'Love Fraud': Shocking end to Richard Scott Smith's story promises to leave you feeling unsettled
The last three episodes of 'Love Fraud' gave us a peek into all the atrocities committed by Richard Scott Smith. From preying on lonely women and robbing them to physical abuse, Smith has done it all. So, when the women scorned by him decided to seek justice, they enlisted the help of female bounty hunter — Carla.
Carla was so disturbed on hearing about Smith's crimes against women that she made it her personal mission to ensure that the women got their justice and Smith paid the price for his deeds. As Smith continued travelling to various parts of the country conning women, a network of private investigators working with Carla and the women were tailing Smith and documenting his every move.
They were left feeling shell-shocked when they discovered that Smith was juggling three women simultaneously. The investigators decided that it was time to end Smith's game and tipped off the police about a fugitive (Smith) and helped them catch him. We have to admit that it was cathartic watching him being hauled away by the police while Carla and the ladies celebrated their victory.
Finally, it was time for Smith's hearing. During the trial, the women came forward to share their harrowing experience of being married to Smith and the abuse they faced in his hands. After hearing all the accounts, the judge sentences him to 180 days in prison. The women were beyond happy about it, although Carla wasn't very pleased. She rightfully predicted that Smith would be back on the streets in no time once again preying on women and taking advantage of them. She blamed the broken legal system for it.
Meanwhile, we saw Smith in prison and heard him speaking to producer Rachel. He agreed to meet Rachel to share his side of the story. During their interaction, Smith insisted that he is totally innocent and it was a witch-hunt against him. He cites the example of President Trump to prove how there are many allegations against people, including him.
According to him, he never scammed the women because he spent all the money on them. We have to hand it to the producer for keeping her calm when Smith proudly declared that he forgave the women and her for putting him behind the bars and revealed he prayed for them all.
Towards the end, we are shown footage of Smith after his prison sentence. He can be seen in a pool with a woman. In the background, we hear a voice-over of Smith saying he is looking for love and just wants to be loved. This chilling end to Smith's story left us feeling rather uneasy since it suggests that as Carla predicted he is back to his predatory ways.
'Love Fraud' aired on Showtime.
