 we married in Chapel Number 1, at Fort Sam. We were
married for over 24 years and had two children. Five months
after I was medically retired from the U.S. Postal Service, in
January 2003, Terri was diagnosed with a rare form of breast
cancer which took her life 35 months later in April 2006.
Ten months later that feeling of real loneliness began to set
in. I figured that it would be at least a few years after Terri
passed away before I would consider dating again. I talked to my
pastor about it and he said there was no time table as to when I
should consider dating again.
I began to wonder, “how at the age of 47, will I start dating
again?” I was now in new territory. How do I meet women now?
There weren’t any eligible women in my church. I don’t go to
bars and rarely got invited to parties where I could meet
someone. That’s when I began to consider some of the online
dating services that a few friends had recommended.
I first signed up with E-harmony.com. I had the opportunity to
email several women. In fact I had to turn off the date matching
program several times because E-harmony.com was setting me up
with more women than I could handle. For some guys that would be
good problem to have. After about five months I just wasn’t
happy with E-harmony’s approach. They didn’t cover the areas of
compatible daily interests such as my love for the outdoors,
hunting and fishing, etc. So I began to try some of the other
online dating services.
On June 3, 2007 I signed up with the free service at Match.com.
I completed setting up all my profile information which took me
awhile. I was very thorough and I wanted potential contacts be
sure they knew who I was and what I was looking for in a mate.
(Click here to see my profile.)
It couldn’t have been more than 5 minutes, 10 at the most when I
received an e-mail from a contact (Majistilady). I thought wow!
That was fast. I looked at her profile and read it maybe three
or four times. Since I was using the free service at the time, I
couldn’t respond right away and wasn’t sure if I should.
(Click here to see her profile.)
On June 5, 2006 I decided
to pay for the full service at Match.com so I could respond to
Majistilady. Her profile was interesting and we did have several
things in common. We corresponded by E-mail and shared our phone
numbers. I learned her name was Linda and her maiden name was
Lobo. She explained to me that her name meant "pretty wolf"
in Spanish.
Linda called me after lunch on June 6, 2007. Our conversation
was great. We talked for about 30 minutes or so, and she was
very pleasant to talk to. Her voice was very sweet and
captivating. She told me that she had to take her kids to meet
their Dad near Los Angeles, and asked if we could possibly meet
somewhere near there. I was surprised how fast she was willing
to meet me considering we just started communicating. I figured
as long we were in a public place there should not be any
problems. We couldn’t talk any longer at the time because we
both were busy with other things and agreed to talk again that
night.
Linda and I did talk again that night for over 2 hours. We made
plans for our first date Friday afternoon on June 8, 2007. I
e-mailed her directions to where we would meet at the Claim
Jumper Restaurant in Rancho Cucamonga, CA. Linda and I continued
our long phone conversations almost everyday.
Friday came and I arrived early at the Claim Jumper with a rose
I picked up locally. The restaurant manger greeted me and I
asked for a favor. I told him I was meeting a beautiful lady at
1:00 P.M. for the first time and asked if he could place us at
private location so we could enjoy a nice conversation. I
attempted to hand him a five dollar bill but he refused. Well
1:15 P.M. came and Linda had not shown up yet. I called a left a
message on her cell. She called me back later to say she was
running late. She didn’t finally arrive until about 3:00 P.M.
That was the first of times that I learned Linda had a problem
with being on time.
I’d say overall the date was very good. We spent nearly 4 hours
together. After we ate, we found a local park and walked around
and then sat for a while. She had her small dog, Misty, with her
too. At one point, as I watched Linda walk away to drop off some
trash in the trash can, I was fixated on her gorgeous figure and
her sexy butt in those tight jeans. I thought to myself, “Man is
she hot!” I was falling in love with her body alone. But I knew
better than too let my eyes dictate what’s supposed to be from
the heart. Nonetheless, the sight to the eyes was very pleasing.
We had another date on June 15, 2005 at the Buck Owens Crystal
Palace in Bakersfield, CA. We departed that night with the idea
of taking some time to think about whether this relationship
should continue.
Linda and I did not talk again or e-mail each other until July
1, 2007. On this day I called Linda to wish her a Happy
Birthday. July 1st is one those special days in my life. My
mother’s birthday is on this day, one of my aunts and uncles
were married on this day, my Dad and Step-mom were married on
this day and Terri and I were married on this day. After we
talked I wrote Linda an e-mail and she wrote back telling me she
did feel an attraction for, and a connection with me.
From there our relationship began to take off. We had four more
dates in July and in August we saw each other almost every week
for 2 days in a row. On August 17, 2007, I ask Linda to marry
me. “Wow,” you may say, “that was fast.” That is true. I
actually took longer to ask Linda than I did with Terri. I
figured if I was right the first time, how could I be wrong this
time? I just knew Linda was the right one for me just like I
knew Terri was the right one for me. And, like I said, our
marriage lasted over 24 years.
The following day Linda said she would marry me and she
graciously agreed without me presenting a ring to her. That was
my next step. I wanted a special ring for Linda, one that is one
of a kind, custom made. And I knew the person to do just that.
On August 24, 2007 at the weekly Team Pining event I asked Linda
to marry me and presented to her the custom made ring in front a
small crowd of people. I even had help with someone video taping
it. She was surprised.
The following weekend we set our Wedding Date. We had both
already had big weddings so we just wanted a small gathering of
immediate family and a few friends. We decided that there was no
reason to prolong what we wanted. So Linda and I set our date to
marry on September 9, 2007. Linda did bring up an unexpected
issue though. Linda informed me about her recent marriage to
Dennis and told me that it had been annulled in June of 2007.
She had told me previously of her second marriage to Dale with
whom she has two children. I was surprised by the news of her
third marriage to Dennis but was willing to go forward with our
marriage, as we all have made mistakes in our lives and are
deserving of a another chance to move on.
Linda and I married at my church. During our honeymoon, Linda
asked that I not openly share our private affairs with my
friends and family. I thought this was kind of odd. She didn’t
think it was any of their business to discuss our plans and
other things we were doing. I reluctantly agreed to this not
realizing how much this would get me into trouble. What made
this difficult for me is that I have for years been a very open
individual, not afraid to share even the most embarrassing
stuff. As a Christian, small group leader, pre-marriage
counselor and budget counselor, I have been transparent to
people for years. It is just who I was and who God wants me to
be. However, I wanted to be respectful to Linda’s request and
would try. I made a promise that I would ultimately break. Not
by will, but by the nature of who I was and who God meant for me
to be.
Over the period of time that I was living with Linda, I began to
see inconsistencies in her life. This caused me to question her
claim to be the Christian woman she portrayed herself to be as
written in her Match.com profile as well as what she told me and
in her daily style of living. I began to uncover some
unchristian-like behaviors. She would call me on my promise when
she discovered I had talked to someone about our affairs. Like I
said, I was asked to do something that was not my nature. She
was expecting me to change into another man to suit her liking.
The interesting thing is that Linda kept accusing me of trying
to change her when all the while she was causing me to change
into another person - a person I did not like and I was becoming
deeply depressed and disoriented.
Linda claimed to be well liked as well as having many friends.
She also claimed to tell only the truth and that she was an
honest person. She told me that most people believed that about
her. I was told by few of her friends that I didn’t have to
doubt her words, if she says what she says then believe it.
Linda also expected that of me and if I did something like
verifying what she told me by researching it on the internet,
she would rip me up. Maybe I was wrong in this area or maybe
not. As for me, it didn't bother me one bit if someone wanted to
verify any information I provided. I don't see it any
differently than the times Terri and I would seek a second
surgical opinion for my severely disabled daughter. Terri and I
never had a doctor not respect us for wanting to be sure.
On September 17, 2007, Linda and I opened a joint checking and
savings account. I wrote a check for $7,000.00 from my National
City Equity Line of Credit. $6,000.00 of it was to open the
checking account and the remaining $1,000.00 was to open the
savings account. At that time, Linda informed me that her
current checking account was overdrawn, so I immediately
withdrew $300.00 cash with my ATM card to cover the overdraft
and Linda was then able to cancel the account.
