‘Fraudster’ makes bombshell admission to Mica Miller’s grieving family

Mica Miller’s family is furious a scammer kept $10,000 from fundraisers set up in her memory to feed a booze addiction and save her house.

Mica, 30, was found dead in Lumbee River State Park in North Carolina on April 27 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

She took her own life days after serving her husband John Paul Miller, 44, with divorce papers, and police ruled her death a suicide.

As her family grappled with the tragedy, a group of seemingly well-wishing women donated items to an online auction set up by Susan Lynn Nelson.

It sold handmade craft, promising to send all proceeds to Mica’s grieving family, and an Etsy page sold T-shirts and other Mica-themed items.

But instead, Nelson kept the cash for herself, spending the money on booze, groceries, and keeping her house out of foreclosure.

She eventually confessed in a TikTok video to taking about $10,000 raised by the four auctions, a keychain sale, and an Etsy page that has since been deleted.

Nelson admitted her actions were ‘absolutely vile’ and confessed to the ‘things that I’ve done that’ve been pretty s****y’.

Susan Lynn Nelson (left) admitted during a group TikTok call (pictured) to stealing the proceeds of an Etsy auction of donated craft items that was supposed to raise money for Mica’s family

‘Yes I have an issue and I am seeking treatment. I’m outpatient right now,’ she said.

‘I didn’t have the money, I had used the money to my personal situation. I’m here to own up to my mistakes, I’ve got issues that I am seeking help for… there’s a habit, yes,’ she said.

Nelson set up the auction through the popular TikTok group So Called Mess, where she was the ‘bookkeeper’, without the family’s knowledge. 

Cassie Gainey Mincey, from Loris, South Carolina, who runs the group, said the rest of its leadership had no involvement in Nelson’s fundraiser.

‘I lied to them, I made them feel like I have everything under control, when in reality I did not,’ Nelson said of the other group leaders. 

Nelson initially claimed she stole the money because her house was facing foreclosure, but eventually admitted to also blowing it on her addictions.

Mincey added: ‘I want to make it clear that every fundraiser was Sue’s idea and every single thing that was done as far as fundraising went only to Sue’s accounts.

‘She admitted that she spent the money on sex work and alcohol. She first tried to claim it was for her home but then confessed and said that it was not that.’ 

Nelson told DailyMail.com she never hired prostitutes, and had no idea where that accusation came from – which prompted awkward conversations with her 17-year-old daughter.

Nelson initially claimed she stole the money because her house was facing foreclosure, but eventually admitted to also blowing it on her addictions

Instead, she portrayed herself as starting out with good intentions and never planning to scam anyone. 

But as her debts rose, she started spending it – thinking she would be able to pay it back in time and no one would ever know.

‘I would never have gone into this with the intent of doing anything like this. It was just one thing after another after another… I fell into it,’ she said.

‘I’m a functional alcoholic, that’s been something that I’ve struggled with my whole life.

‘It doesn’t mean I’m drunk all the time, you know, I wasn’t down here drunk on the floor, spending thousands of dollars every day.   

‘But I did spend the money on personal things and bills or whatever. I’ve been struggling financially because of my business.

‘I just assumed that I would be able to recoup it.’

Nelson said the debacle got her fired from her job, trashed the reputation of her marketing business, and humiliated her in her small-town Richmond Hill, Georgia.

‘My kids are receiving hate messages and I don’t wanna go out in public right now,’ she said.

Nelson said she drastically underestimated the time and upfront costs it would take to run the Etsy page and auctions.

‘I got overwhelmed. Making the items, shipping the items, being online all day. It was a lot,’ she said.

Mica took her own life days after serving her husband John Paul Miller, 44, with divorce papers, and police ruled her death a suicide

Nelson first ran a sale of dozens of handmade, customized resin keychains, bracelets, earrings, and other craft items she created herself.

Then there were four auctions in June and July that sold more of these craft items, plus other goods donated by herself and others, including furniture, $200 brand new Nike shoes, and a crocheted blanket.

