The Unscrupulous: Scams, Cons, Fakes, & Frauds That Poison The Fine Arts (VIA Folios)

Nonfiction. Art. Crime. In the early 1960s, as Prosecutor and Assistant Law Director of the City of Lakewood, Ohio, Nick Mileti dealt with all crime committed in the city. It was his job to bring the perpetrators to justice. The cons and scams particularly fascinated him because they require a certain amount of intelligence, finesse, ingenuity, and, yes, charm. Why would people with these attributes go into a life of crime? Along the way he became intrigued by the specific subject of art fraud. And so this book was born.