Victims included billionaire spiritual leader the Aga Khan, who handed over €20m
Agence France-Presse in Paris
Tue 4 Feb 2020
Gilbert Chikli, accused of being one of the masterminds behind the scam. He denies the charges. Photograph: Sergei Supinsky/AFP via Getty Images
A group of men accused of using Skype and a silicone mask to extract tens of millions of euros from the rich and famous by impersonating a leading French politician are to go on trial in Paris on Tuesday.
Victims of the fake Jean-Yves Le Drian – now foreign minister but then in charge of defence – included the billionaire spiritual leader the Aga Khan, who parted with €20m (£17m).
Starting in 2015, the “minister” made calls by telephone and video link wearing the mask to more than 150 targets – of whom three were successfully duped – often to seek funds for a “secret operation” with a promise of repayment by the French state.
The money was often said to be for ransom payments or anti-terror operations.
Categories: Europe, Europe and Australia, France, Israel
oho .. reading Somi Tempo’s comments we thought all Israelis are saints, sort of ‘the chosen people’ …