What do you get when you mix millions of dollars in gems, stolen cars, wigs, international crime families, a French detective, and 800 Serbians? You get a heist gang Inspector Clouseau couldn't imagine in his wildest dreams. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
🎶 Oh yes, he was the Great Impostor. (Woo-woooo) 🎶 His government name was Fred Demara, but he rarely used that. Unlike most crimers with his particular skillset, Fred used his powers for good — he liked to heal others. For instance, that time he had to perform 19 surgeries because he was pretending to be a doctor. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
It has to be bad mojo to steal a religious artifact, and especially bad mojo if it's a sainted body part. Ireland, it seems, has a problem with this. Will the perpetrators be caught? God only knows. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Murf the Surf was an all-star midcentury party boy turned criminal folk hero. Bob Dylan loved his style. Murf and his partner got famous for stealing JP Morgan’s gem collection. But a freelance-writing used car salesman was the true hero; and he’s the one who eventually saves the day. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Making your way in the world today takes everything you've got. Taking a break from all your worries sure wouldn't help a lot. Sometimes you want to go where nobody knows your name and they're never glad you came. This is the story of a guy who did just that. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
He was an ultra secret agent, working with the Supreme Court, a cabal of generals, and a very disagreeable Bill Clinton clone, to bring justice and a huge fortune to US farmers. At least, that’s what Roy Schwasinger told crowds at his $300 seminars, where he lightened the wallets of gullible “free men.” See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Like Elmyr de Hory before him, Wolfgang Beltracchi loved painting other artists' works. The "lost" masterpieces were a hot commodity, generating riches for Beltracchi and the rest of the art world. He could forge the works of any genius painter, but he couldn't forge a simple label. Oh, well. It was fun while it lasted. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Oasis was “the biggest band in the world.” Meanwhile, Liam and Noel Gallagher — the brothers who were the heart of the band — despised each other. This gave the band a creative tension. And it made their crimes against each other… ridiculous. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Raised in a criminal family, Bobby Comfort was destined for a felonious future. When he paired up with a buddy for some high-end hotel robberies, things were looking good. He planned "one last heist," but that planning failed to take into account the apex predator of the crime world: the mafia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
She is America’s Greatest Living Jewel Thief. Her career criminal exploits date back to black and white movies. Only Diamond Doris never let racism get in the way of her living the high life as an international bon vivant. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
You put your Social Security Number all over the place: magazine ads, billboards, websites. What could go wrong? Lots. But what if you own a company that protects people from identity theft? Doesn't matter. Crimers gonna crime. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Carlos Kaiser had it made — he was a handsome professional footballer in Brazil, and he played for all the top clubs in Rio, as well as abroad. There was only one problem: King Carlos was terrible at soccer. He was the “greatest footballer who never played football.” But that’s how he made his living, conning the world of professional soccer… for 26 years! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
When a charismatic preacher went missing in the ocean off Venice, California, all hope was lost for her safe return. Almost. What followed was a chaotic tale involving a non-Dave producer, TRAINS, Arizona, goggles, and a woman with no left thumb. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Rude Dudes send emails. We share them. Get ready for some onions, the rainbow bridge, Spam, texts to entire cities, and one fantastic gorilla suit. Plus Talkbacks from the iHeart app! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
He was zee best con artiste en zee 90s, no? Frenchman Christopher Rocancourt took Los Angeles by storm, rubbing elbows with celebrities and emptying the bank accounts of the wealthy and gullible. But when he took his act on the road to the Hamptons as a phony heir to an enormous fortune, they saw right through him. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
What do you do when you look just like the dictator of North Korea? You make it work for you as a celebrity impostor. And if you’re Howard X, you use it to free a Zelensky lookalike from the war in Ukraine, with the help of a fake Putin. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Bill McCoy was a man of adventure, a romantic, an innovator, and a gentleman. He also ran illegal booze into the United States, flouting the law and sailing the high seas. That is, until the Coast Guard showed up. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
She was an epic badass. She was the fastest woman alive, after she broke Amelia Earhart’s records. She also ran the Happy Bottom Riding Club for flyboys and future astronauts, that is, until J Edgar Hoover and the Air Force went to war against…Pancho Barnes. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
A legend. A boss. A queen. Stephanie St. Claire ran Harlem's baddest numbers game, thumbing her nose at the mob. Her elegant life took a turn, though, when she married an audacious con artist. Was hooking up with Black Hitler a wise move? What do you think. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In 1955, one man attempted to control the price of onions in America – to do that he created an illegal onion cartel and then together they cornered the market and drove the prices. It was like Trading Places for onion futures. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Four amateur crime bros look to make the score of a lifetime -- stealing rare books from their college library. It goes about as well as you'd imagine. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
You'd never believe that an 18-year old buying sandwiches and shoes with a stolen credit card would grow up to be legendary celebrity Stephen Fry. But he did! The actor, comedian, writer, and historian was an honest to goodness teen criminal, one who went on a multi-county spending spree on other people's dimes (well, quid). See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
A talented artist is even more talented at forgery. He crosses paths with the rich, famous, and fabulous, and his forgeries are eventually forged themselves. Truly and wonderfully ridiculous, no? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
That one time when the future leader of North Korea abducted the coolest power couple from the South Korean film industry and forced them to make a reboot of Godzilla See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Pop quiz, hotshot: how do you have an awards show with no awards? You can't! When a shipment of Oscars went missing, the tale unfolded with twists and turns right out of a Tinseltown thriller. Would Hollywood's biggest night be saved? Probably. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Yap Lavish story has something for everyone: gold coins, private planes, contraband phones, up-and-coming Atlanta rappers. While in state prison, inmate Yap Lavish pulled off the robbery of not one but two billionaires. And he would’ve gotten away with it, if not for those meddling prison guards. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Want to make a splash in publishing? Try ghostwriting an autobiography for a super famous man. Just make sure the famous man knows about it first. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Two blonde bombshells get famous after they turn pro as…bank robbers. Heather and Ashley were just a pair of all-American girls who decided that the street crime life was for them. One problem, though: they were terrible at crime. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
She told fortunes. She faked documents. She changed her name. She crashed the economy of a major American city. Sorry, Cleveland. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In 1920s Chicago there was a crime wave plaguing the city — no, not Al Capone and gangland mayhem — there was an epidemic of gland piracy, testicle thieves were out there stealing balls. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
