Fraudsters have existed for centuries with the earliest recorded event being one by Hegestratos in 300 B.C. This Greek merchant took a loan against his vessel and its cargo before a voyage. His plan was to sink his ship, sell the cargo and not pay back the loan. With his ship gone there would be nothing to collect. Unfortunately for him, he was caught by his crew amid his attempts at scuttling the ship, and subsequently drowned.
Another infamous fraudster to make history is Sarah Wilson, whose elaborate and colorful scams are rarely matched. Sarah Wilson first became known during the 18th century as a convicted thief in England who was sent to America, sold into slavery but then escaped and travelled the colonies posing as an English princess.
Wilson came from humble beginnings in England and, as a teenager, was a kitchen servant within the homes of the British aristocracy. Around this same time in 1763, she discovered her “talent” of impersonating different people for monetary gain. The newspapers began to post warnings of a woman wandering England posing as aristocracy. She was described as “a short woman, slender made, of a pale complexion, something deformed, has a speck or knell over one eye.” [For those of you who don’t know, “knell” is “an indication of failure”.]
A few years later, Wilson was arrested and convicted of obtaining garments under false pretenses. Another version of this story is that these garments belonged to the Queen, and Wilson stole them whilst employed in her service as a maid. Apparently along with the Royal garments, she also several pieces of jewelry. When convicted, Wilson was sentenced to penal transportation to America around 1773.
Upon arrival to America, Wilson was sold as a slave to a Mr. William Duvall of Maryland, but she soon escaped. While on the run, Wilson adopted the persona of ‘Princess Susanna Caroline Matilda of Mecklenburg-Strelitz’ – Queen Victoria’s younger sister. She travelled through Virginia and the Carolinas, and made remarkable impressions on many places making promises to various people in return for large monetary contributions. These promises included promotions, military/government aid, and slave labor.
Wilson’s impersonation talent coupled with her knowledge in court affairs and “royal” jewelry made her persona very convincing. She told people she had been banished to America due to a family dispute and was invited to the homes of wealthy individuals who were no doubt honored to host a member of the Royal Family. Over time suspicions grew namely because this Princess belonged to a German dynasty yet she never spoke the language, and no one had ever heard Queen Victoria had a younger sister!
Wilson eventually made a home on King Street in Charleston, South Carolina. The media reports of her settling soon caught the eye of Mr. Duvall – her former master from whom she escaped. Duvall put advertisements in the papers exposing her as a fraud and sent an agent to track her down. It is unknown what exactly happened after this because she later appeared in Boston. It is at this point that various versions of what happened exist. Some suspect she simply bought her freedom with her ill-gotten gains and never returned to working for Mr. Duval.
Another version of the story from Duvall’s agent, Mr. Dalton, was that he tracked Wilson down to be at a plantation in Charlestown, but she had already fled before his arrival; however, afterwards, he did finally track her down and returned her to Mr. Duval’s service. Two years later, Mr. Duval went off to fight in the American War of Independence, and Wilson traded places with a new servant who arrived and was able to flee from there. Wilson then met her husband to be, Mr. William Talbot, an officer in the British army. After the war, the couple settled in New York, and at this stage no further records of Wilson exist.
Although you may never encounter a scam quite as dramatic as the one described, fraudsters do exist and will likely always exist. There are times and situations where you can never be too careful about who you trust, especially when these situations involve lifelong commitments, employing persons, entering into business partnerships, life savings, large monetary contributions and investments, or other similar events and dealings. In these times, it is wise to have as much information as possible and know all you can about the people with whom you are dealing and related matters to protect against fraudsters, fraud, and fraudulent misrepresentations. You will never regret not finding anything after you have investigated, but you will most certainly always regret foregoing an opportunity to investigate and later being defrauded and left in a state of loss whether it be financial or otherwise.
AFR Investigations can assist with most types of fraud investigations and provides related services such as background checks, entity investigations, person locate, surveillance and more. Please call Andrew Reggio at 469-998-2154 or email to andy@afrinvestigations.com if you have any interest in these services or investigations. You can also check out the AFR Investigations website at www.afrinvestigations.com to see other services and investigations the firm provides and performs. We look forward to hearing from you!
