EDITOR乌鸦传媒橲 NOTE: This story mentions suicide.
A Chilliwack waitress has penned a true story about meeting the 乌鸦传媒榳ealthiest man in the world.乌鸦传媒�
乌鸦传媒淚 don乌鸦传媒檛 advertise it as what the book is about because the story is so spectacular and the ending just hits you in the face,乌鸦传媒� said Glenda Toews. 乌鸦传媒淎t the end of the day, it was a huge scam.乌鸦传媒�
She wrote Spinning on a Barstool after losing tens of thousands of dollars in an alleged fraud.
Glenda has worked at Corky乌鸦传媒檚 Irish Pub in Chilliwack for 14 years and it was there that she met Daryl Schmidt during the pandemic, back in August 2020, when he stepped into the pub for some drinks.
乌鸦传媒淗e was unassuming. He didn乌鸦传媒檛 wear jewelry, he wasn乌鸦传媒檛 flashy, he was very clean.乌鸦传媒�
He started coming into Corky乌鸦传媒檚 daily and Glenda got to know him better as the months went on.
He said he was from the Cayman Islands and he was married to a Canadian woman. They couldn乌鸦传媒檛 fly back to the Cayman Islands because of COVID restrictions. Daryl said he started the very first Cactus Club, owned casinos all over the world, and was the owner of the Los Angeles Chargers football team and SoFi Stadium. He said he owned Google, MGM in Vegas, and recently bought Amazon.
But, if anyone googled his name, it would come up blank.
No one would find information on him because 乌鸦传媒渉is security wipes everything,乌鸦传媒� she recalled him saying to her.
乌鸦传媒淗e said, 乌鸦传媒榃e let people 乌鸦传媒� like Elon Musk and Bill Gates 乌鸦传媒� be the centre stage. The real wealth, it lies beneath them. The world thinks they are, but the real wealth, they stay away from the spotlight,乌鸦传媒櫸谘淮綕 she said. 乌鸦传媒淚t was quite intriguing.乌鸦传媒�
He would go into in-depth details about his stories, keeping everything consistent.
乌鸦传媒淗e乌鸦传媒檚 not stupid. He乌鸦传媒檚 actually very brilliant.乌鸦传媒�
Daryl and Glenda became very good friends 乌鸦传媒� he and his wife would hang out regularly with Glenda and her husband. Later, Glenda would even call Daryl her best friend.
About three to four months in, Daryl offered Glenda a chance to invest in hedge funds.
She started by giving him a few thousand dollars 乌鸦传媒� it was her tip money, her 乌鸦传媒渞ainy day乌鸦传媒� money. Some of the money she invested was for herself, but most of it was for friends and family members. The plan was to leave the money for a year and then surprise those people later.
乌鸦传媒淚 thought if I lose it, it乌鸦传媒檚 not a big deal.乌鸦传媒�
The beginning of the Foundation of Hope
More months passed when Daryl and Glenda started talking about doing good in the community and also in Ukraine and Germany, where Glenda乌鸦传媒檚 two daughters live. They were going to help the homeless in Chilliwack, offer aid to Ukrainian grandmothers who had been abandoned, and help less-fortunate people in Germany.
She called it Foundation of Hope. Daryl, Glenda and others all put in money to launch it.
Daryl led her to believe everything was in the works as the months went on. But there were delays. Daryl decided to divorce his wife who was apparently stealing millions from him. Then his father died, and then his mom died.
He乌鸦传媒檇 use local news stories and world headlines to his advantage, weaving them into his stories.
In November 2021, there were problems getting bank cards mailed out because roads were closed due to flooding and snow storms. He claimed the reason for other delays in starting up the two charities in Europe had to do with world events, like Russia invading Ukraine and an election in Germany.
It was just a coincidence that the two charities happened to be connected to countries making headlines.
乌鸦传媒淭he universe fit beautifully,乌鸦传媒� she said.
She kept investing and waiting, investing and waiting. Over the months, it ballooned from giving him a few thousand dollars to tens of thousands of dollars.