Over the next couple of days, Linda and I performed the general
housekeeping duties of a new marriage, by notifying Medi-Cal of
her martial status, changing her name on her California Driver’s
License, etc. During this period of time, we discussed paying
off her outstanding debts, and I agreed to do so. On September
19, 2007 I paid off her debt to Capitol One Credit Card, in the
amount $6,601.54, with funds from my National City Equity Line
of Credit. On September 21, 2007 I paid off her debt to The
Student Loan Corp., in the amount of $1,713.81. On or about
September 24, 2007 I completed the sign-up for the joint account
online services at the bank, with her full knowledge, using
Linda’s name and social security number since she was the
primary account holder.
On the morning of October 3, 2007 (Day 24) Linda began an
argument with me that quickly turned into her yelling at me.
This was another in a series over the past three weeks. This was
not the woman I thought I married. The constant belittling and
verbal abuse was undeserving. I stood up from the dining table
and cried out "I don't understand how God would have led me to
marry you." It was then that I decided it was time for me to
leave this marriage as she had not been truthful about her faith
or her financial dealings with me. I began to pack up my
belongings and placed them into my truck. I was stunned and
shocked when Linda began hurriedly helping in removing my
belongings from the house. When all of my belongings were nearly
packed, Linda suddenly stopped, turned towards me and made the
suggestion of marriage counseling. I agreed, if she could find
someone to meet with us within an hour. Linda contacted Pastor
Ron at a Baptist Church who came over to speak with us. Linda
and I agreed to seek marriage counseling. Later that day, Linda
went to the bank and withdrew $5,000.00 from our joint checking
account. On the following day Linda deposited $3,640.00 back
into our joint checking account, not informing me of where the
remaining $1,360.00 had gone. I didn't learn of this until a few
days later when I checked the online banking website.
On or about October 5, 2007, I deposited $24,000.00 into the
joint savings account. This was monies from the sale of Mutual
Funds, and some dividends and capital gains from my Scottrade
Account. Linda was speaking of a need for us to have more
accessible monies and a home of our own in which to live.
Over the next several days, Linda brought up the need for her to
have a new truck, so that she would be able to pull her horse
trailer and horses. Linda was driving an uninsured 1994 Ford
Explorer which she wanted to replace. Linda and I test drove
several trucks in various areas.
Linda and I had our third, and unfortunately last, counseling
session on October 15, 2007, during which I learned that Linda
had an abortion in May 2007. I was shocked to say the least.
Here I thought I had married a woman who claimed to have a
strong Christian faith. Not only did she have an abortion, she
neglected to tell me about it before we married. I was unsure of
what to say or do. But after speaking with the counselor, I felt
compelled to try and make my marriage work. As a good husband
should be, I was compassionate and consoling to Linda yet
knowing in my heart how strongly I was against abortion. Linda
told me later this knowledge was none of my business because it
happened before we met. I began to wonder what other secrets she
was keeping from me. My trust in her began to slowly erode. I
pleaded with her to continue marriage counseling over the next
few weeks but she refused. Regardless, I still felt compelled to
make this marriage work.
On October 20, 2007, Linda and I drove to a Dodge dealership
where I purchased a 2008 Dodge Ram 2500 Pick-up Truck, for the
amount of $43,680.67. I paid for the truck with a check written
from my National City Equity Line of Credit Account. The
following day, I signed a purchase agreement to buy a home and
paid a $1,000.00 deposit.
On November 1, 2007 I transferred $24,000.00 from our savings
account to our checking account. A few days later I paid the
same amount to my National City Equity Line of Credit. I also
deposited on this date $64,800.00 to our checking account. These
funds came from the sale of Mutual Funds from my Scottrade
Account and were for a down payment for a new house and
furnishings.
Near the beginning of November, I uncovered another upsetting
discovery. Earlier Linda said that her marriage to Dennis was
annulled in June 2007. While looking for a bill, I discovered
the annulment papers. I learned that Linda filed for the
annulment on June 12, 2007, just 4 days after our first date.
And to top that off, the annulment was not finalized until
August 22, 2007. That was 5 days after I asked Linda to marry
me. Can you imagine the outrage I was feeling inside? Here is a
woman in whom I had put my full faith and trust, only to find
out I was dating and asked a married woman to marry me. I just
felt so sick inside. It was all I could do to hold my composure.
It's a good thing for Linda and I thank God that I'm a mild
mannered man. I could imagine that some men could have become
physically outraged. I didn't immediately say anything to Linda
about what I had learned.
A few days later Linda had another one of her arguments with me.
The following morning I was feeling so bad that I was
considering suicide. I have never condoned divorce and have
always believed that if two people stay committed to each other,
they could work it out with proper help. That morning I felt
like suicide was better than divorce. I went to get help from
Pastor Dale at my new church but he was not available at the
time and I was asked to come back in an hour. From there I drove
to a remote area about 10 miles outside of town and sat in my
truck for the next 30 minutes contemplating ending my life. My
45 was loaded and cocked in my lap. I just couldn’t do it. I
thought too much about my son and daughter and how they had
already lost their mother to cancer. And I didn’t want Linda to
claim something she didn’t deserve either.
I went back to the church and was able to talk to Pastor Dale
for about an hour. I felt better for talking to him, and he
helped me tremendously. When I arrived back at the house, Linda
was in the kitchen. I mentioned I had just come back from
talking with Pastor Dale. Linda’s first question was “Did you
talk to Pastor Dale about our marriage!” I said “Yes that was
part of it”. Well all hell broke loose. She just began to rip my
heart out even more. Linda reminded me that I had promised not
to talk with anyone without letting her know first. It was
awful. Not once did she care why I went to Pastor Dale. I don’t
think once she cared about my feelings at all. Any time I shared
my feelings with “I” messages, it was a waste of my time and
words. It went in one ear and right out the other. She'd go
right back to talking about herself and her feelings and how I
was not respecting her feelings or validating her. I really came
to grips with the fact that Linda never loved me at all. So why
did she marry me? It would be later that the answer was
confirmed by Dennis.
On November 7, 2007 I made a very smart decision. I decided to
transfer $46,000.00 from our checking account to my E-Loan money
market account until it was needed for a down payment for a new
house. Little did I know what was going to happen the following
day.
November 8, 2007. It was one day short of our second month of
marriage. Linda asked if she could speak privately with me, away
from the house; away from the kids and to turn off our cell
phones so that we would not be interrupted. We drove to a semi
secluded area in which to talk. At this time she told me she
wanted a divorce. I was not totally surprised at this, since she
wanted to talk privately; it was not what I wanted to hear
either. At the end of the conversation we made the decision to
allow us a three day grace period in order to think about the
repercussions of such a major decision. A decision was reached
on Monday morning, November 12, 2007. We discussed it; apologies
were made and for the next four days things were going extremely
well. But the evening of November 16, 2007 that all changed.
Linda exploded at me again in the kitchen because of a
conversation I had with Don, who was a tenant on the property.
Because of a comment I made, she misunderstood me and perceived
I went to Don for advice on the horses, insisting that she knew
more than Don did in that area of expertise. That was another
big issue with Linda. She made herself out to be the resident
expert on horses and pets. If I dared to talk to someone else
about these things, I stepped way out of her boundaries and was
degraded for it.
On November 15, 2007, Linda attempted to secretly open a second
checking account. Unfortunately for her, I discovered the new
bank account folder on the dashboard of my Dodge Ram truck. I
brought the folder in and laid it on her bed pillow. Later I saw
her pick it up, take quick look and then place it on her
dresser. She didn’t say word and neither did I. Saturday
morning, November 17, 2007, I was performing general banking
updates with the online banking service. Linda walked in and I
informed her that I was aware that she opened the new account
and had full access to it because it was connected to our joint
account. There was no response from her. Linda later came back
and continued the argument from last night. For the first time I
had the opportunity to record the argument with my computer. The
one thing she said that morning that impacted our future was
this, “Our marriage is never going to work.”
Click here to listen to the audio.
