Photos from open sources of
Do not clutch at the heart, there will be no sensation. Eiffel tower like stood, and will stand. Paris is not going to part with their property, considered the most visited paid landmark of the world and the most photographed. But to sell They sold it, and even twice.
The son of venerable parents
Victor Lustig was born in Bohemia in 1890 (Gostinne, Czech Republic), which was then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Was a son very wealthy parents. Father, big bourgeois, among other things held the post of mayor and prepared his son as his successor. Therefore boy since childhood attended business negotiations, witnessed commercial transactions and administrative decisions questions.
In these “classes” Victor studied people, their weaknesses and vices. Here a glow of greed broke out in the eyes of the trading partner, here the supplicant’s voice trembled, that is, he lost his caution from several flattering words a potential competitor. The boy comprehended science manipulation of people.
Parents gave their son an excellent education and upbringing – a young man studied at the Sorbonne. The ability to behave in society, knowledge of the rules etiquette, aristocratic manners, knowledge of 5 languages - all this will allow Lustig in the future to easily play the role of the Austrian count or an important government official. He did not cover small shopkeepers, and large fish, pulled out of the pockets of aristocrats and rich bourgeois sums with many zeros. His every scam was riding adventurism, arrogance, artistry and subtle psychological games on human weaknesses.
Top-class swindler
If Ostap Bender managed to charge a visit fee Pyatigorsk failure, for Lustig it was a miserable little thing. is he managed to lease a public Vienna city park! IN Berlin “sold” land, in Italy “traded” government posts and seats in parliament. Wheel on to the world, he sold sections of the railway that did not belong to him and even islands in the ocean.
In America, Lustig sold machines that print $ 100. banknotes that are no different from real ones. (The price is just ridiculous: from 10,000 to 30,000 per device) The machine had only one drawback: she printed the banknote for 6 hours. The buyer naturally checked a miracle machine, and she obediently betrayed the first, second and even third bill. The fifth was usually the last, then only clean paper.
The pinnacle of his activity was the scam of 1925, when he managed to “sell” the Eiffel Tower. This “deal” and glorified swindler.
Sassy scam
In May 1925, an article whose author complained: the Eiffel Tower is so dilapidated that the city authorities are even considering dismantling and selling it on scrap metal. Victor liked the idea and he took it. “implementation”.
Having studied the metal trading market, Lustig chose five potential firms of victims and sent them to the owners of the letter. Each of them “on behalf of French Republic “was invited to strictly confidential meeting at the Crillon Hotel (the most prestigious hotel in Paris). IN the appointed day and hour were all five.
Lustig introduced himself as deputy head of the Ministry Post and Telegraph and presented to the gathered their “credentials letters “- documents from the government authorizing him to decide the question of dismantling the Eiffel Tower. Naturally, the documents were equipped with all the necessary attributes: signatures, stamps.
Lustig then reminded those present that the Eiffel Tower was built for the 1889 World’s Fair, at the end of which it was supposed to be taken apart. And now this time has come. Government France announces a tender: who needs 7300 tons of upscale metal?
This was followed by lengthy negotiations, during which Lustig gave comprehensive explanations on the terms of the future transaction and the procedure execution of the contract. The whole meeting was played so that no one of those present there was not a shadow of doubt that all this is pure performance. Lustig himself carefully studied all five, wondering which of them will allow him to fool himself. Andre was selected Poisson.
A photo from open sources
A bribe as proof that you are not being fooled
A few days later, Poisson received a letter appointing a new meeting at the same hotel, but this time only with him. During the meeting Lustig said that Monsieur Poisson has every chance to become a winner tender, but there is a little difficulty. Next, Lustig set off for long explanations that he is a humble official with a small salary, but life is becoming more expensive … It is this banal extortion bribes and assured Poisson that he wasn’t trivial really negotiate a big business deal.
The deal has taken place. Lustig received a check for 250,000 francs for Eiffel Tower plus “reward for assistance” to individual an envelope. In exchange, Poisson received from the “deputy chief Ministry of Post and Telegraph “duly executed permission to dismantle and export the Parisian beauty.
A few days later, a representative of Poisson set off tackle organizational issues about transferring the Eiffel Tower to a new to the owner. The assistant brought the sad news to the owner that It turns out that natural sucker. Upset Poisson, decided that solid reputation more than 250,000 thousand francs, considered for the best do not make noise.
Encore Scam
For a whole year Lustig lived for pleasure, traveling around Europe, chicaying on the honestly earned quarter of a million. All year he carefully read the criminal chronicle, but not a single newspaper mentioned a scam with the Eiffel Tower. Lustig correctly judged that Poisson chose to keep his shame secret and decided repeat the “number” encore.
And the number has passed! Lustig managed to sell the tower again, in this times already for 350,000 francs! However, the new victim was too greedy and went to complain to the police how bad it is cheated. However, this did not help him. Lustig with a suitcase of money traveled to the United States, where he was inaccessible to French justice.
Death behind bars
In America, Lustig began to print American dollars and succeeded so much in this that he managed to concern the US government. IN In 1935 he was arrested, he managed to escape, he was again caught and given 15 years as a counterfeiter plus 5 years for an escape. Depart punishment of a swindler sent to the famous prison on the island Alcatraz, from where there were no successful shoots. There March 11, 1947 Victor Lustig and died.
Posted by Klim Podkova
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