Left: Amy Downs (Limestone Sheriff’s Office). Right: Downs, known on TikTok as slotmachinequeen or slot_7.0, allegedly scammed people out of nearly $1 million after running a fake charity (TikTok).
Alabama authorities arrested a TikTok influencer who allegedly collected nearly $1 million under the guise of a charity for domestic violence victims and the homeless.
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The Limestone County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release that it began investigating 57-year-old Amy Dianne Elmore Downs, known on TikTok as Slotmachinequeen or Slot_7.0, in October after receiving complaints about a fraudulent charity. According to cops, Downs was accepting funds for her “charity” via her PayPal, CashApp and Venmo accounts. She allegedly claimed the funds were going to a charity that benefited the homeless and domestic violence survivors. The problem? There was no charity, deputies said. No such organization existed with the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, per cops.
Downs reportedly received donations from throughout the United States and around the world. Despite not having any job since 2020, Downs deposited nearly $1 million into her bank account, authorities said.
AL.com reported that TikTok user trey-street helped blow the whistle on Downs. He spoke to one of Downs’ victims who also is a domestic violence survivor in a TikTok Box chat in late September.
“I have beat myself up for over a week,” the woman said. “I had to call and explain to my husband what I had done. That was probably the most embarrassing and hardest part… It was a cause dear to me.”
The woman had harsh words for Downs.
“If she don’t meet the judge on this side of the earth, she’s gonna meet it on the other, and I wouldn’t want to be in either spot,” she said.
Detectives put together the investigation and issued seven counts of first-degree charitable fraud and three counts of tax evasion. The investigation is still ongoing
From cops:
The Limestone County Sheriff’s Office urges anyone with information or concerns about potential fraudulent activity involving Downs to come forward. If you believe you may have been a victim or have relevant information, please email the Criminal Investigation Division at the following: [email protected]
