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Wanted Italian fraudsters who posed as George Clooney arrested in Pattaya

webfact

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webfact

webfact 144198

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Wanted Italian fraudsters who posed as George Clooney arrested in Pattaya

 

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A wanted Italian man who is accused of posing as Hollywood movie star George Clooney in order to sell clothes online has been arrested in Pattaya.

 

Francesco Galdelli, 58, and his wife Vanja Goffi, 45 — dubbed the “Italian Bonnie and Clyde” were arrested at a luxury villa in Bang Lamung on Saturday.

 

The pair fled Italy in 2012 after being sentenced to eight years in jail for fraud.

 

One of their scams included the sale of fake Rolex watches online. Rather than sending the luxury watches, the couple would often send boxes containing salt to unsuspecting customers.

 

"During interrogation, Francesco confessed to claiming to be George Clooney and opening a clothes business to trick people into sending money," according to a statement from Thailand's Crime Suppression Division.

 

The arrests came after the authorities in Italy contacted Thailand’s Crime Suppression Division who had the couple under surveillance.

 

The couple had also previously been sued by George Clooney himself who in 2010 told a Milan court they had used his name fraudulently in order to promote a bogus clothing brand called “GC Exclusive by George Clooney.”

 

After moving to Pattaya in 2014, the couple had established themselves as well known and upstanding members of the expat community, with Mr Galdelli was known to regularly donate money to local children’s charities.

 

In 2014, Mr Galdelli was arrested at the Dusit Thani hotel in Pattaya, but was able to abscond after paying a prison guard 20,00 baht.

 

The couple are now being held by police in Pattaya before their extradition to Italy.

 

 

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-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2019-06-17
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jacko45k

jacko45k 33652

Posted
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1 hour ago, webfact said:

The couple are now being held by police in Pattaya before their extradition to Italy.

Better watch the prison guard this time!

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Bob12345

Bob12345 6557

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1 hour ago, ezzra said:

He'd be a lot more believable to be George Clooney Should he also sold coffee pods...

He would also be more believable to be George Clooney if he looked like George Clooney a bit, lol.

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mercman24

mercman24 8009

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as to the watches, i bought a Rolex at Chatuchak market, it kept on stopping then restarting, i missed lots of meetings, dates, etc, i contacted ROLEX to complain, they did not answer, i will never buy a Rolex again.

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The Deerhunter

The Deerhunter 4128

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7 minutes ago, mercman24 said:

as to the watches, i bought a Rolex at Chatuchak market, it kept on stopping then restarting, i missed lots of meetings, dates, etc, i contacted ROLEX to complain, they did not answer, i will never buy a Rolex again.

Yeah, right!!!

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Emdog

Emdog 7559

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"..dubbed the “Italian Bonnie and Clyde”"

Who ever dubbed them that doesn't know squat about the real B&C. "Gee Bonnie, if they'd hurry up and invent the internet, we could steal money that way rather than rob banks"

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Classic Ray

Classic Ray 2746

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Just wondering why his face is not pixellated as per new policy. Is it because he will not face any charges in Thailand? What about the bribery of the guard and escape in 2014? Was he still using his own name in Pattaya, if so who has he been paying off?

TV deserves to know!

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Matzzon

Matzzon 13671

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1 hour ago, Crash999 said:

What is it about Pattaya that always attracts these types?

It´s the high quality of a fantastic family resort with high moral standards.

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hellohello123

hellohello123 1032

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1 hour ago, hellohello123 said:

haha, its probably not as outrageous as it sounds,

 

thai girls think all farangs look the same and are hansum

the number of times ive had chats with thai girls, who say, oh my friend is dating this guy, he looks as hot as richard gere, brad pitt, Bradley cooper, johnny depp , INSERT HOLLYWOOD HUNK

 

and they show me a pic and it almost looks like Steve Buscemis twin

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moe666

moe666 5854

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2 hours ago, Crash999 said:

What is it about Pattaya that always attracts these types?

It is a beach town, beach towns always attract the low life no matter where it is.

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Dumbastheycome

Dumbastheycome 5705

Posted
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1 hour ago, mercman24 said:

as to the watches, i bought a Rolex at Chatuchak market, it kept on stopping then restarting, i missed lots of meetings, dates, etc, i contacted ROLEX to complain, they did not answer, i will never buy a Rolex again.

I also bought one.I was always ahead of time because it gained 1 hour in every 24 ! lol

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spidermike007

spidermike007 56516

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There is a percentage of the world's population who will do anything in their power to avoid having to work for a living. Most of them have no conscience, and will steal to avoid having to work. Their parents are largely to blame, as they were not raised to have moral, or ethical standards, and we must always be on the lookout for them. 

 

Besides, who sends money to people online anyway? What ever happened to prudence and caution? Why would you send money to someone you came across online? Perhaps to purchase a product or service, with the protection of a credit card. But, otherwise? I hear so many stories of guys who meet a woman online, and before ever meeting her face to face, they start sending her all kinds of money. How naive, and emotionally vulnerable does one have to be to engage in such an act of foolishness? 

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CliffH

CliffH 137

Posted
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2 hours ago, mercman24 said:

as to the watches, i bought a Rolex at Chatuchak market, it kept on stopping then restarting, i missed lots of meetings, dates, etc, i contacted ROLEX to complain, they did not answer, i will never buy a Rolex again.

You obviously hadn't bought a genuine imitation.

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hotchilli

hotchilli 42396

Posted
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4 hours ago, webfact said:

but was able to abscond after paying a prison guard 20,00 baht.

 

L.O.B... land of bribes...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

l

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Caldera

Caldera 7927

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"One of their scams included the sale of fake Rolex watches online. Rather than sending the luxury watches, the couple would often send boxes containing salt to unsuspecting customers."

 

So they didn't sell fake Rolex watches, then. They sold Rolex watches and sent the customers a pack of salt instead.

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RichardColeman

RichardColeman 55523

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I think Bonnie and Clyde had more brains - and Clooney certainly so. Only a complete idiot would be arrested in 2014, pay off someone with 20,000 baht, abscond and then move back to the same community !

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Sir Swagman

Sir Swagman 694

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I can totally understand the locals taking this seriously and swooping to nab these miscreants. Impersonating is out of bounds to farangs here, mostly being performed to a high level by police and politicians.

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monkeycu

monkeycu 1931

Posted
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4 hours ago, Crash999 said:

What is it about Pattaya that always attracts these types?

Its the friendly atmosphere of a family resort  :whistling:

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