FYRE FESTIVAL

<img alt=""/><p>Summer 2018's brightest star has been the scammer.</p>
<p>Grifters of all sorts have been in the headlines this year, from thieves to embezzlers to animals impersonating other animals. What's bringing on all this Big Scam Energy? We're not sure, but it's made for some fun headlines. Here, our favorite summer grifters, ranked by how much we enjoyed reading about their exploits.</p>
<div><p>SEE ALSO: <a rel="nofollow" href="https://mashable.com/2018/07/15/best-inflatable-drink-holder-pool-float/?utm_campaign=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full&utm_cid=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full">These weird pool floats will keep your drinks safe this summer</a></p></div>
<h2>14. Billy McFarland of Fyre Festival fame</h2>
<p>You might remember McFarland from his other failed scam: Fyre Festival. Unfortunately, he does not appear to have learned a single lesson from that debacle. McFarland <a rel="nofollow" href="https://mashable.com/2018/06/13/fyre-fest-billy-mcfarland-new-scam/?utm_campaign=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full&utm_cid=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full">was arrested in June</a> and charged with wire fraud and money laundering for a fake ticket sales scheme <em>completely separate</em> from Fyre Fest. Billy, dude, what's up?</p>
<p><img alt="They never learn."></p>
<div><p>Image: Mark Lennihan/AP/REX/Shutterstock</p></div><h2>13. Beyoncé and the fake twins</h2>
<p>“Beyoncé? A scammer?” you might be wondering. We hate to be the bearer of bad news but yes — kind of. Bey's <em>On The Run II</em> tour with Jay-Z has brought us <a rel="nofollow" href="https://mashable.com/2018/07/07/beyonce-jay-z-beautiful-video/?utm_campaign=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full&utm_cid=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full">many incredible moments</a>, including a pair of fake twins. Many were <a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/JayaHampton/status/1004444815554170881"> duped</a> by the Queen when an image flashed on the screen of Beyoncé holding what seemed to be Sir and Rumi Carter, in all of their beautiful plump baby glory. </p>
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<p>RUMI AND SIR CARTER YALL THEY’RE SO PRECIOUS <a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OTRII?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OTRII</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="https://t.co/SRwHRFQgqy">pic.twitter.com/SRwHRFQgqy</a></p>
<p>— Jaya (PLS FOLLOW ME ARIANA) (@JayaHampton) <a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/JayaHampton/status/1004444815554170881?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2018</a></p>
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<p>Turns out, it wasn’t them. BuzzFeed <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/michaelblackmon/no-that-isnt-sir-and-rumi-carter-in-those-photos-of-beyonce?utm_term=.waWz88856#.gfWDBBBM5">later confirmed</a> everyone’s speculations.</p>
<div><p>SEE ALSO: <a rel="nofollow" href="https://mashable.com/2018/08/22/best-actress-zodiac-sign-meme/?utm_campaign=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full&utm_cid=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full">Forget sun signs: Your zodiac sign is whoever won Best Actress the year you were born</a></p></div>
<h2>12. The zebra that is totally not a donkey</h2>
<p>Somewhere out in this wild world, there is a donkey that has been forced to live life as a zebra because of <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/donkey-painted-zebra-cairo-international-garden-park-zoo-accused/">an elaborate scam in a Cairo zoo</a>. Nope, this isn’t a joke. A visitor went to view the zebras in the zoo, only to be greeted by a donkey with stripes painted on him and ears that are a little too big to be a zebra’s. </p>
<p>The visitor then posted a photo of the animal on Facebook, complete with unmistakably smudged paint. While the zoo claims that it is not a donkey, our eyebrows are definitely furrowed.</p>
<h2>11. MoviePass lifehackers</h2>
<p>These days, it seems like MoviePass itself is a scam. But we have give it up for the real scammers: the people who have <a rel="nofollow" href="https://mashable.com/2018/01/27/moviepass-hacks/?utm_campaign=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full&utm_cid=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full">hacked the app</a> (we're talking rewards cards, illegal popcorn purchases) for their moviegoing pleasures. A begrudging shoutout to y’all.</p>
