Wealth & Money Quote by Matthew Lesko

Lesko’s line has the rhythm of a streetwise warning disguised as plain talk: it’s not trying to sound profound, it’s trying to keep you from getting played. The bluntness is the point. “Many scammers” frames the threat as common, almost routine, and that casual scale is what makes it unsettling. You’re not hearing about a rare villain; you’re hearing about a familiar business model.

The specificity of “personal checks” matters because it’s an old-school object that still carries a whiff of legitimacy. A check feels formal, tangible, adult. Scammers lean on that nostalgia: people trust paperwork more than links, and they trust something that looks like banking more than something that looks like the internet. Lesko cuts through the veneer with a simple causal chain: “because” -> “take the money” -> “run.” No mystery, no intrigue, just the oldest con in the book. The phrase “take the money and run” is culturally loaded, a shorthand for moral cowardice and disposable identity; it turns the scammer into a hit-and-fade figure rather than a master manipulator.

As an entertainer known for consumer-adjacent advice, Lesko’s intent is partly educational, partly performative: deliver a memorable, repeatable line that makes you wary at the moment of transaction. Subtext: the scam isn’t only financial; it’s emotional. It exploits your desire to trust, to be polite, to assume good faith. His sentence gives you permission to be suspicious without feeling paranoid.