Forget The Tinder Swindler: Here Are Five Most Notorious Con Artists Of All-Time

The recent scam of $36 billion Bitcoin stolen by Manhattan based husband and wife has again brought up the discussion of con artists. History stands proof to showcase that betrayals and treachery have always been a part of the human race. Let us take a look at some of the all-time most yet most significant notorious con-artists.

Imagine selling India Gate to someone? Bizarre, isn't it. However, with her skills, American con artist George C. Parker was able to "sell" the Brooklyn Bridge to people, mostly unwary immigrants, who believed his con and even set up toll booths to get returns. As per reports, he did not limit his scams to the Brooklyn Bridge but also several other famous landmarks such as Madison Square Garden and the Statue of Liberty. With his conning skills, he was able to even sell several shows that were taking place in NYC during the time. Parker was convicted four times with the last one in 1928 where he was sentenced to mandatory life term at Sing Sing Prison. For his cons, he is known among history's most talented hoaxers.

For those who have heard about the Ponzi scheme scam, the name Charles Ponzi would instantly click. Charles Ponzi was an Italian swindler, who conned in the U.S. and Canada and was the man behind the infamous Ponzi scheme that cheated people by promising huge returns on their investments and used the payments of the later investors to pay earlier investors. His name became so famous that such schemes were named after him. He continued to scam people and was later on faced two federal indictments being charged with 86 counts of mail fraud. He faced several imprisonments and spent the last few years of his life in poverty.

C. L. Blood was an American con artist and self-styled physician who conned people for his patented product “oxygenized air, which he claimed cured various respiratory tract diseases. He also lied and cheated people by telling them that he is the son of a doctor and sold them false cures for a wide range of diseases. He was also involved in several crimes that included blackmailing, Tax evasion, misdemeanor and murder of a Boston fruit seller Hiram Sawtelle. For his frauds, he served several years in prison and later died of natural causes.

Cassie L. Chadwick is the most popular pseudonym used by Canadian con artist Elizabeth Bigley, who managed to fool people and banks into giving her millions of money by claiming to be illegitimate daughter and heiress of the Scottish-American industrialist Andrew Carnegie. People and banks loaned her the money, assuming that they would be paid back when she would inherit Carnegie’s fortune. Chadwick managed to pull a major money scam at a time when women were not even allowed to vote, let alone get loans from the bank. For her fraud, Chadwick was sentenced twice. She died in the Columbus penitentiary on 10 October 1907.

If selling the Brooklyn Bridge was not bizarre enough, imagine selling the Taj Mahal thrice. That is exactly what Mithilesh Kumar Srivastava, infamously known as Mr Natwarlal did. Natwarlal, who operated in India, started off as a lawyer but gradually became a conman as he was good at forgery. He was known for conning people for money, several high-profile crimes and prison escapes. As per reports, Natwarlal discovered his ability to forge when he was able to forge his neighbour's signature and withdraw ?1000 without being caught. He was also a master of disguise and even forged the signatures of Dr Rajendra Prasad and Dhirubhai Ambani. For his fraud, he was arrested over nine times but managed to escape. His last arrested was recorded in 1996 at the age of 84.