Matthew Cox | Inside True Crime Podcast How Inside Edition Exposed a Professional Scammer
Mar 27, 2026
Roger Van Doren, a former telemarketer who served time for running large land-sale scams, gives a firsthand account of recruiting, phone-room tactics, fake closings, and moving operations across states. He describes how checks, money transfers, burned phones, and fake documents kept schemes alive. He also recounts arrests, prison, and a televised ambush by Inside Edition.
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Selling Fake Land Ads For Upfront Fees
- Roger Van Doren described working in telemarketing rooms that sold advertising for vacant Florida land and convinced owners to pay upfront fees.
- He justified it as "advertising only," charging $498 per listing while knowing the sites listed owners' names and numbers, repeatedly reselling leads.
Monitor Title Records To Prevent Easy Title Theft
- Protect property ownership by monitoring public title records; Matthew Cox recommends services like Home Title Lock to alert owners of record changes.
- Cox warns title theft can be done remotely and quickly, so proactive monitoring reduces risk.
Using Western Union And Straw Recipients To Launder Proceeds
- The operation shifted from checks to Western Union and MoneyGram to avoid traceability, then used third-party accomplices to pick up cash.
- Roger says they received "hundreds of thousands of dollars a week" via wire services and used many recipient accounts to evade detection.