Matt Bergwall: Return to Sender
2/9/202643 min
When Matt Bergwall arrives at the University of Miami in the spring of 2021, he’s young, tech-savvy, and bored. After discovering a vulnerability in corporate refund systems, he turns it into a multimillion dollar scam that quietly siphons money from some of the world’s biggest corporations. Matt spends the stolen cash on designer clothes, luxury goods, and lavish vacations. But as the scheme grows, it catches the attention of a scammer-turned-FBI-informant tracking refund fraud online, setting off a chain of events that leads to Matt’s arrest and the collapse of his high-flying lifestyle.
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First 90 secondsSpeaker 00:00
[upbeat music] Wondering.
Scaachi Koul· Host0:04
Sarah, what is the lamest thing you've ever done to seem cool?
Sarah Hagi· Host0:10
Oh, my God, I- honestly, I feel grateful because I have three older siblings who really would make fun of me if I did something out of character. But I do remember once buying, like, something so ugly as a kid, begging my parents for it, because I was like, "This is, this is cool," and just, like, kind of feeling guilty about it after.
Scaachi Koul· Host0:31
Yeah.
Sarah Hagi· Host0:31
I don't think I've really done that a ton in my life, to be honest. I don't know. But I, I feel like maybe I've just buried it very deep down.
Scaachi Koul· Host0:39
I do have to admit that there was a long time where I think I fell into, like, the guy's girl trope. Like, I drank a lot of IPAs, and I'll never get that time back.
Sarah Hagi· Host0:47
Wow, you as a guy's girl is sending a chill down my spine.
Scaachi Koul· Host0:51
Can you imagine?
Sarah Hagi· Host0:52
I can't imagine you pandering [chuckles] to men.
Scaachi Koul· Host0:56
I, I learned a lesson pretty fast.
Sarah Hagi· Host0:59
[laughing] That's scary. I am so glad that that wasn't a long phase in your life.
Scaachi Koul· Host1:03
[chuckles] Mm, just a couple of minutes. Well, I'm asking because today I have a story for you about a scam artist who got into the game all because he was sick of being a dweeb. He wanted people to like him, and money was an easy shortcut. It's the origin story for a lot of villains, but somehow this one includes several more Rolexes. [door opening] It's 2022, and reformed cyber criminal Brett Johnson