On the
morning of November 19, 2007, I told Linda I was moving out. I
went to the bank and wire transferred $10,000.00 to my other
bank account where I used to live. I had not yet closed out that
account and I'm glad I didn't. Linda refused to allow me to
leave until I had signed a few things. She wanted me to agree to
several things that I was unsure about conceding to. She was
constantly on the phone with her friends who work as paralegals
at the county courthouse. They were telling her what documents
to pull up on the computer and to have me sign. I finally broke
down and agreed to sign FL-800 and an agreement paper that she
had written out. I was then able to leave and return to the home
I lived in before we married.
Hind sight now tells me I should not have signed anything until
I received legal counsel. It was another hard lesson learned.
The day after I returned to my home, I contacted my neighbor who
has a law degree and is a paralegal. I told him about the
situation and showed him a copy of the FL-800 I had. He
immediately informed me this was the wrong form because of my
assets. He helped me with filing FL-830 that revoked the FL-800
Linda and I signed. My next step was to file for an annulment
instead a divorce, and to do this in my home county. Since Linda
and I married in my home county, that gave jurisdiction as to
where I could file. I liked the idea of taking the ball out of
Linda’s court and putting it in mine. No pun intended.
After reflection of the past 2 months I realized Linda had
planed to steal all the money I had contributed. So on November
26, 2007 I made the decision to transfer funds from Linda’s
checking account to the joint checking account at the bank. The
night before I called and talked to Linda with hopes at one last
chance to work things out. I just didn't want to give up. I
hoped that she had a change of heart and would discuss
reconciliation. She made it clear there was not a chance. That
conversation sealed my decision. Since I still had full access
to these accounts through the online banking that Linda and I
set up, I was able to transfer the funds to our joint account.
The amount that I withdrew the following morning was $4,900.00,
leaving $100.00 in her checking account. I had my friend Joe
call her to let her know what I had done.
On November 27, 2007 I was introduced to an attorney by the name
of S. Rebecca C. She usually goes by Rebecca C. or in
professional matters by her first name. I was introduced to
Rebecca by Joe, owner of a legal documents business in my home
town where she had a desk. As we met we realized we knew each
other because she used to go to the church I have been a member
of for over 19 years. I did not know she was an attorney during
her brief attendance at my church. She told me that she was an
attorney from the state of North Carolina for two years, and
before that she was an attorney in the state of Georgia for
about 15 years. Rebecca also told me that her California bar
number was pending, and that she was going to be sworn in soon.
On November 28, 2007, Linda disabled the online banking service
to all the accounts without my knowledge. It didn't take me long
to figure that out. Linda did not disable the Telebanking
service, however, which still allowed me to be able to gain
access to all of the funds in either of the accounts. Also on
this date Linda filed the FL-800, Petition for Summary of
Dissolution of Marriage that we both signed.
On November 30, 2007; I drove from my home to the bank where
Linda and I have our joint account in order to withdraw my 100%
VA Disability money in the amount of $3,095.00. I entered the
bank as it was opening at 9:00 AM and I was told by two bank
employees, Michelle and Sandy, that the money had been
transferred into Linda’s separate account by telephonic transfer
earlier in the morning. Unbeknownst to me, Linda was standing in
line less than 5 feet away from me; she spoke loudly after the
bank employees had spoken and she said “That’s right!! I
transferred it into my account you fraud!! I called the police
and reported you for fraud!!!” She then demanded that the
tellers call the police. At that time I turned and bravely
walked out of the bank as I wanted no further confrontation. The
humiliation and embarrassment upset me so much that after
driving down the highway about 10 miles, I had to pull over and
sit for about an hour and a half. I had to take an extra pill
for my heart arrhythmia which is the reason I’m a 100% disabled
veteran. I have a defibrillator implanted in my chest to protect
me from these life threatening arrhythmias that can result in
sudden death. I have already had 4 shocks from it this year and
I was afraid I was about to get another.
On the night of November 30, 2007, Dennis called me. During the
conversation, Dennis’ exact words were, “In my opinion, you
showed up with a bunch of money sir and you - that’s how you got
her, point blank, that’s how you got her. A man with a little
cash.” Well his comments confirmed my thoughts. On two occasions
before I left Linda, she told me she didn’t marry me for my
money. Both times these comments raised red flags. Both times
she told me this, it was out the blue and I had said nothing to
prompt her into making such comments. That’s when I began to
realize I had been duped. I just didn’t know what to do about it
or how to respond at the time. My decision was confirmed that
night after my conversation with Dennis to do what ever it took
to take back the 2008 Dodge Ram truck.
On Sunday night, December 2, 2007, I was able to access Linda’s
separate account via Telebanking and transferred the $3,095.00,
my VA Disability money, back into the joint account. The
following morning I drove to the bank and withdrew $3,095.00
from the joint account in cash, leaving the account balance at
forty two cents. I didn't know until a few days later that
Linda, later that day, transferred $87.35 from her separate
checking account into the joint checking account. (Hind site now
tells me I could have withdrawn it all and closed the account. I
didn’t know I could have done it at that time.)
On the morning of December 4, 2007, my friend Joe placed a call
to Linda to inform her that I had transferred the $3,095.00 from
her account into our joint account and that I had withdrawn that
amount from the joint account so that she should not write any
checks out on the money since it was no longer in her account.
Obviously Linda already knew this when she transferred the
$87.35 from her separate account. Later on Linda was able to
cause an overdraft in the joint account by convincing Michelle
to transfer nonexistent funds of $3,095.00 back into her account
leaving a negative balance of $3,007.23. I was informed these
actions could be prosecutable as bank fraud by Linda and
Michelle.
Also on December 4, 2007 I discovered that Linda created a new
Match.com profile, as well as continuing to have her previous
profile. By following the profile's timeline I was able to
determine that Linda created this new profile (Majisticladyii)
on November 22, 2007, 3 days after our separation.
(Click here to see her new profile.)
She was still advertising herself as a divorced Christian woman.
One other item of note, Linda has changed her religion. She went
from being Christian/Protestant to Christian/Catholic and she
now is looking for a Christian/Catholic man younger than
herself. I guess she thinks that too many protestant leaders in
her town may know her. She was concerned about that because I
had talked to too many in town about our marriage. I suppose
Linda thinks that the Protestant leaders don’t talk to the
Catholic leaders.
On December 6, 2007 I received a letter dated December 4, 2007
from Michelle, Operations Manager, at the bank where Linda and I
had our joint account informing me that:
“There was a Tellebanker transfer to account # **********
that was done on December 3, 2007 that was reversed. There also
was a withdrawal for $3,095.00 made by you on the same day,
which caused an overdraft of $3,055.23. The reason for this
letter is so that you understand that you are legally
responsible, jointly with Linda to cover this overdraft. We,
[The Bank] are placing a Demand on you to return the funds or we
will take legal action to collect the overdraft amount.”
This letter was totally bogus. I obtained copies of the bank
record detailing the money trail in which I was told this action
performed by Michelle was fraudulent.
Click here to see for yourself.
On December 7, 2007 I drove to the court house and filed FL-830,
Notice of Revocation of Petition for Summary of Dissolution.
That just terminated the divorce proceedings. Unfortunately for
Linda that also wasted her $320.00 filing fee. Afterwards I
drove to Linda’s to make sure the horses were still there and to
take pictures of them. Later I parked up on the hill behind
Linda’s and did a little surveillance for a while. During my
time there, I observed 3 clients bring or pick up their pets for
grooming. Oh, I guess I haven’t mentioned what type of trade
work Linda does. Linda is a pet groomer. She is self employed
and is employed part time in another city near where she lives.
I must say she is very good at it too and usually gets some good
tips. I highly recommend her grooming services but I can't
reveal where she lives.
On December 13, 2007 my attorney at the time, Rebecca, was able
to convince the judge to return the 2008 Dodge Ram truck to me
on temporary orders. The following morning Rebecca and I drove
to Linda's town to serve Linda with the annulment papers and the
order to return the truck to me. We first stopped by the
Sheriff’s Department to have an escort because Rebecca and I
were unsure how Linda would react. As we drove up the road
toward Linda’s place she passed us going in the other direction.
I quickly pulled over and motioned to the sheriff that it was
her. He whipped that patrol car around so fast it was almost
funny. He turned on the lights and took off after her like a
bolt of lightning. She didn’t go far and Rebecca and I pulled in
behind. Linda was served and was told to drive back to her house
so that I could take the keys.
