This week, a man dubbed the ‘Con Queen of Hollywood’ took the stand in his own extradition trial in an attempt to convince a court not to whisk him away to the US.
If he’s shipped across the pond, Hargobind Tahilramani, 42, could face decades behind bars for the elaborate crimes he’s accused of, which include posing as a Netflix writer and Hollywood executive to scam people out of money.
Tahilramani is believed to have fooled more than 300 victims out of $1million by pretending to be industry bigshots such as Sony Pictures co-chair Amy Pascal and producer Thomas Hayslip, which, ironically, sounds like a Netflix show waiting to happen.
Tahilraman allegedly offered people working in the film industry work that didn’t actually exist and tricked them into coughing up thousands in expenses.
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Westminster Magistrates' Court was told this week that Tahilraman’s scams had spanned the years between 2013 and 2020, and that the accused would often impersonate Hollywood figures in phone calls, emails and text messages.
He’d lure industry workers out to Indonesia for projects and never repaid the hefty expense sums. He also allegedly had co-conspirators pose as tour operators or officials asking for photography and permit costs.
And in one case, Tahilraman allegedly offered the victim sexual favours while impersonating billionaire Jean Pritzker.
He was eventually arrested after the FBI tracked him down in Manchester where he was staying in a £60-a-night hotel, Sky News reports.
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He was nicknamed the ‘con Queen of Hollywood’ by K2 Integrity, a private investigation firm that worked with the FBI to track him down.
Tahilraman wants to be tried in the UK, but if he is extradited to the US, he could find himself facing eight charges and decades behind bars.
He’s facing conspiracy to commit wire fraud alongside two counts of wire fraud, which each carry a maximum penalty of 20 years, while the five counts of aggravated identity theft he also could be charged with carry a maximum sentence of two years each.
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US representative Joel Smith told the court: "The defendant would pretend to be well-known entertainment industry executives or their representatives and promised victims non-existent work in the film industry in Indonesia."
Smith continued: "US-based victims were persuaded to travel to Indonesia at their own expense, and once there were persuaded to pay a raft of fees or expenses, again from their own pocket."
The extradition hearing will continue.
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Topics: US News, Film and TV, Netflix, Crime