Dozens of people who say they paid a Georgia woman thousands of dollars for ‘hardship grants’ in the midst of a crisis claim they were instead swindled out of their money.
Natasha Hodge, of Atlanta, is a tax preparer and business owner who promised to help people across several states obtain grants – for a fee – to assist them in elevating their financial stressors, WSBTV 2 reported.
However, those who paid Hodge, who is not charged with a crime, more than $10,000 in fees said they never saw a penny back in return.
‘You got these people’s money, you gave these people hope where you had no idea, you had no plan of doing anything to help any of us,’ Arlene Ingram, who claims she fell victim to the scheme after a serious car accident took away her ability to work, told the outlet.
‘I’m hurt. I’m hurt,’ she added. ‘But my main thing is, she’s still doing it.’
WSB-TV Atlanta was able to contact at least 23 people across seven states who were allegedly fleeced by Hodge after they hoped she would help them during their time of need.
‘It was going to help care for my son,’ Mary Hoyle, who was trying to find a way to afford her son’s cancer treatments, said.
‘When my son got sick, I started learning a lot of things were not covered,’ she added.
A year and a half later, Hoyle said she still hasn’t seen any of her promised funds.
‘And my son passed away September 22, 2024,’ she said.
Alleged text messages from Hodge were reviewed by the outlet, in which she explained just how simple the entire process would be.
Those applying would allegedly get access to more money after paying Hodge a fee through payment apps.
Additional grant money was promised for each family member or friend the victims recommended go to her for help.
‘You were paying a processing fee for her to fill out the grants for you,’ Hoyle said. ‘Because she knew the verbiage to get the grants to come through.’
Overall, those who were allegedly taken advantage of claimed that they were promised more than $5.6 million in grants.
‘I was hurting for money,’ Ingram said. ‘I didn’t have any money coming in except my Social Security. And I needed help. I was living off my credit cards.’
‘I would of paid off my credit cards,’ Ingram added. ‘I would help my grandkids.’
Hodge claimed that the grant money would be coming from the Black Coalition Foundation.
However, there is no nonprofit registered with the IRS under that name. The email address for the organization also bounced back.
The URL of the group she claimed was providing the grant money belonged to the Baltimore Community Foundation, apparently a different group entirely.
The nearly two dozen people who applied for the ‘hardship grant’ became suspicious when day after they say a day passed with no returned money, funds that they desperately needed.
Hodge, who has has posted many photographs to social media flaunting various luxury items, gave excuse after excuse during phone calls with her victims, those who believe they were swindle claimed.
‘The payouts are still coming,’ one would say. ‘It’s moving faster,’ another claimed. ‘Could be anytime now.’
Eventually, her excuses allegedly turned into threats. In the alleged text messages, Hodge insulted those who paid her, saying that ‘when they blow through it and be right back broke, they better not dare call me.’
‘BBL and hair and clothes is all they want,’ Hodge wrote. ‘I have a team of attorneys, people can do what they feel, it’s only the broke people talking s***.’
When Channel 2 Consumer Investigator Justin Gray showed up at Hodge’s home to question the alleged scam, she shut the front door in his face before he even finished his sentence.
A man, who goes by ‘OG Slick’, silently walked outside to shoo Gray off of his property.
The man then answered a call from Gray, who refused to put Hodge on the phone to answer any questions.
In addition to claiming to be Hodge’s manager, his Facebook page says he is also her husband. His real name appears to be Tony Orso.
Orso is a DJ, mixtape host, owner of a landscaping company, digital designer and promoter, according to his profile.
He goes under the name ‘DJ Trap’ or ‘OG Slick’ when promoting new music to his Spotify and YouTube channels.
In a post shared to Instagram, Orso marketed ‘Tasha’s Business and Services’ to his followers.
Pay statements, bank statements, websites, account management, professional documents, resumes and taxes are just some of the ‘services’ Hodge allegedly provides.
According to Hodge’s LinkedIn profile, she works at Frontline Selling, a ‘top-tier lead generation’ company ‘recognized for helping businesses streamline revenue operations and achieve optimal growth,’ according to the website.
Apparently, Hodge creates ‘authentic sales conversations that matter’ within her role at the company.
Though the FBI is aware of the scam allegations, they won’t comment on whether or not an investigation into the scam exists, a spokesperson for the department told Channel 2 News.
Ingram said she was promised $250,000. Hoyle said she was promised $300,000. Both women are just two of Hodge’s alleged victims who say they never saw a dime.
Nevertheless, Hodge is allegedly still marketing loan and grand opportunities through text messages. She claimed that the grants are now funded by a ‘new organization’ where she is in ‘complete charge.’
The FBI, Hodge and Orso didn’t immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s requests for comment.