<p><img alt="Do not use this to buy soda."></p>
<div><p>Image: MoviePass</p></div><h2>10. The Portofino Pirate</h2>
<p>In June, a 50-year-old designer named Larissa Watson <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/06/06/british-woman-dubbed-portofino-pirate-trying-steal-yacht-italian/">hopped aboard a yacht</a> docked in the upscale resort village of Portofino, found the keys, and just ... tried to take it. Luckily, a nearby worker managed to remove the keys from the ignition before she made it out of the harbor, but she still <em>almost made it out of the harbor. </em>With a yacht worth €150,000. Imagine.</p>
<h2>9. The stroller sharknappers</h2>
<p>In July, three would-be thieves at the San Antonio Aquarium <a rel="nofollow" href="https://mashable.com/2018/07/31/kidnapped-shark-disguised-as-a-baby/?utm_campaign=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full&utm_cid=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full">tried to kidnap</a> Ms. Helen the horn shark by plucking her from her tank, placing her in a bucket full of bleach solution, and carting the bucket away in a stroller. They were later discovered when the aquarium's manager noticed liquid dripping from the stroller.</p>
<p>Ms. Helen survived the ordeal and is doing fine.</p>
<div><p>SEE ALSO: <a rel="nofollow" href="https://mashable.com/2018/08/17/evil-power-couples/?utm_campaign=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full&utm_cid=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full">12 evil power couples (and their most heinous crimes) ranked from least to most messed up</a></p></div>
<h2>8. The cast of <em>Ocean's 8</em>
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<p>The film <em>Ocean’s 8</em> is not a scam itself, but it does celebrate scammers. Therefore, it holds a very special place on this list and in our hearts. The film's primary heist — which is set at the Met Gala and involves a necklace worth hundreds of millions of dollars — is full of little mini-scams, too, which makes a <em>Ocean’s 8 </em>movie night the quintessential 2018 viewing experience.</p>
<p><img alt=":')"></p>
<div><p>Image: Barry Wetcher/Warner Bros.</p></div><h2> 7. The lunch ladies</h2>
<p>Two cafeteria workers in New Canaan, Connecticut were arrested earlier this month for allegedly skimming $478,000 in student lunch money over a period of about five years.</p>
<p>How'd they get away with it? By consistently underreporting the amount of money the school had received. </p>
<p>“Since [the scam] occurred over a long period of time in relatively small amounts, the district was unaware of these discrepancies until it instituted new financial controls specifically related to the collection and depositing of cash in the cafeterias,” Michael Horyczun, spokesman for New Canaan Public Schools, <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/14/nyregion/connecticut-school-cafeteria-theft.html">told the <em>New York Times</em></a>. </p>
<p>Quite an operation.</p>
<h2>6. Bonnie the cow</h2>
<p>Bonnie is an anomaly among scammers: Her motives are noble. This hero, who is a cow, escaped slaughter when she was only four-months-old, then <a rel="nofollow" href="https://mashable.com/2018/06/27/cow-who-lives-with-deer/?utm_campaign=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full&utm_cid=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full">took up residence</a> with a herd of deer. She was eventually rescued by Farm Sanctuary and now lives in a luxury barn. Scamming pays off!</p>
<p><img alt="We stan."></p>
<div><p>Image: Becky Bartels/Farm Sanctuary</p></div><h2>5. The former <em>Vogue</em> assistant</h2>
<p>Yvonne Bannigan, a former Vogue freelancer, <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/juliareinstein/an-ex-assistant-was-arrested-for-allegedly-stealing-50000">was arrested</a> earlier this summer for stealing over $50,000 from former creative director Grace Coddington. Turns out Bannigan made a series of unauthorized purchases on Coddington’s credit card — and had the audacity to sell some of her personal items for almost $10,000 which she also pocketed. </p>
<p>Bold!</p>
<h2>4. The Hollywood exec impersonator</h2>
<p>For two years, an unidentified woman has been impersonating powerful figures in Hollywood, luring them into unfulfilled contracts, and stealing money from them. Meanwhile, her victims are just excited about working with Amy Pascal or Kathleen Kennedy — two of the many women she’s pretended to be over the phone. </p>
