The Watchdog Watched: Is Be Scofield a Cult Survivor or a Manipulator in Disguise?

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Be Scofield brands herself as a “prominent cult reporter” — a fearless investigator of spiritual abuse, guru manipulation, and alternative movements gone rogue.

She runs a platform called Guru Magazine, where she’s published viral exposés on controversial figures like Sadhguru, Amma, Teal Swan, Bentinho Massaro, and other so-called transformational leaders who run what can be politely called cults.

But after a strange and ultimately unproductive encounter with her, I feel it’s time someone turned the lens back on her.

This blog is my attempt to do just that — and to invite others who’ve had similar experiences to share what they know.

This blog is not an exposé on cults — it’s about the cult reporter herself. If you’ve had experiences with Be Scofield, I want to hear your story.

Our Encounter: The SmartLab Twist

Be first contacted me through Instagram, claiming she had just met a man in a park who said he lost $140,000 in SmartLab International — a scam I’ve been actively exposing. She seemed passionate about uncovering the truth. She said, “It’s such a scam, everything about it,” and asked if I’d collaborate or share more evidence. Thinking back on it I am not sure if I believe her story of having met a SmartLab victim randomly in the park. It feels like the whole thing was a ruse to get me to engage.

The initial contact quickly grew to over 200 WhatsApp messages.

At first, I thought she was a fellow scam-buster. But as the conversation wore on, her agenda became murky. She began pressing me to remove the name of Jacqueline Van Auken from my blog, shifting the focus away from SmartLab and onto editorial control over my work. Despite claiming she wanted to write an article, her behavior became emotionally manipulative, contradictory, and — ironically — gaslighty.

Eventually, I blocked her from being able to contact me.

The Red Flags in Her Behavior

What’s most disturbing isn’t just that the collaboration fell apart — it’s how she behaved like the very people she claims to expose:

  • She gaslit, deflected, and emotionally escalated whenever challenged.
  • She twisted the narrative to protect someone who played a role in SmartLab, rather than prioritizing victims.
  • Her tactics resembled the manipulative strategies often used by cult recruiters themselves ironically.

This raises questions: Was this just burnout? Or is there a deeper pattern here?

Who is Be Scofield, Really?

Be’s work has been published in HuffPost, Medium, and various New Age exposé sites she claims. Her most high-profile articles include:

  • “Bentinho Massaro: The Sedona Cult Leader”
  • “Teal Swan: The Controversial Guru”
  • “How to Spot a Cult Leader”

She presents herself as a queer, biracial trans woman and a survivor of abuse and cult-like environments, giving her a moral high ground in her writing. But little is known about her formal credentials, journalism training, or legal identity. “Be Scofield” may be a pseudonym. She does not appear to operate under a registered media organization beyond the self-published GuruMag.com.

This blog isn’t a deep dive into her past — it’s a public record of my own experience with her, and a call for others to come forward if they’ve seen similar behavior. No more digging, no more evidence gathering — this post stands on its own.

What Does Be Scofield Actually Write About?

To understand Be Scofield’s worldview and motivations, it’s helpful to look at the kind of stories she publishes. According to her author profile on MuckRack and her self-run site The Guru Magazine, Scofield focuses almost exclusively on cults, spiritual abuse, mysticism, and fringe ideologies — often blending investigative claims with deeply personal storytelling.

Her work includes exposés on:

  • Love Has Won (Mother God cult) — her reporting became the foundation for an HBO docuseries (she claims, I couldn’t find any links)
  • Sadhguru — accused of sexual misconduct, coercion, and cultic initiation practices
  • Kundalini Yoga — featured in HBO’s Breath of Fire
  • Ecstatic Dance, Amma’s ashram, Reggie Ray’s Crestone cult, Teal Swan, and others
  • “The Doomsday Messiah” leading the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light

While she positions herself as a cult watchdog, many of her stories carry a sensational, mystical tone — describing “dark portals,” ET contact, psychic visions, and spiritual warfare. She often inserts herself into the narrative as a nomadic seeker, led by astrology or intuition into uncovering the next abusive spiritual empire. This is unusual and not something cult busters should ideally be doing.

Some see this as courageous frontline journalism. Others may view it as self-mythologizing — an emotional, highly personalized approach to reporting that sometimes blurs the line between evidence and experience.

Either way, it’s clear that Scofield is deeply embedded in the world she critiques. And that raises a bigger question: can someone so immersed in spiritual storytelling be trusted to objectively investigate spiritual abuse?

I’m Not Against Independent Journalists — I Am One

Let me be clear: I’m not here to attack independent journalism. I am an independent investigator — a foot soldier in a battle against scammers, fraudsters, and MLM predators operating in unregulated grey zones. I’m not standing in a newsroom with a press badge — I’m in the trenches.

What I do isn’t always pretty, I’m fighting a war that’s being waged behind the scenes — in shady Telegram chats, slick Zoom webinars, and false promises of “passive income.” There’s no point bringing a knife to a gunfight.

