Paper Moon told the story of a fraudster and his young daughter. The main cast was real life father and daughter duo Ryan and Tatum O'Neal. The atmospheric 1973 film was made in black and white and a TV series followed a year later with the part of cheeky Addie played by an up and coming Jodie Foster.
Watching the film in the 21st Century highlights how the simple scams being played on people over thirty years ago are still being peddled around today. Apart from stealing some whiskey for sale back to the owner, three different frauds were being perpetrated by the couple:
- By reading the obituary column of a local paper, the con merchants were able to turn up at a widow's house and pretend that the deceased had ordered an expensive bible for his wife before his untimely death. So taken aback by the thoughtfulness of the former husband the widow was only too willing to part with $10 or $20 for the cheap $1 book.
- The con man purchases an item for a few cents and pays using a $20 bill. Soon after his young accomplice visits the shop for a few cents worth of ribbon paid for using a $5 bill. On being given her change of $4 and some coins she promptly burst into tears claiming that she paid with a $20 bill that her Aunt had given her for her birthday - which she could verify as it clearly had "Happy Birthday Addie" written on it. Of course there it was in the till (left by Ryan previously) and who could refuse to reimburse the charming little girl?
- "Dropping some ones" - changing singles for fives with the distracted shopkeeper was not so much a clever fraud as a sleight of hand.
These scams are so simple you would not expect people to fall for them today. Why then do support publishers proliferate in the UK today? Have you ever been contacted by telephone and asked to support a good cause? You get an advert that will do your own business some good. These crooks publish year planners, diaries and booklets on behalf of good causes such as a charity or a police road awareness campaign. Mostly the support publishers are operating without the knowledge of the charity or emergency service, and very little if anything goes towards the good cause. The diaries and booklets are not produced in commercial numbers and are breaking a raft of consumer and other laws. When one publishing firm is closed down by Companies Investigation Branch another starts up in the next street using the same staff. This is a fraud that plays upon the good nature of the general public, in the same way as the Bible scam in Paper Moon!
It seems that the message is clear, we must not be as trusting and see any financial offer as suspicious until we know all the facts. We must be on the lookout for the same old scams and cons!
Author Resource:
Mark Jenner is a Forensic Accountant and Fraud Expert. He is a Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, a Certified Fraud Examiner and has a Masters Degree in Fraud Investigation Management. His Fraud Advisory Services web site provides information and advice on forensic accounting matters and his Fraud Advice blog provides a day to day insight into fraud investigation matters.
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