The notorious Willis “Marriage ceremony Scammer” has been arrested in Travis County for a string of alleged scams at a Montgomery County wedding ceremony venue, based on officers.
Houston-area ‘Marriage ceremony Scammer’ arrested
Montgomery County authorities say Carl John Butcho II was arrested and booked into the Travis County Jail. He’s reportedly charged with Theft of Property valued between $150,000-$300,000.
Carl John Butcho II (Courtesy: Montgomery County Sheriff’s Workplace)
Officers say Butcho had been scamming {couples} who deliberate to get married on the Charleston Lane Marriage ceremony Venue in Willis, Texas. He allegedly pretended to be the venue’s proprietor and supervisor and glided by the title “Lance Miller.” They are saying Butcho victimized 12 individuals, with losses totaling over $213 thousand.
Butcho was reportedly arrested by Montgomery County detectives with the assistance of Austin police. His bond has been set at $100,000, based on officers.
The suspect is allegedly dealing with different fraud expenses out of Travis County.
“It’s a actually good first step nevertheless it’s only a first step,” stated Justin Sayles, host of “The Marriage ceremony Scammer” podcast. Sayles has been monitoring Butcho’s strikes for 5 years and hosts the investigative sequence that accuses him of comparable fraudulent conduct relationship again over a decade.
“There’s some frustration for some folks that it took simply now for this to occur,” stated Sayles.
‘Marriage ceremony scammer’
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: ‘The Marriage ceremony Scammer’: Houston bride out $54K sooner or later earlier than her wedding ceremony
Sooner or later earlier than her wedding ceremony, a bride confirmed as much as locked doorways on the Montgomery County venue she paid over $50,000 for. FOX 26’s Abigail Dye regarded into points different individuals had with the identical venue.
The FOX26 Investigation
The backstory:
In Might, FOX 26 broke the story of a Houston bride who misplaced greater than $50,000 after displaying as much as the venue the day earlier than her wedding ceremony to locked doorways.
After the primary two tales aired, the Montgomery County District Lawyer confirmed that the sheriff’s workplace launched an investigation into the matter.
FOX26 continued to report and compiled an inventory of victims and commenced monitoring complete losses of these affected.
Shortly after, the person in query was recognized by his alias “Lance Miller” and particulars of the investigation had been made public.
Years-long investigative podcast
FOX26 reached out to journalist Justin Sayles, the host of ‘The Marriage ceremony Scammer’ podcast, earlier than airing the primary Charleston Lane story.
Sayles had identified Butcho’s actual title from the start of FOX26’s investigation, as a result of he started his a number of years earlier.
“For 5 years roughly I’ve been monitoring down each lead,” he stated. “It has gone via California, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston -all over the place.”
By means of his investigation, he says many individuals have filed civil fits towards Butcho – however that is the primary time in many years that he has been criminally charged for his alleged fraudulent exercise.
“You had a multi-year investigative podcast that established a sample of conduct. You additionally had victims who had been very resolute to do one thing,” he stated. “Relatively than rolling over they actually stepped up and arranged they usually went to you, they went to the media, went to the police, they stayed very on prime of it.”
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Searching for extra victims
What you are able to do:
The sheriff’s workplace urges any potential victims to come back ahead by contacting detectives at (936) 538-8393. Reference case quantity 25A151828.
The Supply: Info on this article was offered by FOX 26’s Abigail Dye and former FOX 26 reporting.
