It all started with a tweet sent out by a woman named "Dory" about how nobody came to her best friend Chelsie Collins' baby shower at a Golden Corral restaurant in Ohio. In the photos she posted, there were tables set with pink tablecloths, pink balloon decorations, and no people.
"Nobody showed up to my best friend's baby shower," Dory wrote. "Just my boyfriend and me :("
Mom-to-be went viral when no one showed up to her baby shower. Turns out, it was a scam. https://t.co/ysg8H4zqAT pic.twitter.com/itPmtdJUqC
— someecards (@someecards) July 27, 2017
According to New York mag, the photos got over 16,000 retweets before they were deleted on Wednesday afternoon.
Some people tweeted their sympathy.
I understand what she's going through. Only me and my husband were at mine ? so I understand. ❤
— Not Dead Abby (@Abby_NotDead) July 24, 2017
Others blamed the flaky guests.
Can you send me the guest list? I just wanna have a talk with them that's all
— Laura (@Lauurita_s) July 24, 2017
When asked where well-wishers could send gifts or donate money for the guest-less mom-to-be, "Dory" tweeted a PayPal link for donations. Over 350 gifts were bought on Collins' since-deleted Walmart registry.
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Then, people started noticing that something was off. For starters, the name on the PayPal account didn't match Collins' info; it said "Dorthy Holmes," presumably Dory's real name. Someone on Twitter who calls himself "Jimi the Juice Man" took it upon himself to investigate the situation. He dove deep.
ATTENTION TWITTER. Here's the story of how two scammers @im_cece_bitch and @blazinbombsheIl scammed the hell out of Twitter. *clears throat
— Jimi The Juice Man (@JimiEarly) July 25, 2017
— Jimi The Juice Man (@JimiEarly) July 25, 2017
He even called the Golden Corral in Zanesville, OH, and the manager told him that all 12 guests had showed up. The manager also confirmed to New York mag that "it was 12 people" at the shower.
— Jimi The Juice Man (@JimiEarly) July 25, 2017
New York mag spoke with Holmes and Collins.
"The moment the tweet was posted nobody was there. The tweet was 100% accurate at that point in time. It was not a turnout; her aunt was her only relative [at the party]," Holmes said. "I had two of my personal friends. Her aunt brought three children, and her little sister was there. That was it…there was definitely not 12 people there."
They said they have received over 300 donated gifts, but "less than $100" in cash. They also said they don't consider what they did a scam. "If they buy me baby stuff and we go take it back for money, that's what I feel like scamming would actually be," Collins said. "We are actually going to use this stuff." They also said they plan to donate some of the gifts to a local women's shelter.
In a since-deleted Periscope video called "The Truth," Holmes said she never asked for gifts or money, and only tweeted the donation links when people asked her about them. "I didn't ask for shit," she said. "We didn't ask for it to go viral."
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