'The Wedding Scammer' now under investigation after FOX 26 report; more victims out thousands
Charleston Lane Wedding Venue fraud investigation: More possible victims coming forward
Authorities have officially launched an investigation of fraud surrounding the Charleston Lane wedding venue in Willis, Texas.
WILLIS, Texas - The Montgomery County District Attorney says the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office has officially launched an investigation into the allegations of fraud against the Charleston Lane wedding venue and its former operator.
The venue is now under new ownership. The information in this article refers to the previous tenant who was renting the space according to the new owner.
The backstory:
New investigation into ‘The Wedding Scammer’
FOX 26 first broke the story of a bride who lost more than $50,000 after booking the venue and showing up the day before her wedding to locked doors.
Since the story aired, multiple possible victims have emailed, messaged, and commented, sharing similar stories, alleging the former operator has been impossible to contact after making payment.
FOX 26 is not reporting the name of the former operator because no criminal charges have been filed, but it is reported in ‘The Wedding Scammer’ podcast hosted by Justin Sayles.
Sayles alleges this former operator is a con man who’s been defrauding people with different businesses for several years across the country.
After the original report aired, several people commented and messaged saying they have had similar experiences.
New victims come forward
What we know:
"When I saw your article recently, I was like that was the venue we were going to book - we booked that! Then I went down the rabbit hole and saw the page you tagged, and I was like.. how did I not find this out before when I was googling the venue," said Myoshi Allen.
She says she booked with the former operator at Charleston Lane in 2022 for a date in 2023.
After a family member fell ill, she pushed the wedding date back and paid extra for it, although she says that didn’t align with her contract.
"He said he was also battling cancer," she said about the operator. "I prayed with him."
She says as the wedding date got closer, the operator stopped returning her calls and the venue doors were chained when she went to inquire in person.
"We're at a loss. We lost about 15,000 total," she said.
Rachelle Dawkin says she and her husband had their wedding at the venue in November 2024, but, she says they didn’t get what they paid for.
Dawkin says she won the event space for the wedding and a photo booth during a raffle the venue held.
She says she and her husband paid extra for the fireworks and a dessert bar – but neither were delivered on their big day.
"We called the firework company, and they said they stopped working with [the operator] because of bounced payments," she said.
That company, Roar Over Texas, confirmed they had ended their partnership with the previous operator due to brides contacting them about events they were unaware of, a bounced payment and the operator asking them to perform shows without proper permitting.
"In addition, [the operator]’s final payment to us for a previous event was returned due to insufficient funds. While he eventually resolved the balance, it did incur additional bank fees." The full statement from the company can be read at the bottom of this article.
Dawkin says she and her husband never received a refund for the missing services or their security deposit.
"All in all, he owed us about $4,800… around $5,000," she said.
After months of inquiries, she said the operator sent them a check which was linked to a closed account.
"A week later, the check bounced out of the bank," she said.
The inside scoop
Dig deeper:
Keri Lugo is a coordinator who worked for a company that was contracted by Charleston Lane in the beginning of 2024.
"I was the in-house coordinator for four or five months there," she said.
She says she witnessed the former operator yelling at staff, throwing things, and acting in an unprofessional manner.
"He would upsell the clients on premium florals and premium linens and there was no actual florists," she said. "It was literally [the operator] in the back, and he put bouquets together."
She claims that instead of hiring caterers or chefs, the operator cooked all the food for events as well.
"He would just move the flowers over and just start cooking for catering, because catering was in-house too, and he would also do that," she said.
She says the company she was with required a percentage of the payment upfront for their services, and once those payments stopped coming, the company terminated the partnership.
Last week, the Montgomery County DA said there was no investigation underway, but encouraged any possible victims to reach out to the sheriff’s office.
After the report aired, the DA confirmed there is now an active investigation, saying in an email:
"Thank you for your email. At this time, no charges have been filed, but the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office is actively investigating the matter."
What you can do:
Those with information are asked to contact the sheriff’s office at 281-577-8971.
FOX 26’s Abigail Dye is continuing the investigation. If you have a story to share, she can be reached by email at Abigail.dye@fox.com.
The full statement from Roar Over Texas reads as follows:
We previously partnered with [operator] at Charleston Lane, where he offered our professional fireworks services to his clients as part of an "in-house" package. Once a client confirmed their interest in a fireworks display, [operator] would coordinate with us directly to secure the booking. At that point, we required a 50% deposit to confirm the reservation, with the remaining balance due 30 days prior to the event.
Unfortunately, in the fall of last year, we were contacted by two separate brides who believed they had booked and paid for a fireworks display through Charleston Lane. We were unaware of these events and had never received any booking information or deposits from [operator] regarding them. These instances were deeply troubling and inconsistent with our standards of professionalism and client communication.
In addition, [operator] ’s final payment to us for a previous event was returned due to insufficient funds. While he eventually resolved the balance, it did incur additional bank fees.
We were also asked on multiple occasions to perform shows without the proper permits. As a company led by first responders, safety and regulatory compliance are core to our values and operations. Being asked to bypass legal and safety protocols was unacceptable and one of the key reasons we chose to end our partnership with Charleston Lane."
The Source: The Montgomery County sheriff's office, possible victim who booked with the Charleston Lane Venue, Roar over Texas and previous FOX 26 reporting.