YouTuber accused of stealing thousands of dollars in real estate scam
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A YouTube dating coach and consultant is accused of a real estate investment scam.
Mikki Fox, also known as Michaela Pink, is charged with theft in Harris County. The county district attorney's office has identified six other possible victims.
Fox has a large following on YouTube, where she offers advice on makeup and dating. A woman, who wished to be identified as Marie, came across Fox on YouTube. She told ABC13 she was first interested in Fox's relationship advice.
"Advice on dating, that sort of thing. And my second consultation was just regarding real estate, so she did seem trustworthy," Marie said. "At the time, I was going through a bad situation and I had no support system and she preyed on that."
According to Fox's website, she offers paid courses on dating, but Marie said Fox used her following on YouTube to promote real estate.
"She was promoting real estate investment through her YouTube channel at the time, [under the name] Michaela Pink," said Marie.
Marie said Fox told her to invest $21,000. She was supposed to get monthly interest on that money with the option of getting the initial investment back a year later, but Marie said that never happened.
"I then attempted to contact [Fox] via phone, text, email. She did not respond," said Marie.
Now, she's hoping for justice. The Harris County District Attorney's Office said they're concerned Fox could have victimized more people.
"We've identified six people that we believe may also have been victimized and are in the process of collecting information that we need for that and we'd also like to hear from anybody else that believes they may have been victimized by her or are in the process of doing business with her," said Sheila Hansel, a Harris County Assistant District Attorney.
Hansel said if you are looking to make an investment or do business with someone, do extra research.
"You have to really do your homework and protect yourself in situations like this. If you are talking to someone that you've never met in person, that you don't know from a personal referral, from someone you trust who's done business with that person, do your homework. Because if you don't, someone's waiting to take advantage of you," said Hansel.
Eyewitness News spoke with Fox's court-appointed attorney, but she declined to comment. We also reached out to Fox, but she has not returned our calls.
"Of course it's frustrating. I mean, this is a person who has a very charismatic personality and demeanor, so I can see how people would gravitate towards her, and unfortunately, those are one of the biggest indicators of a predator," said Marie.
If you think you've been a victim or have information on a case you're asked to call 713-274-5555.
