Internet scam involving fake autographed photos of celebrities busted
Photo by: Rick
Louise Marney, a single mom from Wales, was convicted by a Swansea court last week of taking part in an internet scam involving selling of fake, autographed photos of celebrities online. She was found guilty of carrying out the scam together with an accomplice whom she knew only as ‘Jason’.
The duo successfully ran the scam for 12 months and Marney individually grossed £13,000 with the help of the scam. Their luck ran out when investigations following a complaint to the local Trading Standards Office uncovered the scam.
The scam used legitimate photographs that were bought online. The signature of the featured celebrity was later forged onto the photos. The forged items were then pushed online at the websites, Celeb Factory, and the auction site eBay.
The scam gained their victims’ confidence variously; every sale was promised to be accompanied with a ‘Certificate of Authenticity’ and a ‘Peace-of-Mind Guarantee’. It goaded victims by urging them to avail of this ‘one of a kind opportunity’ to make ‘an investment for the future’.
The list of celebrities whose autographed photos were sold online by the scam is a mind-boggling one. It includes such personalities as Princess Diana, Elizabeth Taylor, Sean Connery, Kylie Minogue, Freddie Mercury, Muhammad Ali, and Pele. The photos were generally priced between £19.99 and £89.99; the Princess Diana photograph was tagged the highest with a £299.99 price tab.
At the case hearing, counsel for the lady pleaded for a soft sentence saying she acted out of dire circumstances. Paying no heed to the pleas, the court dealt out a suspended prison sentence of 42 weeks as well as an order to carry out 200 hours of work-without-pay, to the lady.
Source: ThisIsSouthWales.co.uk
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November 3rd, 2008 at 1:57 pm
Here is another one for the records:
Autograph forgery Scam
March 29th, 2009 at 9:00 am
wow!!! thanks for the info! its a very good info!