When we arrived to Linda’s house, she parked at the beginning of
the driveway. Linda got out and then I saw her son get out. I
didn't expect this as he should have been school and I wished he
was. Now I was in for a big surprise. On the front passenger
side, out comes Dennis. Remember Dennis? He’s the guy she filed
an annulment against based on fraud. Also Dennis was the father
of the baby Linda killed by abortion. He was the guy she was
still married to while I was dating her and ask her to marry me.
I was just flabbergasted. After Linda removed all personal
belongs, Linda and Dennis walked up the driveway. Linda briefly
turned to see if I was looking and then began to kiss Dennis
several times. I tell you, I just felt like I had just walked
into the bedroom and caught them making out in bed. I was
absolutely sickened to the core of my soul.
I should mention, at this point, that after Linda and I married,
Dennis would call and harass her - or least that's what I
perceived. Dennis appeared to be a pathetic crybaby. Many times
Linda came to me crying and complaining that Dennis would not
leave her alone. Even when Linda refused to answer the phone, he
would leave messages. I even told him once to stop calling,
which didn’t make any difference. When I called Linda from my
September elk hunting trip in Missouri she was crying and wanted
me to come home early. I think now that this was all a big show
to make me believe things between Linda and Dennis was over. Boy
have I been duped big time.
After Rebecca and I left in separate trucks, I suddenly realized
the horses were gone. With all the commotion that was going on
and knowing the horses would recognize me, they would have come
over to check out what was going on. I hadn’t noticed that when
I was there. Three of the six horses I invested $1,000.00 in. By
law, Linda was supposed to give me 5 days notice before
disposing of any property.
On Sunday, December 16, 2007, I got a tip from a trusted close
friend, Ron. He said that my attorney, Rebecca, may not be who
she said she was. He said he did a little checking on Rebecca
because her tales seemed too tall.
On Monday morning, December 17, 2007, I called the NC State Bar
and found that there was no evidence that she was a licensed
attorney in North Carolina. Also, Rebecca had told me that there
was another attorney of similar name who is also an attorney in
Washington D.C. S. Rebecca C. said that she knew the other
attorney personally and she used to head a government agency. I
contacted the other attorney and she did not know who S. Rebecca
C. was. The real attorney never heard of my attorney S. Rebecca
C., and she was concerned that my attorney was trying to steal
her identity. Shortly after, I informed Joe of my discoveries.
He was shocked to learn this. He also called Ron to learn more
of the details.
On December 18, 2007 I departed to North Carolina for a needed
vacation to my parent's homes. This was the first time in over
30 years that I had been home for Christmas. I really looked
forward to getting away from some of the mess in California.
During my time there I also continued my investigation of
Rebecca along with the help of Joe.
The plot thickened. Joe learned that Rebecca was living at a
homeless shelter for a while. She was residing at the Days Inn
when she became my attorney. She said that she relocated herself
from North Carolina to get married to her fiancé here. Rebecca
said that she met her fiancé online, and to make a long story
short, Rebecca said that her fiancé stole over one million
dollars from her; then her fiancé kicked her out of his home,
and Rebecca became homeless about a year ago. She said that she
is suing her now ex-fiancé in federal court. Rebecca also said
that she was a graduate of Harvard Law School. Joe checked there
and found no record of her attending Harvard Law School either.
I asked my sister-in-law in NC who works for an attorney and she
too could not find any record of Rebecca licensed in NC. The
difficult part of all this was that Rebecca knew quite a bit
about the law, which made me half-believe her. I thought if she
was not an attorney, she certainly was an outstanding
con-artist.
Rebecca also told Joe that my case judge checked on her with the
state bar, and that he said she could appear before his court
until she gets her bar number. Joe contacted the judge's clerk
and she told Joe that they just took Rebecca at her word and
they did not investigate her at all.
Joe was also told by Rebecca that she was going to Sacramento to
be sworn in by the governor to become a California attorney on
Monday, January 7, 2008. Rebecca said that she knew Maria
Shriver and her family personally. Rebecca later said that the
Governor swore her in at his home and that Maria Shriver and
Barbara Boxer were there as witnesses. Joe called the governor's
office and was told the governor has never sworn in an attorney
and probably never will.
After I returned from my vacation on January 12, 2008, I wrote
up and gathered 17 pages of evidence against Rebecca. On Monday,
January 14, 2008 I called the police department and a report was
officially filed at 11:00 A.M. Before 3:00 P.M. the police
officers returned to let me know they found out who Rebecca
really was. The police told me what her real name was and that
she was an ex con from N.C. and was never an attorney. Later
that week on January 15, 2008 she was arrested on multiple
charges. Bail was originally set at $20,000.00 but quickly
raised to $250,000.00 as more victims came forward. On July 3,
2008 Rebecca was sentenced for 1 felony count and 1 misdemeanor.
She will only serve 2 years and 30 days time in the state
penitentiary. Unfortunately the prior felony convictions in
North Carolina did not count in California. I wouldn’t be
surprised if she’ll be out in 12 months. She also has to pay
fines and pay full restitution to me in the amount of $7,915.00.
I don’t know when I’ll ever see that money.
Also on January 14, 2008, I received Linda’s response to the
papers she was served on December 14, 2007. As I read through it
I was in disbelief. Not only did she file annulment against me
for fraud, she claimed she couldn’t work because I had her truck
and she couldn’t drive the Ford Explorer because it was
registered as non operative, which was true. She also claimed
she had no income from last year and nothing the last month from
her self-employment. She didn’t even mention the part-time job
she had or her other job as bird surveyor. I told my new
attorney that this had perjury written all over it. Well I had
an idea.
On Tuesday, January 15, 2008 I called the place of employment
where Linda has been working part time as a pet groomer almost
every Wednesday and Saturday and talked to Tammy. Tammy told me
Linda was scheduled to work on Wednesday, January 16, 2008.
On Wednesday, January 16, 2008, an acquaintance of mine called
Linda's work place to ask if she could bring her pet in for
Linda to groom. She was told that Linda was out to lunch with
the business owner and that her schedule was full for the day.
Now that it had been established that Linda was employed, how
did she get there from her home? The answer to that question
follows.
On January 16, 2008 at approximately 6:50 a.m., I parked a
rented truck with tinted widows in a public area in front of her
place of employment on the north side of street. I video taped
Linda leaving her Ford Explorer at 9:12 A.M. and walking in with
her grooming gear. I continued to video tape Linda various times
throughout the day when she was outside the building. At 4:59
P.M. I video taped Linda leaving the building with all her
grooming gear and she entered her Ford Explorer. At 5:03 P.M.,
she began backing out of her parking spot and commenced to drive
forward out of the driveway. She left the driveway and continued
east bound.
Click here to see my edited video.
We had our first court date on January 22, 2008. Due to the
circumstances of having to hire a new attorney at the last
minute, we didn’t accomplish much. I have to give him a lot of
credit though. He was able to convince the judge to allow me to
keep the truck for now. For a moment I thought I was going to
lose it. I did lose 2 of the horses though. That’s o.k., there
were bigger issues ahead. Our next court date was in February
2008.
On January 23 & 24 my attorney fired back. He submitted legal
papers requiring Linda to prove every statement in her response.
He even hit her with a Subpoena and requirements for a court
Local Rule.
I received an interesting call Wednesday evening, February 6,
2007 from Brian of Liberty Tax Service. Linda had come to him to
file income taxes for 2007. Linda was intending to file head of
household. Brian informed her she had a choice of filing married
separately or married jointly. Linda asked Brian to call me to
consider filing married jointly. Filing married jointly was the
ideal situation for me because of the significant amount of
capital gains on the sale of my mutual funds last year. At the
time I had no idea how the IRS would treat the matter that I’m
getting an annulment therefore making the marriage non-existent
for 2007. I had some research to do. The most enlightening bit
of information was that Linda was claiming income for last year.
In her initial filing response she stated to the court that she
had no income for 2007. Brian would not tell me how much. I
wondered just how far this woman was willing to go to avoid
presenting the truth. I wrote my attorney an E-mail and he
quickly responded saying “that would likely kill the nullity—it
ratifies the marriage! Do not file with her.”
