A 56-year-old Orange County man has been charged with defrauding an investor of more than $350,000 by posing as a millionaire fashion designer investing in business ventures that did not exist.
William Vogt, of New Hampton, was arrested Tuesday on an 18-count indictment and faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted of the charges, said state Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman. Vogt allegedly duped an investor over a three-year period by posing as “Bill Bolland,” an internationally renowned designer who ran Bill Bolland Haute Couture.
Vogt allegedly convinced his victim to invest with him in fictitious ventures that included a tax-free account at Credit Suisse, stock in the Voss Water Co. and cooperative apartment units in Manhattan. He is charged with taking the victim”™s money by promising to secure office space at the Heron Tower in Manhattan, to procure seats on the board of directors of Voss Foundation, to purchase health care insurance and an individual retirement account, to facilitate an application for Swiss citizenship, and to make a contribution to Hillary Clinton. The alleged swindler is accused of forging numerous emails from banks and other businesses and institutions to cover his thefts.
Prosecutors claimed Vogt invested none of the alleged victim”™s money and instead used it for personal and living expenses.
Arraigned in Manhattan, Vogt was charged with two counts of second-degree and four counts of third-degree grand larceny, nine counts of second-degree forgery, and three counts of violations of the Martin Act. He was held in lieu of a $4 million bond or $2 million cash bail.
Schneiderman said the Ulster County district attorney”™s office and town of Lloyd police assisted in the investigation.
The attorney general”™s office said investigators also found that Vogt stole from several other investors in New York and other states with false promises of high-return investments in securities and other businesses. The office said its investigation is continuing.
