Dreier Swindle Now $380 Million: Perella Weinberg Duped
As the world digests the Bernie Madoff Ponzi news, the investigation into the other recent big-name con continues. Investigators now conclude that Marc Dreier, the New York lawyer busted for criminal impersonation in Toronto two weeks ago, stole more than $380 million.
Among other victims: Perella Weinberg, which bought $45 million of bogus promissory notes, and Nick Maounis, the former proprietor of Amaranth, who now (of course) runs a new hedge fund. Dreier LLP's escrow accounts are missing $35 million, and $30-$40 million of art has disappeared from the firm's walls.
(On the latter, it will be interesting to see whether Dreier stole the art himself or whether some enterprising art thief took advantage of the chaos to to grab some Picassos.)
Dreier was living the high life, but expenses don't explain the need to steal $380 million. Perhaps he levered up and got walloped by the crash? Tidbits from the NYT: