Amerikai Magyar Hírlap, 2007 (19. évfolyam, 1-50. szám)

2007-04-27 / 18. szám

AMERICAN mm # a Hungarian Journal Hungarian-Born Chef Helps Catch Con Artist László András Starts Website to Connect Victims and Warn Others LOS ANGELES - Alleged con artist, 28-year-old Kathleen Tangcoy Legaspi is behind bars, thanks to the ingenuity and perseverance of one of her victims. The Los Angeles Times reported the story on the front page of its California section on Sunday, April 15. Santa Monica private chef László András, 34, had taken a chance on last-minute orders before. So when he was asked to prepare a four-course meal for a birthday dinner for 20, he accepted, even though there was no time to get a deposit. He trusted the friendly woman on the phone who called herself Kat. Kat’s check for $1,300 bounced, sending the Hungar­ian-born chef to police. They sent him to small claims court, he said; the court sent him back to police. Exasperated, the chef turned to the Internet. In November, he created http:/ /www.superripoff.com , a site that connected about a dozen photographers, actors and would-be models who alleged that Kathleen Legaspi, or Kat, had swindled them out of thousands of dollars with false promises of entertainment jobs, photo work and fake Hollywood connections. In March, Santa Monica police arrested Legaspi. And many are crediting András with helping to build the case. “It was the first time I had seen anyone do that — create a website warning people of a fraud suspect,” said Santa Monica police Det. Maury Suöilin, a 20-year veteran who specializes in fraud and is investigating Legaspi. “It was very helpful to me, because it put me in contact with people and provided me with more evidence on my case.” Kathleen Tangcoy Legaspi, 28, is detained at Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood in lieu of $70,000 bail. In court last week, she pleaded not guilty to three felony counts of burglary, one count of grand theft and one count of passing a fictitious check, according to court documents. Police said the charges stem from Legaspi’s alleged passing of a fraudulent check at a Santa Monica bank. Legaspi also is charged in Beverly Hills with one count of grand theft of personal property, according to court documents. Castaway Studios’ manager, Courtney Evans, said Legaspi took kickbacks while working as a casting recruiter for the company. András’ digital quest for justice first led him to http://www.ripoffreport.com , a site for reporting all kinds of alleged scams. There he found a complaint against a Kathleen Kafashian, the name Legaspi had given him. The poster was identified only as David, a photographer from Toluca Lake. András searched the Internet and phone book for photographer Davids in Toluca Lake. Then he called them, one by one, until he found the right one. David, who also said he received a bad check from a Kat Kafashian, knew a small group of photographers and models who believed they’d been scammed, András said. Some in the group had posted warnings on http://www.ripoffreport.com or on Craigslist. András decided there should be one central place for all-things-Kat. In November, the website was born. Soon, he was posting reports he received from other alleged victims, who found the site by Googling “Kaf­ashian” or by following a link András placed on Craigslist. The site has received more than 7,000 hits. The postings had a common thread: A young, bubbly woman promised lucrative modeling contracts with Nike or Skechers, or coveted gigs in Gap commercials and blockbuster movies. Models paid hundreds of dollars for head shots, the posters said, while photographers who took the pictures never saw a paycheck. Job­­hungry actors embarked on wild goose chases across town to attend casting calls canceled at the last minute. By the time they realized their folly, they said, Legaspi had disappeared. Unable to get reports up as fast as he got them, András created a blog so other people could post on their own. One visitor identified Kafashian as Legaspi. András plastered the Legaspi name at the top of his page, along with her photo and her alleged business names. András’ postings are relatively sober; in one he warns: “If your comments on this site are just angry, obscenity-filled rants, readers of your post may assume that you are the problem and dismiss your com­ments.” But some posters do show anger: One put up a risque photo said to be of Legaspi, and another wrote, “Make this woman pay deeply please!” San Diego resident Sharrin Fuller, 26, became a key contributor to András’ site. Fuller met Legaspi after posting a message on Craigslist looking for people to hang out with. Legaspi moved in with Fuller and promised to get her boyfriend parts in the upcoming movie “The Brazilian Job” and a Nike commercial, Fuller said. When the jobs didn’t pan out, Fuller grew wary. One day Fuller peeked at Legaspi’s e-mail inbox and found a message referring to one of András’ post­ings. Fuller found his site, sent the link to all of Legaspi’s e-mail contacts and kicked her out. She also filed a