乌鸦传媒淵ou乌鸦传媒檙e up and down with emotions because you乌鸦传媒檙e like, 乌鸦传媒楻eally? Another delay, another delay, another delay?乌鸦传媒� And then you乌鸦传媒檙e wondering if it乌鸦传媒檚 true.乌鸦传媒�
One day a friend messaged Glenda with a link to a about a convicted fraudster named Daryl Heiligsetzer. According to the Herald, Heiligsetzer went to prison in 2005 for committing a $1.5-million investment fraud, and then was out on parole in 2015 when he was alleged to have committed a similar scam, duping approximately 45 investors of more than $400,000.
She looked closely at the photo under the headline. It was an image of a younger Daryl.
Daryl Schmidt was Daryl Heiligsetzer.
乌鸦传媒淔irst, I was relieved because it was true. For a year and a half, it was like this hope dangling and you乌鸦传媒檙e never getting it.乌鸦传媒�
Then she started wondering what the bigger picture was. What else was he planning on doing? Was he going to hack her bank accounts?
Glenda was paranoid for about two months as she put alerts on social insurance numbers and changed bank account numbers.
She went to RCMP, they opened up a file, but she claimed police said there wasn乌鸦传媒檛 much they could do.
乌鸦传媒淲丑补迟 can I do then?乌鸦传媒� she recalled asking an officer. 乌鸦传媒淗e said, 乌鸦传媒榊ou can tell your story.乌鸦传媒� So, here I am. I wrote the book.乌鸦传媒�
Spinning on a Barstool is all about Daryl乌鸦传媒檚 stories and Glenda乌鸦传媒檚 ups and downs of waiting. Emails have been printed word for word in the book.
In the end, after being involved in a scam that lasted a year and a half, Glenda lost roughly $60,000.
She admits she had some dark thoughts.
乌鸦传媒淲hen you hear of people being scammed big and they kill themselves, I get it. It乌鸦传媒檚 got nothing to do with the money. It really comes down to complete and utter humiliation.
乌鸦传媒淲hen a person falls for something like that, you (hear) all those voices of every insecurity you ever had in your life,乌鸦传媒� she said, choking back tears. 乌鸦传媒淵ou brought so much hope to people, to your kids, and you have to go and say, 乌鸦传媒楴o, none of that乌鸦传媒檚 happening.乌鸦传媒櫸谘淮綕
Insp. Jeff Bowerman confirmed Chilliwack RCMP did conduct an investigation into Glenda乌鸦传媒檚 file.
乌鸦传媒淎ny criminal fraud reported to the police is investigated,乌鸦传媒� he stated in an email to The Chilliwack Progress. 乌鸦传媒淭his investigation is currently closed and should new information be received can be re-opened.乌鸦传媒�
He could not comment on the details of the investigation.
Spinning back to a good cause
Glenda says she wrote Spinning on a Barstool for a few reasons.
乌鸦传媒淚 really wanted it in every pub and restaurant in all of B.C. and moving through Canada 乌鸦传媒� so that people are aware that the person that乌鸦传媒檚 sitting beside them could be Daryl.乌鸦传媒�
He has also used the name Daryl Smythe, Glenda added.
Secondly, she乌鸦传媒檚 hoping she can do some good with book sales by raising money for the three charities they had planned to start under Foundation of Hope.
Seventy per cent from each book purchase will go to Foundation of Hope while the other 30 per cent will help Glenda recoup her bad investment.
People can purchase Spinning on a Barstool by Glenda Toews for about $24 at various locations online. For more info, go to or email info@glendatoews.com.
The Chilliwack Progress attempted to contact Daryl via email and two phone numbers. There was no reply to the email, and one phone number was no longer in service. When the reporter called the second phone number and asked if she was speaking with Daryl, the man who answered said: 乌鸦传媒淣o, sorry you乌鸦传媒檝e got the wrong number. I think I乌鸦传媒檝e got his old phone.乌鸦传媒�
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