Raffaello Follieri was so dashing and charming that he seduced actress Anne Hathaway into a long term relationship. Through false claims that he was connected to the Pope’s right hand man, Follieri convinced ex-President Clinton and billionaire Ron Burkle, that he could buy up Catholic churches for a discount so they could make extra money.
But at the end of the day, Raffaello was pleading guilty to 14 counts of fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy. Proving that he was just a con man and now faces at least 5 years in jail.
What is amazing, or maybe just sad, is that these famous and wealthy people are so easily tricked when someone offers a special way to make a little more money. Essentially those that got involved with Follieri were looking to buy property from the Catholic Church for less than market value through graft and deceit. Even if Follieri was on the up and up, the deal still would have reeked.
And that is the most sordid part of the whole story.
In 2005, however, a former assistant introduced Mr. Follieri to Aldo Civico, director of the Center for International Conflict Resolution at Columbia University. Mr. Civico, in turn, put him in touch with an official at the Clinton Foundation.
At an April 12, 2005, meeting at the Palace Hotel, Mr. Follieri met Douglas Band, an adviser to Mr. Clinton, and Mr. Burkle. Afterward, Mr. Follieri agreed to fly to Los Angeles for more discussions with Mr. Burkle; through him, he moved into a Park Avenue office affiliated with Mr. Burkle’s Yucaipa Companies. Mr. Burkle gave his company more than $100 million to invest in joint ventures.
In 2007, his business relationship with Mr. Burkle had disintegrated into lawsuits, and Mr. Clinton’s staff members distanced themselves from him.
In April of that year, Mr. Burkle sued Mr. Follieri for misappropriating at least $1.3 million. Without Mr. Burkle’s financial support, Mr. Follieri’s relationships with other backers quickly unraveled. He was eventually arrested on fraud charges. via NYTimes.com
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