On February 8, 2008 I received an E-mail from the Match.com
Abuse Department. Since December I E-mailed them 3 times and
mailed them a letter reporting Linda's fraudulent profiles. This
is their statement: "Thank you for taking the time to write to
us. We have been made aware of this issue and have taken the
appropriate action on the reported account. Please let us know
if you have any further concerns regarding this issue." I
immediately went online and searched for Linda's profiles and
they were no longer there. You can be sure I made frequent
follow-up checks for a while. I have also wondered if she
signed-up somewhere else before our marriage was dissolved. I
had hoped by now Linda has realized that I won’t just sit back
idly and let her get away with fraudulent activities.
Over the next 5 days I researched on the best way to file taxes
for 2007. I talked to Brian a few times. He shared that Linda
felt I was trying to get back at her because I did not want to
file a married joint return. I sent her a couple of E-mails
trying to calm her down.
On February 13, 2008 Linda sent me a very disturbing e-mail. I
shared it with my pastor and he was stunned to say the least. I
did not respond to Linda’s harsh words. As I read it, to me, it
just proved all the more that Linda was not a Christian and
didn’t understand scripture. These words were from a very angry
and bitter woman who is holding strong feelings of resentment.
It was obvious that she ignored a recent letter I sent to her as
well as my court documents she received. The other issue I noted
from Linda’s e-mail is that she is still upset that I choose
annulment over divorce. Either her attorney didn’t inform Linda
that the divorce form we signed was the incorrect form or she
just didn’t get it.
By midmorning February 14, 2008 I finally came to a conclusion
on how I would file taxes and what my recommendation to Linda
would be. I found in IRS Publications 17 and 504 the answer to
the annulment issue. I sent Linda an E-mail and informed her I
was not going to file my return until the annulment is
finalized. That would save me time from filing now and then
filing an amended return later after the annulment. I told her
after the annulment, I would file as “Qualifying Widower” which
is the best financial choice for me. I also explained to Linda
that financially she could receive a larger refund by having an
annulment. I even wished her a Happy Valentine’s Day.
On February 19, 2008 I sat in court while my attorney
represented me. I didn’t have to be there but I wanted to see
how he was going to confront the judge with the issues of Linda
not complying with local rule and the Subpoena thus far. The
judge said he hadn’t received any of the required documents as
well. My attorney and I were both frustrated at the apparent
willfulness from the other side not to comply with the court
order. He asked the judge for the local rule requirement and the
Subpoena to remain in full force and affect and the judge so
ordered. The judge decided to continue this matter in March and
possibly go to trial later that week. Linda's attorney wanted to
postpone the next court date until April but because of the
current noncompliance from him, my attorney and I wanted to move
forward. We didn’t know what kind of game they were playing but
we were not about to play along.
On February 21, 2008 I called Michelle, Operations Manager, at
the bank where Linda and I had our joint account. The purpose of
my call was to inquire of the current status of the checking
account on which Linda and Michelle caused a fraudulent
overdraft. Michelle told me the account had been closed and the
bank charged off the amount owed. Michelle also said that Linda
and I have been reported to the ChexSystems. As I understand the
ChexSystems, it could prevent Linda and me from opening a new
checking account for the next five years if the bank is not
reimbursed for their loss. I didn’t like this one bit. I
requested a statement from the bank and received it a few days
later. I called a friend at my bank and she checked for my name
in the ChexSystems and I was not listed. She said it may be too
early and I should check again in about a month. I intend to
fight this if necessary. I haven’t ruled out filing a bank fraud
report. In fact, I prepared all the documents to submit it if I
decided to. If Linda would not correct this problem she would
leave me no choice but to protect my good banking status.
The following day, February 22, 2007, I received copies of
letters written by my attorney to Linda's attorney. My attorney
finally received a preliminary statement late Tuesday evening in
respect to the local rule and the subpoena. Honestly, in my
opinion, it was a joke.
The other interesting items received were a copy of a temporary
registration for the Ford Explorer and an insurance card for it.
That was surprising. Linda had told me she would not be
insurable until May or June of 2008. That was the reason she
wanted me to continue auto insurance on the Dodge Ram. Obviously
she found an insurance company willing to insure her in spite of
her high DMV points. I could only speculate how much that was
costing her. I pondered for a moment where she was getting the
money to pay for this I was glad that it wasn’t coming from me.
On February 25, 2008 I received another document from my
attorney. He recently filed with the court a six page document
titled “Points and Authorities Supporting Petitioner’s
Application for Immediate Entry of Judgment of Nullity of
Marriage.” All I could think after I read it was “WOW!” I had to
look up some of the terms on the Internet so I could understand
what he had written. Without having any background in law, it
certainly appeared to make a strong statement in my favor. He
cited several cases and laws of interest that supported my
position. Up to this point, Linda's attorney hasn’t done much of
anything to strongly support her position.
Once again I was in court the morning of March 2008. Literally,
it was a waste of our time. Linda's attorney was not ready and
in my opinion seemed to be nonprofessional and unaware of what
was he required to do this morning. This morning was for setting
purposes only, to start trial this week. The requirements for
local rule and the subpoena had not been completed by Linda.
Linda's attorney said he had a new discovery that required my
response. The judge asked him what that discovery was. He said
he had new information about the agreement I signed with Linda
on November 19, 2007. I was very surprised. I didn’t have any
idea what would be new about that. Buddy and I thought it was a
smoke and screen tactic because he was not ready to go to trial.
Well the judge placed a noose around his neck; he required him
to provide a written reason for a continuance and it had better
be good. The next court date for the setting was two weeks
later.
On March 4, 2008 I got a call from my attorney's office. His
paralegal wanted to know a basic physical description of Linda.
I told her Linda was five foot ten, slender, about 135 pounds
with straight brown hair just below the shoulder. I then asked
her for the reason for this information. She explained that
Linda was going to be served the same local rule and subpoena
papers that were served to her attorney back on January 23,
2008.
Late Wednesday night on March 5, 2008 I discovered that my
attorney left a message on my phone. He wanted a copy of the
original Dodge truck title if I had it. Unfortunately I did not.
I did have a copy of the “Notice of Transfer and Release of
Liability” form I mailed to the DMV. At least that would prove
that I was the title holder at the time of transfer. Buddy also
told me that Linda called him yesterday after she was served
copies of the local rule and the subpoena. First of all, Linda
should not have been calling him for any reason. That is the
responsibility of her attorney. From what he said, Linda was
trying to contact her attorney but had been unsuccessful for a
number of days. That didn’t surprise me because my attorney
discussed the difficulty that he had with communicating with
Linda's attorney. He said his impression was that Linda's
attorney was trying to avoid conflict in court at all cost. I
talked to my 24 year old daughter today about that and her quick
response was, “Well what is he doing being an attorney then?”
That’s a pretty smart comment.
On March 8, 2008 I discovered that Linda’s original Match.com
profile was back online and became active on or about March 3,
2008. I replied to the E-mail I received from the Match.com
Abuse Department to complain.
In March 2008 there was another court date. Linda and her
attorney were there too. Once again, there was another delay. On
this day, Linda's attorney told the judge he wanted to change
their filing to Dissolution of Marriage. (a.k.a., divorce.) That
really threw my attorney and me for a loop. We didn’t expect
that and had no idea what they were up to. I came up with all
possible ideas but only God knows what is going on in their
minds. No new court date was set for now.
On March 21, 2007 I received a large envelope containing request
for more financial documentation from me by Linda's attorney.
Fortunately my attorney already had most of the files requested.
Within two weeks, I provided ALL the required documents. I'm
hopeful when the time is right, the judge will see the
difference between Linda and me on how we respond to the court's
requirements.
March 23, 2008: I checked again this afternoon for the current
status of Linda’s original Match.com profile. I discovered once
again it has been removed. When I last checked a few days ago,
it was still online. Hopefully it will be gone forever. I
continued to monitor it until Linda and I were no longer
married.
