In a case that highlights the dark side of psychic fraud, a North Texas couple has been arrested for allegedly orchestrating a multi-year scam that preyed on emotionally vulnerable individuals. The scheme, which involved convincing victims to send cash, credit cards, and even gold coins for spiritual cleansingresulted in losses exceeding $2.5 million.
The defendants, Bridgette Doreen Evans and her husband Vinnie John Uwanawichboth residents of Frisco, Texas, appeared in court last week in the Eastern District of Texas to face charges of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraudalong with four counts each of wire and mail fraud.
The elaborate psychic fraud scheme
According to an indictment filed in the Western District of WashingtonEvans, using the alias Jolene Travistargeted individuals struggling with divorce, isolation, or the loss of a loved one. She allegedly convinced these victims that their personal and romantic misfortunes were tied to a financial curse.
Evans would obtain detailed accounts of the victims’ finances and then instruct them to liquidate their holdings and send the funds to her for a spiritual cleansing. She promised that the money would be returned after it was purified. However, prosecutors allege that she kept the vast majority of the funds, occasionally returning small amounts to lull the victims into a false sense of security.
One victim from Washington state alone sent more than $2 million to the couple, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The indictment details multiple other victims, including one who sent $86,000 in electronic payments and another who was defrauded of $258,000.
The role of the co-conspirator
Uwanawich is accused of facilitating the fraud by managing the bank accounts that received the stolen money, selling the gold coins, and vouching for Evans to suspicious victims. The scheme was so institutionalized that when Evans was briefly incarcerated in Florida during the conspiracy, her co-conspirators took over the Jolene Travis alias to keep the operation running.
Evans used multiple aliases, including Joy John and Joy Paigeto obscure her identity. Federal authorities noted that she had prior convictions for psychic fraud in Texas and Florida. In 2026, Evans pled guilty to a separate psychic fraud case, but Uwanawich and others continued the scheme. In 2026, while Evans was still in jail, two victims uncovered her criminal history, leading to new charges.
The impact on victims and the ongoing investigation
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd stated, “These perpetrators of fortune-teller fraud came into the lives of these victims at a time when their judgment was clouded by emotional loss and feelings of hopelessness. Ms. Evans preyed upon their needs, leaving them further devastated.”
W. Mike HerringtonSpecial Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Seattle field office, emphasized the persistent nature of such scams: “The schemes may change, but the greed driving them does not. The FBI and our partners will follow the money to unravel these scams.”
If convicted, Evans and Uwanawich face up to 20 years in prison for each count of conspiracy, mail fraud, and wire fraud. The FBI is continuing to investigate the scope of the fraud and urges anyone who believes they may have been targeted by Evans under any of her aliases to file a report at www.ic3.gov.