<p>It’s a scam so outrageous, it would probably would be a Hollywood film if it didn’t involve key players within the entertainment industry. <em>The Hollywood Reporter</em> <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/features/hunting-con-queen-hollywood-1125932">uncovered the elaborate scam</a> and spoke with many folks who interacted with her organization and the scammer herself, who has made upwards of thousands of dollars from identity theft and still remains unknown. Watch out. </p>
<div><p>SEE ALSO: <a rel="nofollow" href="https://mashable.com/2014/12/01/hollywood-secret-beauty-procedure/?utm_campaign=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full&utm_cid=Mash-BD-Synd-Yahoo-Watercooler-Full">The secret Hollywood procedure that has fooled us for years</a></p></div>
<h2>3. The royal wedding expert</h2>
<p>Thomas J. Mace-Archer-Mills, Esq. sounds exactly like the name of someone who <em>would</em> fake their way into becoming an expert in all things royal wedding. With his best fake British accent, Tommy Muscatello scammed his way into history just in time for the nuptials of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. </p>
<p>He perfected his British accent twenty years ago during a school play and put it to good use by appearing on news programs <a rel="nofollow" href="https://bmsf.org.uk/category/media-appearances/"> regularly</a> as a royal wedding expert and founding member of the British Monarchist Foundation — only to eventually be called out by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/british-expert-on-the-royal-family-is-actually-tommy-from-upstate-new-york-1527775859"><em> The Wall Street Journal</em></a><em>. </em>Turns out, Mace-Archer-Mills was just a combination of his friends’ last names. In an interesting twist, the <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2018/06/british-royal-wedding-expert-imposter-thomas-j-mace-archer-mills"> British accent</a> has stuck with Muscatello even after all this controversy. Pretty impressive.</p>
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<h2>2. Clarinet girlfriend</h2>
<p>In 2014, Jennifer Lee didn't want her boyfriend, clarinetist Eric Abramovitz, to go away to school. Pretty relatable. Less relatable: She <a rel="nofollow" href="https://slate.com/technology/2018/06/clarinet-player-girlfriend-fake-email-account-shared-passwords-bizarre-story.html">hacked into his email</a>, intercepted his acceptance to Los Angeles's Colburn Conservatory of Music, then sent an email on behalf of her boyfriend declining their offer. <em>Then, </em>she sent Abramovitz a fake email from the school to make it look like he'd actually been rejected.</p>
<p>The duped clarinetist only found out about Lee's scam in 2016, when he auditioned for the same professor who he believed had rejected him three years earlier. The professor was weirded out, understandably, because he believed the clarinetist had already said no. And thus, the jig was up.</p>
<p>Abramovitz <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jun/15/clarinet-player-eric-abramovitz-girlfriend-fake-rejection-letter">was awarded</a> $375,000 CAD.</p>
<h2>1. SoHo grifter Anna Delvey</h2>
<p>Anna Delvey is the one scammer to rule them all. Two bombshell stories — <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/04/my-misadventure-with-the-magician-of-manhattan">one in <em>Vanity Fair</em></a><em>,</em> <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.thecut.com/2018/05/how-anna-delvey-tricked-new-york.html">one from The Cut</a> — chronicled the fake German heiress' wild schemes, all of which involved scamming hundreds of thousands of dollars from actual rich people. Read both in their entirety: there's plenty of fancy dinners, celebrity appearances, hotel room evictions, leaked Lil Wayne albums, doomed arts foundations, and $4,500 personal training packages within.</p>
<p>Delvey, whose real name is Anna Sorokin, <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.thecut.com/2018/06/anna-delvey-netflix-shondaland-nab-rights-to-grifter-story.html">was indicted</a> on grand larceny charges last week and faces 15 years in prison. On the bright side, Shondaland and Netflix are making a TV show about her, which we're sure is all she really wants.</p>
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<p><a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BMU6LUtB1tg/?utm_source=ig_embed">#tb this summer 💁🏼</a></p>
<p>A post shared by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.instagram.com/theannadelvey/?utm_source=ig_embed"> Anna Delvey</a> (@theannadelvey) on Nov 2, 2016 at 4:46pm PDT</p>
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CRIME