March 31, 2008: I discovered something interesting today. I was
able to obtain some of Linda's auto insurance documents. I
learned Linda has both the Ford Explorer and the Dodge Truck
insured. I wasn’t sure why she would insure the truck when she
didn't even have it. What a waste of money. I have had the truck
insured since I bought it. The other discovery was Linda stated
on her policy that she was SINGLE. I wondered if the truth were
to be made known to the insurance company she was married or
separated, would that affect her policy? I called them and
learned it could and would affect the policy if there was
another driver for a vehicle which there is and that's me.
During my conversation I did not tell them of whom I was talking
about.
On April 1, 2008, I saw my attorney and picked up more documents
that were produced by Linda. Again I was perplexed at the
continued willfulness of Linda to avoid presenting all the
required documents. Some of the submitted items were of no value
at all. Many others were incomplete and most of the requirements
were still unproduced. The most revealing thing was the
inclusion of Linda's IRS 1040 and income statements for 2007.
She did not include the 1040 for 2006. Remember earlier that
Linda stated to the court she didn't have any income last year?
She now proved that to be a lie. Three things really stood out
on Form 1040. 1) Linda didn't claim her daughter and son as
dependents when they lived with her for the year. 2) Linda did
not enter the amount of her spousal support from Dale in the
amount of $2,822.50 on line 11. and 3) Linda did not include any
of the income she received from dog grooming in her home or at
her client's home. It still amazes me that Linda's claim to be a
truthful and honest person is so far from the truth. She has so
many friends duped. I guess by this point I shouldn't be amazed
by her lies. There's too much of a pattern of lies and deceit.
April 4, 2008. I decided to make an offer to Linda to end this
drawn out court process. Ending it this way could have given her
a big break too. My attorney and I could not have been able to
present all the perjurious activities she has done. A letter was
sent to Linda's attorney and I sent the same to Linda by E-mail.
She was given till April 10, 2008 to respond. The primary offer
was that I would pay Linda the sum of $7,500 subject to an
offset of $3,060 to cover the overdraft in the joint account
which she knowingly created when she pulled monies out of the
account, knowing that I had withdrawn my V.A. disability check.
I intended to pay $3,060 directly to the bank in order to
eliminate any potential future action by the bank against either
Linda or me. The other important thing was that Linda was to
return the title of the truck to me. There were some other minor
things but I won't mention them here. By April 11, 2008, neither
my attorney nor I received any kind of response. I considered
increasing the offer to $10,000.00 but decided it would probably
not even faze her. I believed Linda was dead set on getting the
truck back more than getting any cash offers. Besides, she or I
could get about $38,000.00 if we sold it. Linda's decision not
to accept the offer may come back to haunt her in court.
On April 7, 2008 I received a letter from an investigator at the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). I had submitted an
e-mail to the Federal Reserve Consumer Help Center on March 27,
2008. They forwarded it to the FDIC. My e-mail was about the
bank fraud incident created by Linda. The letter from the FDIC
was to inform me that an investigation was under way and that
they were waiting for additional documents from the bank. I was
also asked to submit any additional documents to support the
case. Of course I did not hesitate and sent prepared documents
the following day. I was initially told to submit a report to
the FBI. The FBI informed me they do not investigate cases of
bank fraud under $100,000.00.
On Thursday night, April 10, 2008, I was very close to calling
Dennis. I searched and found his phone number three weeks
before. I had a few questions to ask him. But a gut feeling
overcame me. I suddenly had the idea enter my mind to do a
reverse look-up on Dennis' phone number. What I learned was very
surprising. Not only did Dennis' name come up, Linda's did as
well. Interestingly, Linda was using her last name from her
second husband, Dale, instead of her current married name. The
address was from a business in her town. At first I thought she
may have gone into some kind of business with Dennis because she
was using his phone number. I woke up early Friday morning and
had the idea to search the local Chamber of Commerce data base
for the business. I found it and learned the business was a
privately owned postal center that had private mail boxes.
Apparently she has a mail box there and I wondered how long
she’d had it. I pondered the idea that she may have had it for
some time and that this was her secret way to communicate with
Dennis or any other secret boyfriends she may have had. I called
the business and asked for Linda's private mail box number and
they wouldn't give it to me. The lady I talked to said that they
would still deliver a letter as long it had the person's name on
it. Four days later, I decided to mail Linda a short note so
that she would know that I was on to her. My statement was
"Linda, a few law enforcement individuals have suggested I apply
for California P. I. license. Dave." On May 10, 2008 the letter
was returned as not deliverable as addressed. A note was written
on it stating it needed a private mail box number.
Wow! I received two phone calls from The Department of Health
Care Services (DHCS) today on April 21, 2008. The first call in
the morning was to inform me that the evidence I sent to HDCS
Medi-Cal last December 2007 was received and was forwarded to
the local area investigation office. That afternoon I received a
courtesy call from a local area investigator to verify some of
the information and let me know she is the assigned
investigator. The investigator informed me she had a heavy case
load and it could be 4 to 5 weeks before she starts to work on
it. What evidence you may be asking yourself? Before I married
Linda she informed me she and the kids were receiving Medi-Cal.
I really didn't think much of it at the time. I knew that Linda
would stop receiving Med-Cal when we married, but the kids would
continue receiving it. After we married, Linda and I had to fill
out a bunch of forms for Med-Cal. During that process, it dawned
on me that Linda shouldn't have been getting any Medi-Cal
benefits because she was married to Dennis earlier in the year.
Her benefits should have stopped then. I asked her about it and
she told me she never intended to stay married to Dennis very
long and didn't want to bother with it. This was another red
flag in my mind. For this woman who claimed to be truthful and
honest as well as a Christian, I could not comprehend these
fraudulent and dishonest actions. It was the beginning of a
series of events that caused mistrust of Linda to grow. My whole
mood began to change. I began to question the validity of our
marriage. After reflecting on this, I suspect Linda may have
noticed my personality change and began planning how to take my
money and get rid of me.
On April 30, 2008 I visited my late wife’s grave. Today was the
second anniversary of her death. I took 2 dozen red roses
representing each year of our wonderful marriage. Considering
the circumstances, it was an emotional time. Later that
afternoon I drove down to my son’s place to spend the night.
Early in the morning my son took me to LAX so I could fly to
Kansas City, Missouri. I went there for a military reunion to
see some of my old Army buddies. Just as I was arriving to my
hotel, my attorney called. I had been trying to communicate with
him for a few days. I was getting concerned because Linda’s
attorney had yet to file any new court documents. My attorney
said he had repeatedly attempted to talk to her attorney who had
not returned his calls. My attorney told me his plan and
hopefully in June we will be in court.
On May 5, 2008 I started corresponding with someone living in
the same town as Linda. I learned some new interesting
information. I was told that Linda is considering moving to
southern California. Linda has been talking with her second
husband, Dale, about reconciliation. I was also told that
several people that know Linda have considered her to be odd.
Also some felt Linda may be a Meth abuser. I recently got the
idea too that Linda may be a Meth abuser or some kind of illicit
drug. There were times that Linda would go into the walk-in
closet with the door closed for a few minutes and it wasn't to
change clothes. That could explain Linda's sudden mood changes
from time to time. I have also considered that Linda may have
some kind of mental illness as well. I am sure there are still a
lot of undiscovered secrets I may never know. Really at this
point, maybe I shouldn't know.
I received a thick envelope from my attorney today on May 7,
2008. It contained a letter by my attorney that was sent to
Linda's attorney and 10 pages of documents from Linda's
attorney. Linda's attorney was giving a notice of motion for
application for separate trial, also know as bifurcation. The
reason they wanted to do this was to have a separate trial for
the issue of the truck and she was also asking for $4,000.00. My
attorney responded with 3 unacceptable issues. 1) The notice
required 30 day notice. 2) My attorney would not accept service
by facsimile and 3) notice of non-availability was filed by my
attorney during the time Linda's attorney was requesting a court
date. The earliest that we could be back in court at this time
would be June 17, 2008. My attorney and I had a telephone
conference on May 13, 2008. My attorney felt it was kind of
silly for Linda's attorney to attempt to do this. He said that
they can’t separate the truck from the rest of the case because
it has everything to do with fraud inducement; it’s dependent if
I’m granted a nullity or if the court shall grant a marriage of
dissolution. He planed to file a motion for trial setting on
June 17, 2008 to resolve all issues in one trial. Ten days later
I received the same documents sent by Linda's attorney but this
time they were stamped with the official court seal. Also the
court date was confirmed for June 17, 2008.
