Jane Head has always been a big fan of NBC News correspondent Jacob Soboroff. When she posted a message on the journalist’s verified Facebook page and got a response from someone claiming to be Jacob, she was pretty psyched.
“I was elated. It was just like, oh my gosh,” she told TODAY in a segment that aired on Jan. 25.
Alas, it wasn’t Jacob, and the person imitating the journalist quickly encouraged Head to private message them on WhatsApp instead of the public Facebook page.
After connecting in May 2023, the pair exchanged thousands of messages over the course of six months. Head, who lives in Tennessee, said she was in communication with the impostor “almost every day” and there were days when they were in contact “all day long.”
Head’s daughter was skeptical that a network news correspondent with a hectic schedule could find the time to chat with her — and her instincts proved to be right.
Over the course of six months, the scammer convinced Head to send them over $17,000 in bitcoin and gift cards, even if it didn’t quite sit right with her.
“I would say no, no, I can’t. And this person said, ‘Well, just let your bills go this month,’” she recalled.
Head’s daughter Joni admitted that it was “very hard” for her to broach the subject with her mother. She ultimately turned to NBC News for help.
“I feel the strain. But it’s only because I love her,” Joni said.
Head felt compelled to share her story with TODAY viewers to help prevent similar scenarios for others. While filming the segment, she even got some face time with Jacob.
“Thank you so much for your support. And I’m so terribly sorry that you’ve gone through something now that so many people have gone through. You’re going to help a lot of people by having this conversation…,” he said.
Head shared the following advice for others in her situation.
“My journey brought me extreme happiness, and then mortifying sadness. But I think I’m here to point out to other…
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