TACOMA, Wash. — A Pierce County woman pleaded guilty Friday in Seattle's Untied States District Court to one count of wire fraud for a scheme to defraud various friends and acquaintances, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a press release.
Tacoma's Sabrina Taylor, 40, admitted to lying about her health, job status and education to steal more than $600,000 from people who offered to help. Taylor will be sentenced on Oct. 7.
Taylor's scam dates back to 2013, the department of justice said.
"Taylor convinced various people to provide her with large amounts of money by claiming that she needed to purchase medicine for multiple sclerosis, pay her tuition for the University of Washington, or bail her brother out of jail," the press release said. "In fact, Taylor did not have multiple sclerosis, was not paying tuition to U.W., and did not have a brother in jail. Rather, Taylor used a substantial portion of the defrauded funds to pay for luxuries such as almost $60,000 for multiple trips to Japan and Korea, nearly $38,000 for online purchases from Amazon and Etsy, more than $29,000 for clothing, and nearly $16,000 for make-up."
Taylor, who made various other false claims, met some of the people she defrauded online, "using shared interests such as Japanese anime, comic books, or video games to establish a relationship." She admitted to stealing more than $550,000 from one victim.
Click here for the full press release.