Sounak Sengupta
NBC’s ‘Dateline: The Mystery Man’ chronicles how a survivor, Mischele Lewis, fought back after being conned by a serial fraudster in New Jersey in 2013-14. Determined to bring her fraudulent former fiancé down and stop him from victimizing other women, she went through weeks of nerve-jangling as she mounted up a home sting operation. She continues to fight for the victims even after the conman was sentenced, and if you wish to know more about her journey, we’ve your back.
Who is Mischele Lewis?
A Florence Township, New Jersey resident Mischele Lewis met William Allen Jordan on a dating platform in January 2013. Over the next few days, she learned how William, who told her he went by Liam Allen, joined the British military. She also learned how the UK Ministry of Defence recruited him because of his high intelligence and versatile skill sets. Liam told her he had eventually returned to his native town of Cherry Hill, New Jersey, to reconnect with his parents and look to settle down.
Intrigued by his incredible story, Mischele met with Liam after corresponding with him through emails for a few weeks. She recollected, “We sat on a bench, talked, and the conversation flowed wonderfully. We would laugh; he was funny. He would reach out and caress my hand or leg — it was affectionate, not creepy.” She added, “Time completely flew by. We parted ways, and agreed that we would make time for each other really soon.” Liam told her he had something important to inform her of within two months of their involvement.
By May 2013, Mischele was in love, and Liam told her she required a security clearance if they wanted to be together. Thus followed months of correspondence from unknown people posing as government agents over the phone as they asked for her and her family’s details, a ‘voice digital fingerprint,’ and multiple financial transfers amounting to $1,300. Mischele recounted how stressful the whole exercise was and with Liam often disappearing for months end, she was disenchanted with the relationship by January 2014.
Mischele Lewis Continues to Seek Justice for Fraud Victims Today
However, she found she was pregnant, and within weeks discovered another startling piece of information — her fiancé was not who he claimed to be. Mischele recalled, “Nights and weekends he was unavailable because he was on duty. One day he’d been at my house. Normally he never left his personal belongings behind, ever. But he left his wallet on the table. I don’t know what made me do it, it was a gut feeling, but I did it.” She opened the wallet and found an ID card that belonged to William Allen Jordan.
Mischele googled her fiancé in February 2014, and the first website which came up was lovefraud.com. Her stomach churned as she went through the site and found she was reading her own story back “almost verbatim.” However, Mischele quickly overcame her heartbreak and focused on bringing ‘Liam’ to justice. She said, “I knew he would turn around and do it to somebody else, and quickly. Somehow I needed to stop him.” Liaising with Florence Township and Cherry Hill police, she recorded William with a secret camera.
She filmed him admitting to defrauding her of £2,000 — enough evidence to bring him down. Mischele eventually set up a meeting with him in the parking lot of a Cherry Hill, New Jersey, store on April 22, 2014. From behind the store counter, Mischele saw authorities arresting the fraudster. She said, “I feel relieved now. I don’t have to pretend anymore. I’m trying to be hopeful that this will bring other victims forward.” In her victim impact statement, she later stated, “Will I ever trust another man? I don’t know.”
While he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to three years, she did not think it was enough and wanted him prosecuted for a sex crime. She teamed up with a local lawmaker, Troy Singleton, in an attempt to make it illegal to dupe someone into having sex in New Jersey. Mischele said, “I want to give society more of a chance to feel safe from predators like him.” Now in her early 40s, she lives in New Jersey, doting over her teen children, and continuing to fight for victims of such fraud.
Read More: Liam Allen: Where is the Con Man Now?
