ATLANTA — Dozens of people are out thousands of dollars, and they blame a woman running companies in metro Atlanta.
Channel 2 investigative reporter Sophia Choi spent weeks looking into the woman and the charges against her.
Choi first started investigating Angela Hasan after getting calls from people who were getting evicted after joining a program called Hasan 2nd Chance.
It turned out this was just the tip of the iceberg when it came to complaints against her.
“A mother of thieves,” said Chris Atkins.
“I literally wanted to wring her neck, said Angela Harris.
“She lied,” said Cheryl Henderson.
These are just some of the people who said Angela Hasan is a skilled talker.
Some lost their homes, others their livelihood.
They all said she took their money to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars.
“Oh, she probably got me out $100,000 plus,” Pastor James Hunter said.
He met Hasan through his ministry when she started showing up at his Gwinnett County church.
Within months, the pastor said she not only had his money but some of his parishioners’ money too.
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“She used us as a face to get others that was connected to me,” Hunter said.
Hasan made a lot of connections through her businesses in metro Atlanta including the Dr. Angela Hasan Training Center, Correspond Write Now, and Hasan 2nd Chance.
“My wife and I were basically just in tears,” said Jim Latorre.
The 75-year-old said he lost his dream to Hasan when he lost his farm.
“The farm was located in the Smoky Mountains,” Latorre said.
He said Hasan said she had her own lending institution and promised him a small business loan, but never delivered, forcing him to sell for cheap to avoid foreclosure.
“She really knows how to make you believe in her. And she’s good at it. She’s really, really, really good at it,” Latorre said.
So good, he said, she almost got him to sign bogus tax returns showing him making $800,000.
“And I said, ‘I can’t sign these. These aren’t real,’ and she says, ‘Don’t worry, I’m an enrolling agent with the IRS,’” Latorre said.
Angela Harris, Ph. D. said Hasan told her she could help with her nonprofit Black People United.
Instead, Harris said she lost thousands to Hasan.
“She promised me that I at least get $7,000 a month from the programs,” Harris said.
“Have you seen any of that money?” asked Choi.
“Not one dollar,” Harris said.
Hasan is facing 16 theft by deception charges in Clayton County, all related to her Hasan 2nd Chance program.
The warrants state she stole $38,664 from families looking for eviction help.
Choi met Cansas Williams, a mother of five, in Jonesboro as she was getting evicted in September after joining the program.
“You have my money, so why don’t they have their money? You know?” Williams said.
A woman named Danielle said she too will lose her home after seeing a flyer on Facebook and joining Hasan 2nd Chance.
“You took the money and not even willing to give it back. No contact or message. How could you do that to me?” Danielle said.
Cheryl Henderson said Hasan ghosted her too after promising to help with her cleaning business for a $3,000 deposit.
Henderson said that killed her business and now she and her kids are about to be homeless.
“You ought to be ashamed of yourself for what you do to people. You don’t know how hard it is out here to survive,” Henderson said.
Choi went by the Hasan 2nd Chance office in Clayton County and found a locked gate. She also went by her former office in Buckhead where Hunter used to hold meetings with Hasan.
“Don’t fool with Angela Hasan,” Hunter said.
Choi tried to get an interview with Hasan who is in the Clayton County Jail. The county said she has yet to be assigned a public defender.
Hasan has a court date on Dec. 2.
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