A Manhattan psychic swindled a bipolar man out of more than $1 million by promising to rid him of his ‘dark spirits’ through pricey ‘arcane and occult’ rituals, a lawsuit filed on Sunday claimed.
William Young, from Brooklyn, lodged the legal complaint against psychic Shaina Samiel after she allegedly failed to find him a soul mate or rid him of dark spirits in the increasingly expensive rituals.
Samiel promised Young, who is bipolar and suffers with depression, that she could cure his mental health difficulties from her shop next to now-closed gay bar on W. 46th St called XoXo Bar, where they met.
Young paid Samiel $100,000 for the first ritual in May 2021 and later that month he made six payments in a single week, each worth between $1,000 and $20,000, according to the lawsuit filed on Sunday.
The pair became increasingly close and in June 2021, Young allegedly paid to lease a car for Samiel, who said she needed a vehicle to gather supplies for rituals and speak to her psychic ‘superiors’ for advice on his situation.
Young eventually ran out of money and started using his family’s joint bank account to fund Samiel’s rituals, pushing him to the brink of bankruptcy before filing a lawsuit against her.
William Young, from Brooklyn, has filed a lawsuit that claims Manhattan psychic Shaina Samiel swindled him of more than $1 million by promising to purge his ‘dark spirits’ in pricey rituals
Young met Samiel while working at the XoXo Bar next to her psychic shop in May 2021, according to the lawsuit.
The pair got closer as Young became a regular customer and Samiel, a self-described ‘spiritual guide’, offered to cure his mental health difficulties through a series of rituals.
‘Samiel told Young that his family was cursed by dark spirits and blamed them for his mental health difficulties,’ the lawsuit filed to the Manhattan Supreme Court reads.
READ RELATED: Melissa Rivers shares concerns over her son's mental health after losing her father to suicide
‘She claimed that the dark spirits were very strong and that so long as they were there, Young would not be able to find love or happiness or have a good relationship with his family.’
Samiel, who branded herself Young’s ‘spiritual mother’, also told him the positive power of her ‘arcane and occult’ spells would depend on the amount her paid for them – despite usually charging only $35 for a palm reading and $85 for a love reading.
Samiel promised Young, who is bipolar and suffers with depression, that she could cure his mental health difficulties from her shop in a now-closed gay bar on W. 46th St called XoXo Bar (pictured)
The complaint reads: ‘She told him that she could perform complex rituals that would help with the situation.
‘She said these rituals would help Young find a future soul mate and also put him in a better situation financially.’
In June 2021, Samiel asked Young to provide her with a car to ‘gather materials for rituals, and consult and contact “superiors” who were other psychics in her organization for consultation and advice about his situation,’ according to the lawsuit.
He put down $5,500 as a deposit and started paying a monthly fee to lease a car for Samiel from Carrio Motor Cars totaling $86,500.
The firm claimed it did not lease Samiel or Young the vehicle, and that it has never heard of either of them.
‘It sounds like a joke to be honest,’ owner Jacob Carrio told NY Daily News. ‘I’m actually chuckling hearing about this.’
Source: Daily Mail
