An Orange County man who was out on parole, and kind of looked like he was still in jail, somehow managed to convince someone that he was the internationally famous fashion designer Bill Bollard and tricked him out of $350, 000, as reported by the New York Post.
Who knows how convicted felon William Vogt who has been executing con games since 1987 and was on parole managed to convince the victim of the scheme that he was living the high life, since he looks a bit shaggy and was more accustomed to shopping at Home Depot and Shop Rite than at Saks. It must be that Vogt has a special skill for conning people, except that he seems to get caught often. This time, as “Bill Bollard, ” he extracted $350, 000 for business ventures, a tax free account at Credit Suisse, stock in the VOSS water company and a donation to Hillary Clinton. Vogt, of course, simply pocketed the money that was given to him between 2011 and 2014, and still kept up his frugal habits, like shopping at Target. Vogt pleaded not guilty to 18 counts of grand larceny, forgery and securities fraud.
Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who is prosecuting the case, said, “Whether you are a big bank or a fraudster looking to make a quick buck, defrauding is a serious crime in New York. This individual allegedly went to outrageous lengths, including creating a fake identity, to trick his victim into trusting him with hundreds and thousands of dollars.”
So the moral of the story: If Ralph Lauren comes up to you and asks you to invest $350, 000, even though we all think we know what Ralph Lauren looks like, it’s a good idea to ask to see his I.D.
