Con man schemed his way into luxury life: DA

An alleged career con artist has been indicted in Manhattan district court for masterminding large-scale larceny and forgery schemes in New York and Boston.

Jeremy Wilson, 42, was indicted on Monday for forgery and various counts of criminal possession of stolen property, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance said in an official statement. Wilson is accused of fraudulently acquiring a luxury apartment, car and other valuables by impersonating different people.

Posing as a British Airways executive in 2015, Wilson allegedly obtained corporate housing and was able to steal computers and a corporate credit card from MIT, the DA explained. Wilson also used falsified identification to lease a 2016 BMW X3 in Boston before driving to New York and using fraudulent funds to secure a Financial District apartment.

“The defendant’s entire lifestyle has been defined by deception,” DA Vance said. “As alleged in the indictment, the defendant went by a fake name, drove a stolen car, stayed in fraudulently acquired apartments, obtained money through a counterfeit check scheme, and even collected military clothing and memorabilia in order to impersonate a U.S. military veteran.”

When he was caught in early January, Wilson was in possession of two forged passports, hundreds of counterfeit documents, seven computers, including those stolen from MIT, more than 200 forged checks, U.S. Army uniforms, a stolen MIT credit card, a forged California license and $24,000 in cash.

“Like many identity thieves, the defendant is a career criminal capable of causing a great deal of harm in a short amount of time, and I thank our partners in law enforcement for working together to bring the defendant’s alleged spree to an end,” DA Vance added.