Fyre Festival Founder Billy McFarland Sentenced To 6 Years In Prison

By Nina Golgowski

A judge dubbed the 26-year-old a "serial fraudster" for scams that cost investors and ticket-holders millions.

William 'Billy' McFarland, organizer of the Fyre Festival, exits the U.S. Federal Court in Manhattan following his presentment on wire fraud charges in New York City, U.S., July 1, 2017. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Brendan McDermid / Reuters

U.S. NEWS

Fyre Festival Organizer Charged With Selling Fake Tickets While Out On Bail

By Hayley Miller

Billy McFarland allegedly scammed people looking to attend the Met Gala and Coachella as he awaited sentencing on Fyre Festival-related charges.

William 'Billy' McFarland, organizer of the Fyre Festival, exits the U.S. Federal Court in Manhattan following his presentment on wire fraud charges in New York City, U.S., July 1, 2017. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Brendan McDermid / Reuters

CRIME

Fyre Festival Founder Faces Prison After Pleading Guilty To Wire Fraud

“I grossly underestimated the resources that would be necessary to hold an event of this magnitude," said Billy McFarland.

WOMEN

The 20 Funniest Tweets From Women This Week

By Hollis Miller

LOLs for the holidays.

INGLEWOOD, CA - DECEMBER 10: (L-R) Mark Hoppus, Travis Barker and Matt Skiba of the band Blink 182 attend 106.7 KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas 2016 - Night 1 at The Forum on December 10, 2016 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by C Flanigan/WireImage)

C Flanigan via Getty Images

ENTERTAINMENT

Blink-182's Matt Skiba Used Witchcraft Against Fyre Festival

By Cavan Sieczkowski

Skiba considers himself "a pagan and a witch."

WATER MILL, NY - JULY 30: Billy McFarland and Carol Mac attend The 23rd Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction at The Watermill Center on July 30, 2016 in Water Mill, NY. (Photo by Patrick McMullan/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)

Patrick McMullan via Getty Images

ENTERTAINMENT

Fyre Festival Founder Arrested, Charged With Wire Fraud

By Carla Herreria

Federal prosecutors claim Billy McFarland promised a "life changing" festival but "delivered a disaster."

ENTERTAINMENT

Infamous Fyre Festival Under FBI Investigation For Fraud

By Julia Brucculieri

A true dumpster fyre.

ENTERTAINMENT

Fyre Festival Apparently Tried To Silence Critics With Cease And Desist Letters

By Cavan Sieczkowski

"Specifically, if the social media comments were not taken down, the Defendants claim they could 'incite violence, rioting, or civil unrest.'"

Britt Nemeth Photography

ENTERTAINMENT

Was Fyre Festival Really The Worst 24 Hours Of Your Life?

By Taraleigh Weathers, Contributor

Creator of epic musical retreats and events, speaker & author

Everyone’s abuzz talking about the disastrous Fyre Festival. At this celebrity endorsed festival, attendees were promised

BUSINESS

Fyre Festival Blows The Celebrity Endorser Whistle

By David Sable, Contributor

Global CEO at Y&R

Are we becoming too shallow?

Do you have info to share with HuffPost reporters? Here’s how.

NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 14: (L-R) Matthew Assante, Waka Flocka, Billy McFarland and Ja Rule attend 'Whisper Wednesdays' at PHD Terrace Dream Midtown on December 14, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Chance Yeh/Getty Images)

Chance Yeh via Getty Images

ENTERTAINMENT

Fyre Festival Organizers Hit With $100 Million Lawsuit

By Cavan Sieczkowski

We all saw this coming.

BLACK VOICES

Don’t Blame Bahamians For Your Shitty FyreFest

By Ashleigh Sean Rolle, Contributor

Co-Founder of Skipper,Global Shaper, One Young World Ambassado...

With people purchasing tickets at 12k this event was literally made to exclude the locals.

Twitter-WNFIV/Getty

ENTERTAINMENT

Organizer Of Fyre Festival Fiasco Considers Throwing Another One Next Year

By Carla Herreria

Because the first one worked out so well?

From left to right: A sandwich handed out at the Fyre Festival hip-hop legend Ja Rule

ENTERTAINMENT

Ja Rule On Fyre Festival: 'NOT MY FAULT'

By Maxwell Strachan

He also clarified that it was "NOT A SCAM."

COMEDY

22 'Fyre' Tweets About The Disaster That Was The Fyre Festival

By Elyse Wanshel

Twitter could not help itself.

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