The Etsy store ran in the background, but had high costs both due to the platform and using third-party companies to print the T-shirts.

Nelson said Etsy didn’t send all the proceeds for three months because it was a new page, putting her out of pocket to pay the costs.

She said all up about $10,000 was raised, from which fees and shipping costs would be subtracted, along with $1,500 in refunds to disgruntled buyers that she promised to cover herself.

She also owed about $2,000 to other So Called Mess moderators who loaned her money to help cover the 90-day Etsy delay.

‘I worked tirelessly to facilitate fundraising for the family of my familiar, including setting up systems to and for them to manage future efforts,’ she said.

‘Any unintentional mistakes I’ve made were never malicious and I’m taking steps to ensure all funds are accounted for and deliver to the family.

‘The experience has been incredibly challenging, but my focus remains on resolving these situations and protecting my family’s well being.’

Nelson also rebuffed claims of police involvement, saying ‘there’s been no police at my door, there’s been no FBI at my door’.

Nelson said the debacle got her fired from her job, trashed the reputation of her marketing business, and humiliated her in her small-town Richmond Hill, Georgia

Mica’s sister Abigail Francis said she first learned of the fundraiser on July 20, and asked Nelson for details of the donations.

‘I asked for spreadsheets to make sure those who paid for items were receiving them since this group has up to 30 members in all different states,’ she wrote in a Facebook post explaining the situation.

Abigail received a spreadsheet with names of buyers, how much they paid, and other details – but said the numbers didn’t add up.

The spreadsheet claimed $11,228.39 was raised. The costs were listed as $6,250.36. 

When Abigail queried the huge cost, Nelson’s web of lies began to unravel.

Mincey, in live TikTok videos that were hours long, explained they initially believed Nelson’s explanations about the missing cash.

‘Every time we would reach out to her we would get lies from her about situations and we believed her,’ she said.

‘We believed everything that she said and so we did defend her and I do apologize for that.’

Nelson even concocted a fake letter from an accountant showing a check was sent to Mica’s family – when in fact none was sent at all.

But the date on the forged document was wrong, and she finally confessed when they pushed her about it.

‘We finally got her on a call and she admitted that she never sent the money, and that she spent the money,’ Mincey said.

Mica’s sister Abigail received a spreadsheet (pictured) with names of buyers, how much they paid, and other details – but said the numbers didn’t add up

Nelson portrayed herself as starting out with good intentions and never planning to scam anyone

Mincey said the group kept what happened quiet until going public as they tried to refund anyone who paid for auctioned items and didn’t receive them.

‘It’s been hell, it’s been an absolute f**king nightmare… we were throwing up, I was sobbing, bawling – we were in total shock,’ she said.

Nelson said in the TikTok she had a cash offer for her house that would close the following Friday, which would use to pay off what she owed Mica’s family.

But she told DailyMail.com she later decided against the fire-sale offer.

Instead, she managed to restructure her loans to buy her enough time to sell the house for what it was worth, and it would be listed next week.

Nelson bought the three-bedroom, two-bathroom house in Richmond Hill, Georgia, for $164,117 in November 2019 and refinanced in three times in four years.

Property records showed a foreclosure auction of Nelson’s home set for October 10 was cancelled. It is estimated to be worth $293,000.

Abigail wrote that she was not satisfied with how the situation was handled, and that the family had only received $180 as of October 6.

‘These people used Mica’s name to gain profit and we cannot be more disappointed,’ she wrote.

‘We truly do not believe there is a way to track on our end how much money was collected, transferred, or stolen.

‘The family had no idea what was going on but are truly upset with the actions of this incident.

‘We did not plan on making a statement pertaining to this but since the group made it public we feel the need to clarify what’s been going on as we do not condone what has happened on the live stream.’

Mincey, in an emotional TikTok video, insisted the group had no idea about the scam until Nelson confessed to Mica’s family on September 24.

‘That was the day that we all found out that we were scammed… we had been lied to, we had been used, we were a wreck that day,’ she said.