I’m not here to just “report stories.” I’m here to fight back — head-on, publicly, and relentlessly.

And here’s my message to everyone reading this: your associations matter.

If you align yourself with people running or promoting Ponzi schemes, you will be dragged down with them. Be careful what events you attend. Be mindful of what Zoom meetings you sit in on. And more importantly, monitor your clients — don’t let them become bait for the next scam.

The glitz, the travel, the fast money — it’s all a façade. These scam leaders thrive on appearances. But behind the luxury is a trail of wrecked finances, broken trust, and desperate victims. If you’re not vigilant, you’ll find yourself smeared into the same get-rich-quick, crypto-hype, MLM fantasy communities they operate in.

Behind the Persona: Burnout, Ego, and Imposter Syndrome?

In 2018, Be Scofield published a raw and emotional post announcing she was stepping away from writing indefinitely due to burnout. She described herself as “tired,” “repelled” by her spiritual materials, and emotionally drained by the intensity of her own reporting. She claimed she had sold nearly all her possessions and was retreating into meditation, yoga, and energy work. At the time, she also deactivated her social media.

The post reads like someone experiencing deep emotional fatigue, spiritual disillusionment, and possibly imposter syndrome — desperately trying to convince the world (and perhaps herself) that she is a real, validated journalist.

And now, years later, her Instagram is filled with graphics listing every media outlet that’s ever echoed her name apparently — Netflix, CNN, VICE, Playboy, The Washington Post. While impressive on the surface, it also feels like a defensive posture, an attempt to shield herself from ongoing criticism about her methods, credibility, or even her identity as a journalist.

When someone needs this much external validation, it’s worth asking: what are they trying to compensate for?

In my experience, she projected a lot of control, defensiveness, and emotional volatility — characteristics that can easily turn toxic in collaborative investigations. Traits, ironically, that mimic the same cult psychology she claims to want to dismantle.

The Book: Hunting Lucifer — Journalism or Spiritual Mythmaking?

In 2022, Be Scofield published a memoir titled Hunting Lucifer: One Reporter’s Search for Cults and Demons, available on Amazon:

The book — which sits somewhere between memoir, cult investigation, and spiritual odyssey — has been described as “Into the Wild meets Stranger Things.” It details her personal journey through years of exposing groups like Bentinho Massaro, Teal Swan, Love Has Won (Mother God), Mooji, Agama Yoga, and more. The story unfolds with mystics, astrologers, and intuitives guiding her to locations “on her birthday,” where cult stories magically appear. I didn’t read the book! I don’t plan to either.

She claims to have been told she was “sent to close a dark portal” over Crestone, Colorado and that she’s working with “ETs.” The book also explores her time living in a van, doing yoga in sacred sites, and seeking guidance from angels while “being hunted” by dark forces.

Hunting Lucifer currently holds a 4.2-star rating from 29 reviews. Some readers call it “fascinating,” while others see it as a spiritual detective story with a heavy layer of self-mythologizing.

It’s worth reading if you want to understand the narrative Be Scofield tells about herself — especially as it contrasts with the way she conducts herself in real-world interactions. Her reporting may have value, but it’s important to view it through the lens of someone who blends investigative journalism with personal mysticism, and who increasingly appears to see herself not just as a reporter — but as a chosen spiritual warrior on a mission.

Why This Blog Exists: A Call for Transparency (and Accountability)

Let’s be honest — we can’t keep doing the same thing and expect different results. That’s insanity. What we need isn’t just more reporting — we need action. We need hard-hitting accountability and at times, shock treatment to wake people up to the reality:

It is not okay to associate with people who are running, promoting, or even subtly endorsing scams, get-rich-quick, multilevel marketing, or crypto-based scam schemes.

These aren’t harmless little opportunities. They are financial traps wrapped in glitz, jargon, and false hope — and too many people are getting pulled in because everyone’s too polite to call them out.

This blog isn’t here to stir drama — it’s here to shake the tree.

If you’ve had interactions with Be Scofield that echo what I’ve described — where manipulation, pressure, or controlling behavior surfaced under the banner of “independent journalism” — I want to hear from you.

And in the spirit of fairness, we also welcome a right of reply from Be Scofield, or anyone named in this blog. If you’d like to respond, I will publish your message unedited beneath this article.

Because at the end of the day, we all want to be professional — right?

But here’s the real question: Is being professional going to wake people up? Or do we need to hit harder, speak louder, and call out the hypocrisy when we see it?

That’s what I’m here to do. And if you’ve got a story to share — my inbox is open.

About the Author

Danny de Hek, also known as The Crypto Ponzi Scheme Avenger, is a New Zealand-based investigative journalist specializing in exposing crypto fraud, Ponzi schemes, and MLM scams. His work has been featured by Bloomberg, The New York Times, The Guardian Australia, ABC News Australia, and other international outlets.

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