The Life of a White Collar Fugitive Not All It’s Cracked Up to Be
“Those who aspire to a life of white collar crime, and there are always a few misguided business-people out there, believe they have a full-proof scam that will go undetected, ” writes Walter Pavlo on Forbes.com. “Even in the unlikely event that their crime is discovered, they have an escape plan that includes some exotic, warm destination where they will live happily ever after.”
Pavlo tells the story of once-fugitive Lawrence “Larry” Hartman, a U.S. citizen and a Columbia Law School graduate who once thought himself a king of penny stocks.
“Hartman and some other scammers created empty-shell companies that had the appearance of being publicly traded, after which they cold-called elderly investors in the UK and Ireland to buy shares in the companies. The scam operated between July 2004 and March 2008. According to his indictment, the group brought in $132 Million into a Costa Rican bank account” Pavlo writes.
The story describes Hartman’s life on the run and his eventual downfall.