‘I was so upset and distraught by it all… that someone we had trusted betrayed us so badly.

‘The family has people in their ears who do not have good intentions.’

Mica shot herself in the head in April, which led to a wave of allegations of abuse in the weeks later. Authorities have not indicated any connection between Miller and his wife’s suicide 

Mica and Miller initially split on September 20 2023, before the divorce was dismissed on February 13.

Later that same month Miller filed against his wife for separate support and maintenance in a motion withdrawn March 11.

But on April 15, just 12 days before she was found dead, Mica filed for divorce once more and sought a no contact order against her husband. They split for the second time on February 6.

Autopsy results, including a muzzle imprint and gunpowder residue on her head, later confirmed she took her own life, and found no drugs or alcohol in her blood.

However, Miller is accused in court documents of grooming Mica for years before they wed, committing her to hospital to steal her car, and cheating on his first wife with underage churchgoers.

DailyMail.com previously revealed how she accused him of posting a nude photograph of her on Facebook just weeks before her death.

Miller has since admitted to the malicious act and even claimed he tried to make amends – telling NewsNation the act was ‘evil’.

Later on March 14 and March 26 Mica reported that she had found a tracking device on her car, after discovering it attached by magnets under the chassis.

Another police report over the alleged theft of her silver Honda Accord shows the breakdown of their marriage dating back to February 2023.

‘When the complainant was discharged from the hospital, hospital staff informed her that her husband picked up her purse and her keys,’ the report states.

‘The complainant believed that her husband fraudulently initiated her involuntary hospitalization and ‘stole’ her care while she was in the hospital.’

On April 15, just 12 days before she was found dead, Mica filed for divorce once more and sought a no contact order against her husband. They split for the second time on February 6

The most salacious claim in Mica’s police reports was that Miller, who is 14 years older than her, ‘groomed’ her since she was 10, before they married in 2017.

‘The complainant stated that she has known her husband since she was ten-years-old and that he ‘groomed’ her while she worked for him at Solid Rock Church until they were married,’ the report added.

Miller’s lawyer Russel Long said this ‘couldn’t be farther from the truth. She moved to Myrtle Beach at the age of 15, was married to another man at the age of 18 and divorced at the age of 21’.

‘It has come to light that Mica Miller struggled with mental illness, specifically bipolar disorder, which, when not properly managed, led to paranoid episodes and self-destructive behavior,’ he said.

Long claimed ‘some reports made by her in the recent past are nonsensical’ in reference to her claims recorded in police documents.

Long added that Mica’s death being ruled a suicide by police ‘completely exonerates Pastor Miller of any wrongdoing’.

Mica’s sister Sierra Francis told NewsNation she probably meant Miller groomed her since 2010, as her sister told her it began when she was 14 or 15.

Sierra, despite being one of Miller’s strongest accusers, reached a shock settlement with him in July to allow him to manage his late wife’s estate.

Miller stunned his congregants when, after a service in which he had laughed and appeared entirely at ease, he announced that his wife had died. 

Miller was charged with third-degree assault and battery earlier this month after allegedly attacking a ‘Justice for Mica’ protester 

FBI agents raid the Myrtle Beach home of John Paul Miller on November 1, six months after his wife Mica killed herself

The pastor, who has a criminal record including multiple counts of aggravated assault and battery to which he pleaded guilty, told his congregation that her death was ‘self-induced’.

‘You all know she wasn’t well mentally and that she needed her medicine and it was hard to get to her,’ he said.

Miller was charged with third-degree assault and battery earlier this month after allegedly attacking a ‘Justice for Mica’ protester.

A witness captured footage of the incident, showing a woman, Sandra Karon, chasing him in a parking lot and harassing him.

She screamed at him as he ran away, and he turned back and confronted her, shouting back: ‘What did you say? You walked right up to me.’ 

Miller allegedly squared up to her and tapped her on her hat with his phone, resulting in the assault charges. 

The assault charge was unrelated to an FBI raid on Miller’s home days earlier, the reason for which is still unclear.