On the night of May 21, 2008 I learned through one my resources
that Linda was given a letter from her auto insurance company
giving her notice of cancellation of the policy sometime in June
2008. Apparently the insurance company found out Linda was
married and she did not have possession of the truck and someone
else was driving it. I wondered how this interesting turn of
events would affect my annulment case. I checked the status of
the insurance the first week of June and learned in fact that
Linda's auto insurance policy was canceled. I could only wonder
what she would do next. I had no doubt that she would continue
to drive her Explorer without insurance or California
registration.
The last day of May 2008 I received a letter and consumer
satisfaction questionnaire from the FDIC. I thought that was
strange. I haven't received any determination from them. First
thing Monday morning I called the FDIC investigator and left a
message on her voice mail. She called me back later that day.
She informed me that she would mail the report again. We
discussed it a little bit. The outcome was not what I had hoped
for.
I received the letter on June 5, 2008. Basically, the FDIC did
not find any banking rules or regulations that were violated.
The letter stated that the FDIC is not authorized to intervene
in contractual or factual disputes. I read over the documents
sent to FDIC from the bank with a fine tooth comb. On page four
of the bank account agreement was this: “Closing Account. We may
close the account at any time, with or without cause, after
sending you notice as required by the law.” Bingo! That's it, to
my knowledge the bank did not comply with this law. I did not
have this agreement before because it was left at Linda's home.
I called the investigator on Friday, June 6, 2008 and told her
about it. She asked me to FAX another letter to her about this
detail and I did so within an hour. I received a confirmation
letter on Monday. I thought that was fast, especially for a
government office.
I was back in court the morning of June 17, 2008, and it turned
out very well. My attorney was given a chance to give any
additional testimony. He responded to the judge that there was
nothing more to say that was not already submitted to the court.
Then the judge turned to Linda's attorney for a response.
Linda's attorney was really mumbling with his words. I could
hardly understand him. Even Linda moved over a couple of seats
to hear him better. The one thing that caught my ear was he
talked about how he may have to subpoena Linda's ex-husbands to
provide testimony. I thought they must really be desperate. My
attorney and I agreed that Linda's ex-husbands would be of no
value in our case. In just about 3 minutes, the judge denied the
motion for separate trial. The next step is next week to set a
date for trial. My attorney told me there is a possibility that
we'll have trial before the end of the month. Those words were
like music to my ears.
After court was over, I walked back to my truck and saw that
Linda's Ford Explorer was across from me. I decided to wait a
while and take some pictures. Linda returned and drove off. Her
attorney followed her. I decided to follow them both. They
almost got away from me at a traffic light but I saw them turn
into a motel. I drove past and came back up on another street
and parked about 100 yards from them. I pulled out my camera and
attached my 100 - 400 mm zoom lens. Linda and her attorney
talked about 40 minutes between their cars. Linda's attorney
finally left and Linda walked to her motel room. I waited for
about 10 minutes and Linda along with another man and four dogs
came out of the room. I did not recognize who this man was. I
took plenty of pictures of them. After Linda's Explorer was
loaded up, the man with her took the driver's seat and they
drove off. I followed a little ways till I got to my turn-off. I
thought about driving right up beside them to tip my hat, but I
didn't. After arriving back home, I sent an e-mail to my
attorney about my discovery. A few days later, I went back to
the motel to inquire with the duty manager. I showed him some
pictures and asked if he could verify if Linda registered there
or was it her boyfriend. The manager looked up the record and
found that Linda registered for single person with a single bed.
The manager was unaware there was a second person in the room.
Also the manger noticed in my pictures they had dogs and
commented that Linda didn't pay a required dog fee as well.
For some time now there has been something bothering me. So on
June 19, 2008, I called a pastor that did one premarital
counseling session with Linda and Randy. Linda and Randy were
engaged to be married before she married Dennis, her third
husband. The pastor's church website has for over a year
announced the engagement and planned wedding of Linda and Randy.
Well of course I knew that wasn't true and felt it was time for
me to say something about it. When I informed the pastor why I
called he was surprised and had no idea that the misinformation
was on the website. He asked how I knew about Randy and Linda. I
told the pastor that I unfortunately married Linda last year. He
told me he was sorry to hear that. He went on to say that after
he counseled Linda and Randy, he told Randy he would not marry
them. The pastor strongly encouraged Randy to immediately break
off the relationship. The pastor said that Randy did end the
relationship soon after that. The pastor quickly surmised that
Linda was a very controlling woman and would just eat Randy up.
This was very interesting information to me. It certainly was a
very different story than what Linda told me. Linda told me that
it was she that broke off the relationship. Linda said that
Randy wasn't portraying to be the Christian man she thought he
claimed to be. She said Randy still had a drinking problem. I
was still amazed as time passed; I continued to learn more of
Linda's lies. Obviously, in my humble opinion, Linda has some
real mental issues.
The Big Day
On Tuesday morning, June 24, 2008 we were all in court for the
setting for a trial. To my unexpected surprise, trial was set
for the afternoon at 1:30 p.m. I did not see that coming. So
later that morning I met with my attorney to go over some issues
and he gave a rundown on how the proceeding normally works. We
went over some notes and I provided some last minute details.
Also the other man that was with Linda last week was in court
with her in the morning. I finally learned who he was. The man
was Dennis. I can't believe I didn't recognize him. I could only
contribute that to the fact that I'd never seen him without his
cowboy hat on.
We all met in court at 1:30 P.M. My attorney called Linda to the
stand as the first witness. He wasted no time in revealing Linda
was not a credible witness. He hit her quick and hard with his
questioning. More than what I expected from him. She continued
to be the evasive person she has shown herself to be during the
months prior to this day. Linda lied on the stand and when she
did; my attorney would bring out evidence to prove it. Linda in
her normal way would continue to elaborate beyond the questions
from my attorney that did nothing but to hurt her credibility.
One thing Linda said on the stand was that I left her destitute.
She told me the same thing last Christmas day. I thought then
and again in court the nerve of her to say that. I left her far
better off than the day we married. She was over ten thousand
dollars in debt and had a negative balance in her checking
account. I left her debt free and she had over a hundred dollars
in the bank. And then there was the $1,360.00 cash she never
returned to the bank account. There was no doubt in my mind that
she grossly lied to her so called friends about this and many
other things.
When it came time for Linda's attorney to cross examine, Linda
would still elaborate beyond the answer. Several times my
attorney would object. At one point Linda looked at me with this
very angry demeanor. If looks could kill, this was one of those
moments. I don't recall at any other time in my life someone
looked at me like Linda did at the moment. The bailiff noticed
this and he came over and stood near Linda in the aisle between
us. I too wonder if she was going to have an outburst. She did
calm down and the bailiff returned to his post.
After all the arguments were finished, the judge began handing
down his decisions. The judge denied my request for nullity. He
said although he would like to grant a nullity based on
principle alone, there was not sufficient evidence to award that
under current law. I was disappointed but I had prayed and given
this over to God that His will be done. Instead, the judge
handed down dissolution of marriage for irreconcilable
differences that returned us to single status. As for the
contractual agreement between Linda and me, the judge ruled it
invalid. The judge ordered the return of the truck title to me.
He also ordered the wedding rings to be returned to Linda. I had
to pay the day’s court cost and I didn't have to pay any
additional money to Linda. The judge turned to Linda’s attorney
and told him that he did not find his witness to be credible
what so ever and said that I proved to be more credible on the
stand. Overall I was pleased with the decisions. As I walked out
of the court room, I wondered if Linda was now regretting not
accepting my cash offer two months ago. She could have had so
much more. There is a Proverb that says "Pride goes before
destruction and haughty spirit before a fall."
