The Biggest Scams in World History: 25 Infamous Cases

Known as one of the biggest corporate crashes in history, the Enron scandal shook the energy industry in 2001. It all began when the U.S. company inflated its success and misled investors by recording forecasted profits as actual earnings. When it came out that the company was actually drowning in debt, stock prices plummeted, leading it straight into bankruptcy. Thousands of employees lost their livelihoods, and the accounting firm responsible for the cover-up had its license to practice revoked.

The inspiration behind the bestselling novel and hit film Catch Me If You Can was none other than con artist Frank Abagnale. Prolific in the ‘60s, he created fake identities in multiple countries and even forged checks. If that wasn’t bad enough, Abagnale also pretended to work in a variety of professions, actually posing as a pilot, doctor, and many more. His crimes and falsehoods eventually landed him in prison in 1969, and surprisingly, after serving his time, he went on to make claims about working with the FBI.

From 2005 to 2009, this British “businessman” pulled the classic advance-fee scam on unsuspecting victims who needed some extra cash. Edward Davenport promised them huge commercial loans if they paid him initial fees, like deposits and verification fees, but of course, none of them ever received a cent back. Despite spending years behind bars for his schemes, Davenport reportedly got involved in shady property deals soon after his release.

The founder of the Crazy Eddie electronics retail chain, Eddie Antar, caused a massive scandal in the ‘80s when it was uncovered that he defrauded investors out of millions. Profits were inflated, stock was manipulated, and cash was skimmed from the company accounts for years before auditors caught on to his crimes. Antar fled to Israel to get away from his legal troubles, but was eventually caught and sentenced to 8 years in prison for multiple counts of fraud.

In 2003, Ramón Báez Figueroa, president of the Dominican Republic’s Banco Intercontinental (BANINTER), was at the center of what is considered one of the largest fraud cases in the Caribbean. He cooked the books so he could skim cash off the top without drawing attention from the bank’s auditors and industry regulators. When the staggering amount of money ($2.2 billion) he had stolen was revealed, it pushed the country into a state of national emergency and economic crisis. For the fraud, Báez Figueroa was sentenced to ten years in prison, and sadly, the BANINTER did not survive the scandal.