Lew Sichelman
Confidence games come and go. But some seem to go on forever. Con artists are apparently still selling building lots in Florida, sight unseen, that turn out to be underwater swampland.
But some real estate cons are worth remembering, if only because how successful they were.
For example, Darren Berg, a Seattle man dubbed the “Mini Madoff” – after Bernie Madoff, who ran the largest Ponzi scheme in history – is still at large after escaping prison in December 2017. Berg had been convicted of wire and bankruptcy fraud stemming from his own Ponzi scheme, which involved real estate contracts, mortgage-backed securities and other loans.
He bilked more than 800 investors out of $120 million – small potatoes, compared to the $64.8 billion raked in by Madoff, who died in prison last year. Decades before these guys fleeced their flocks, though, the man for whom these ruses are named was indicted in Florida.
All too Common in History
In 1926, Charles Ponzi was found guilty of fraudulently selling swampland. He was sentenced to a year in prison, but appealed and was freed on bond. He then tried to flee to Italy, but was captured and sent to Massachusetts – to serve out his prison sentence for his other investment scam.
In that scheme, Ponzi took in an estimated $20 million by convincing thousands of people to invest in international postage stamps. He used the money from new clients to pay the existing ones, all while…
