Whitby woman wants refund after giving psychic over $50,000 to help her fall in love

The woman believes she was misled and wants her money back, but she’s only received a partial refund. CTV’s Pat Foran reports for Consumer Alert.

A Whitby woman is sharing her experience as a warning to others after she said that she handed over $50,000 to a psychic who promised that she could help her start a romantic relationship with a man from her gym.

Joanne Whalen tells CTV News Toronto that she began visiting the psychic in the fall of 2013 after separating from her husband.

Whalen said that she had made a habit of visiting psychics over the years and always found it “fun and entertaining.”

This time, she said that she told the psychic she was interested in starting a new romance with a man she had noticed at her fitness club.

“When she did the reading, she found there was a man, and I said, ‘Yes there is a man I like at the gym.’ She told me, ‘I can bring this man closer to you for $550,’” said Whalen.

Intrigued, Whalen paid the money, but what followed in the months after were repeated requests for more payments to make the love connection happen.

“I transferred $12,000 to $15,000 but she wanted cash, so I was dropping off lots and lots of cash at her house,” said Whalen.

Whalen said she was also asked to buy gold bars at Costco which were to be used in ceremonies with candles to help make the romance blossom.

In total, Whalen said she gave the psychic $50,232 over the course of about one year, but the romance never happened.

“I said to her, ‘If everything is going so great why isn’t anything happening? I’m paying you thousands and thousands of dollars and I’m getting nothing,‘” said Whalen.

Whalen said she now believes she was misled and wants her money back.

“I was so trapped in it mentally because I was so scared,” said Whalen.

Whalen gave the money to a psychic named Julia who has an office over an Oshawa area flooring store at 369 King Street West near Park Road South.

When CTV News showed up at the office, the door was locked but the psychic who identified herself as Julia answered the phone.

We told her that Whalen had said that she felt she was misled into paying $50,000 and she wants her money back.

Julia told CTV News she had provided services Whalen was willing to pay for and the romance didn’t happen because Whalen did not follow instructions.

“She didn’t complete the work, that is the problem. Everything she wanted I gave her. She wanted different services and that’s what I gave her,” said Julia the psychic.

However, when contacted by CTV News, Julia said she was willing to give Whalen her money back.

“She is not happy, she is not satisfied, so I’m giving her money back,” Julia told us.

Whalen said she met with the psychic and a payment plan was arranged, but so far she has only received $2,000 back and is concerned about getting the rest.

Whalen also wanted to share her story to warn others.

“I just couldn’t believe this happened to me, that I was part of it,” said Whalen.

Police have issued warnings in the past to watch out for psychics who claim they can help you see the future or fall in love and beware of anyone charging large amounts of money to remove spells or perform witchcraft.

“I would say don’t start anything with a psychic because once you start, it’s a trap,” Whalen told CTV News Toronto.