Rip-Off At The O.K. Corral: Tombstone Scammer Haunts Legendary Old West Town

Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday wouldn’t have taken kindly to Carol Malone, an alleged serial scammer whose latest target was visitors to the legendary old west town of Tombstone, site of the famous shoot-out at the O.K. Corral.

And it’s not just random visitors to Tombstone, but people that actually paid thousands of dollars to come to Tombstone to attend an event called “A Haunting of Tombstone” that allegedly crooked event planner Carol Malone had supposedly put together and promoted.

But instead of experiencing haunts, ghosts, or stories of Tombstone’s colorful past, “A Haunting of Tombstone” attendees arrived to find that Carol Malone had skipped town and taken their money, reports KVOA News.

The “Haunting of Tombstone” event was supposed to run last weekend, the pre-paying Tombstone tourists expecting presentations by paranormal experts, celebrities, and a reported “ghost tour.”

But the only ghost was Carol Malone, who cleared out of town, leaving the local Tombstone business owners to awkwardly explain the situation to the scammed tourists.

One of those businesses is Sister Paranormal Investigators, and co-owner Stacy Corbon didn’t hesitate to fire a few verbal shots at alleged outlaw Malone, particularly concerned how the bogus event might hurt the reputation of Tombstone.

“I felt that our town had been cheated. We thrive on people coming to our town. This lady (accepted money from) so many people. That could devastate Tombstone… We (were) counting on making this money. (We even turned away) other people that contacted us and wanted to come here for the weekend… because we were booked.”

While the jilted “Haunted Tombstone” guests spent Friday night scrambling for food, lodging and other amenities that were supposed to be included with their paranormal weekend in Tombstone, Carol Malone was reportedly hiding out in various Tombstone bars and hotels, reports the Examiner.

John Albrecht, a reporter for the Examiner, like a one man posse, caught up with Malone on Friday night, as she holed up in the Four Deuces Saloon in downtown Tombstone.

Malone had been trying to steer clear of the rightly ornery “Haunted Tombstone” guests, reportedly with the help of three Arizona Ranger bodyguards.

But once Albrecht had tracked her down, and Malone had to face the reporter’s questions, Malone burst into tears and cleared out of the saloon. She was apparently able to lay low and keep out of sight until Saturday afternoon, at which point she officially cancelled her already non-existent “A Haunting of Tombstone” event.

By this time, several of the disappointed Tombstone tourists had also filed reports with the law.

This prompted Tombstone Marshal John Houston to step up and arrest Malone on charges of “theft of services.”

But even with the cards stacked against her, Malone tried to pull one last ace from her sleeve to clear up the Tombstone calamity, saying, “The event happened but no one showed.”

But Marshal Houston would have none of it, saying Tombstone authorities are building the case against Malone that they’ll probably be turning it over to the Arizona State Attorney General.

In the end, it was Doc Holliday who once said, “Why should I obtain by force that which I can obtain by cheating?”

But for Carol Malone, this bit of wisdom from the Tombstone legend didn’t quite pan out.

[Image from Tombstone, via YouTube]