After we left the court room, our attorneys met to discuss some
of the logistics of transactions to be made. Linda had the truck
title with her so she signed it and it was turned over to me. I
forgot to bring the rings with me, so the decision was that
Linda would follow me to my home to receive the rings. On the
way home I was feeling famished and I was sure Linda and Dennis
were too. After they arrived behind me, I made a peace offering
by inviting them to dinner at a restaurant in town at my
expense. I may be crazy but I refuse to hold ill will toward
them and treat them with angry feelings. One thing I learned
from my grandfather is he never spoke badly about anyone for any
reason. I asked her to talk to Dennis about it while I went
inside to retrieve the rings and to type up a receipt and print
it out. A few minutes later Linda asked if she could come in and
change clothes and I gave her permission. I met her back outside
with the rings and receipt. She signed the receipt and took the
rings. Dennis got out and came over to shake my hand and said
"No hard feelings." He also thanked me for the offer to dinner
but said he needed to get back home. As he returned to Linda's
Explorer, he said "You have taught me something." As Linda was
getting back in her car, I told her I was sorry for how things
turned out and I wished her the best.
I thought later that she had the best and discarded it like
returning merchandise to the store. If she could not recognize
the best, then no man will ever satisfy her. I hope that doesn't
sound too conceited. For all the people who know me well, I know
they would agree that Linda could not have found a better man.
In spite of all that has happened, I'm still am able to forgive
and I have forgiven her. As she was leaving, I felt like crying
because I felt I failed in trying to show her the Love of
Christ. I had hoped I could have made some impact in her life
for the good. I hope I planted a seed and it's now up to God to
make it grow. I don't know if I'll ever see her again but I do
hope someday we will cross paths in Heaven.
Overall I don't believe there were any winners between Linda and
me. I doubt there are ever any winners when it comes to divorce.
The real winner here was Satan. He accomplished his goal to
break up a marriage and family. I'm most saddened for Linda's
children. They have been dragged through all of Linda's
eccentric ways with men and marriage. In my humble opinion, I
don’t think her children know what a good solid family unit is.
I’m sure they are scarred for life and the best I can do is pray
for them.
Granted, they're always two sides of a story. I admit there were
some things I said and did that were wrong and I'm very sorry
for. I can honestly say though, Linda brought out a personality
that I never had before. As I said before I was very happily
married to Terri and would have remained so if it weren't for
her death. The attitude I developed towards Linda and things I
said to her I never did to Terri. As I looked back, it's hard to
comprehend how quickly I allowed someone to alter my personality
like that. A close friend told me after I left Linda that you
can’t put a sheep in the pin with a wolf. (Of course he was
referring to me as the sheep.) Ironically, he did not know
Linda’s maiden name and its translation. Frankly, reflecting
back, she attacked my manhood, my masculinity and my headship.
My warrior’s heart just went into survival mode.
I have learned some very hard lessons through all of this. From
now on I will be extremely cautious if I ever become involved in
a relationship again. I will conduct background checks through
personal inquiries or other investigative services if needed. I
will take much more time and if there is the slightest gut
feeling of something not right, I’ll break it off quickly. I
cannot always listen to my heart, but must pay attention to what
my head is telling me. I had such a good relationship with Terri
for over 24 years; I doubt there is another woman that could
come close to what she was to me. I realize too that I shouldn’t
even entertain the idea that there could be another lady like
Terri. I know I shouldn’t compare, but find it difficult not to
do so. She was so much a part of my life, I could never forget
her. I still miss her and I suppose I always will to some
extent. I will have to depend on God to fill my loneliness and
void. One thing is for sure, I will use greater precautions if I
use internet dating services again. Most of the legitimate
internet dating services have online dating safety tips. I
cannot emphasize enough the importance of reading these tips.
Lastly, I want to say this has not been an easy story to share.
I hope that by sharing this story I will have given some of you
cautions to consider when it comes to internet dating. I hope
for some of you my story will help you in your harrowing
situation. Most of all, I feel that if this story helps at least
one person, then the pain of my experience will have been of
some value. And one other thing I want to say. I don’t want
anyone to feel sorry for me. I am responsible for my own
decisions and have no one else to blame except that of the
powers of Satan. It is very evident that the powers of Satan are
real and at constant work in this world. I am much more aware of
that now. I was wounded but not broken. I was struck down but I
got back up. As an Army warrior, it was an honor to serve my
country. As a Christian warrior I count it as an honor to be
wounded in service of my Lord. For some these wounds can take
months and years to heal. As for me, I know who I am and have
not lost sight of that. Thankfully, God has given me the gift to
quickly forgive and forget and I’m able to move on and put this
behind me.
This is a consolidation of updates.
October 13, 2008
I've received some emails from people who know Linda and they
were so apologetic about this ordeal I went though. Some told me
she was to spreading lies about me and is making false
accusations and telling people my story is full of lies. I’ve
learned she moved to another city and her children no longer
live with her. I have been told some other things about her but
I will not mention them here.
I've been contacted by a few people stating that they firmly
believe Linda has not ever been a drug user. I was never really
sure of this. There were only a few indicators that made me
think that. I don't see any reason to change my story because I
don't accuse Linda of using drugs.
October 22, 2008
I received information from a very reliable person that told me
some information that confirmed some of my thoughts. One of
those confirmations was that Linda was seeing and laid in my bed
with another man on at least one occasion during our brief
marriage. (In this case I use the term "marriage" loosely.)
February 5, 2009
On Tuesday, 11/4/08, my attorney, Linda, Dennis and I were in
court again for what I hope was the last time. The rumor is that
Linda subpoenaed Dennis to testify. What a wasted day for him.
Linda wanted to have him give testimony against me or testimony
to help her but the judge would not allow it. I already knew
outside testimony would not be allowed just because this was to
be decided solely on the testimony given on the trial date last
June. This court issue was only about the $3K+ overdraft Linda
created in our joint account when she attempted to steal my VA
Benefit after I left her.
The good news is the judge still did not believe any of Linda's
testimony even after he graciously allowed her to ramble on
about stuff that had nothing to do with the case at hand. I was
stunned by the judge's decision. I only went to court to insure
that I would not be held accountable for the $3K+ overdraft.
Instead, the judge ordered Linda to pay it to me so that I can
personally settle with the bank. I will do this as soon as Linda
sends me the money.
Dennis is lucky though. As we left the court room, I was holding
the door open for my attorney, Linda and Dennis. On the way out,
Dennis slammed his hand onto the door in anger. It's a good
thing the bailiff didn't notice that because he would have come
down hard on him for doing that.
Linda requested from the judge to return to her maiden name of
Lobo and the judge agreed to it. I think I know why Linda wants
to do that but really it makes absolutely no difference. In fact
I'm glad she is doing that. That's what I wanted all along. I
did not like the fact she was still carrying my name. She hadn't
earned it.
One other thing Linda said to the judge was she wanted to file a
restraining order against me. I don't know what grounds that
would be for. I certainly haven't threatened, stalked,
wrongfully communicated with her or harmed her in any way. I
have done nothing but avoid her like the plague with the
exception of gathering evidence.
Someone asked what if she doesn't pay. I replied, "She will have
to pay or face a contempt of court charge and or possibly go to
jail. Hopefully it won't go that far.
March 31, 2009
To date, Linda has not paid any court ordered money to me. I
have received two phone calls from a collection agency about
repayment. I sent the agency a cease and desist letter
yesterday.
"Don't be naive. There are difficult times ahead. As the end
approaches, people are going to be self-absorbed, money-hungry,
self-promoting, stuck-up, profane, contemptuous of parents,
crude, coarse, dog-eat-dog, unbending, slanderers, impulsively
wild, savage, cynical, treacherous, ruthless, bloated windbags,
addicted to lust, and allergic to God. They'll make a show of
religion, but behind the scenes they're animals. Stay clear of
these people."
(The Message, 2 Timothy 3:1-5)
“Brothers [and sisters], I do not consider myself yet to have
taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind
and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal
to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in
Christ Jesus."
The following day Linda said she would marry me and she
graciously agreed without me presenting a ring to her. That was
my next step. I wanted a special ring for Linda, one that is one
of a kind, custom made. And I knew the person to do just that.
On August 24, 2007 at the weekly Team Pining event I asked Linda
to marry me and presented to her the custom made ring in front a
small crowd of people. I even had help with someone video taping
it. She was surprised.