report with police in San Diego and directed them to the website. “When the cops saw the website,” Fuller said, “they took the complaint more seriously.” TO my TENNIS BUDDIES and FRIENDS It is time again to play a little friendly tennis and have some fun as we used to do. Reservations have been made for Sunday, May 6, 2007 at the usual Griffith Park Tennis Facilities, courts number 5, 6, 7 and 8 for our traditional spring tennis picnic. Hopefully, weather permitting we’ll have a grand time again. It should be warm, food and drinks will be provided. Bring a friend with you, tennis player or not. Let’s have a nice social event as we used to have. If you have questions, please contact: PETER ERDELYI, President Hungária Sport Club C (310) 308-1535 * W (310) 553-9339 H (310) 204-4923 * E-mail:Peter@erdelyi.com Április 27, 2007 Nelson Papucci and his wife, Ana, said the site eases the shame of being duped. The self­­described newcomers to the fash­ion industry paid Legaspi $800 for head shots of Ana, who they say was promised $20,000 for a part in a jeans commercial. “It’s a little embarrassing to say that we were taken in by someone,” said Papucci, 37, of Los Angeles. But the site “allowed us to say we weren’t alone.” András said he has gotten hate mail from those who feel the site is too mean-spirited. He shrugs off his critics. “I think it’s worth it,” he said. “Nobody is going to do business with her ever again.” (Source: L.A. Times) US May End Visa Requirement for Hungarians This Year, Opposition Leader Says BUDAPEST (MTI) - The United States may terminate its visa requirement for Hungarians by the end of this year or the beginning of next year, small opposition MDF party chair Ibolya David said in Budapest on Sunday after returning from a ten-day trip to the US. David noted that the move enjoyed President George W. Bush’s support but had to move through both houses of Congress, which is a lengthy process. She said her talks in the US had focused on the European Union’s policy towards its neighbours, European energy issues, and the coun­tries of southeast Europe and their problems. On another subject, David noted that several of her American nego­tiation partners had criticized Hungary for fruitless political disputes, demagogy and populism, which were preventing it from taking advan­tage of its opportunities. David had met with members of the National Security Council, senior State Department and Commerce Department officials, congressional officials, and representatives of the Hungarian communities in Washington and New York. President Travels to Canada on Weeklong Visit BUDAPEST (MTI) - Hungarian President László Solyom is set to travel to Canada for a weeklong visit, MTI learned on Sunday Solyom leaves for Toronto on Monday, where he will visit and address the Empire Club, as part of his programme. On Wednesday, he travels to Ottawa for a meeting with Canada’s Governor General Michaelle Jean and her husband Jean-Daniel Lafond as well as other leading officials. Among his other programmes in Ottawa, Solyom will lay a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Sol­dier. He will also lay. a wreath at a memorial to Hungarian refugees, who escaped Hungary after the defeat of the revolution of 1956. On Friday, Solyom travels to Calgary, Alberta, to study its econ­omy. He will be accompanied on the journey by Education Minister István Hiller, who will sign a memorandum of understanding in Cal­gary with Alberta’s education minister Ron Liepert. Solyom leaves Canada on April 29. Yahoo Sued Over Data on Chinese Dissidents SHANGHAI - A human-rights group filed a lawsuit Wednesday against Yahoo Inc. for allegedly providing information to the Chinese government that led to the persecution, torture and imprisonment of Chinese dissidents. The World Organization for Human Rights USA filed the lawsuit on behalf of Wang Xiaoning, who is serving a 10-year prison sentence for advocating Democratic reform in China in articles circulated on the Internet, and his wife, Yu Ling, who watched Beijing security officials barge into their home and arrest her husband of 27 years. The suit seeks damages for Wang, Yu and others who have been arbitrarily detained, tortured or subjected to inhumane treatment at the hands of Chinese authorities because of information Yahoo allegedly provided the government. It also seeks Yahoo’s help in securing the release of these prisoners and a court order to prevent it from taking similar actions in the future. “U.S. corporations doing business in places like China, that have highly repressive practices and commit human rights violations on a systemic basis, need to ask themselves a question: Are the actions I’m taking or the information I’m providing putting people at risk?” said Morton Sklar, executive director of the World Organization for Human Rights USA. American technology companies including Google Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Cisco Systems Inc. have drawn mounting criticism. At a congressional hearing in February, these companies acknowledged making compromises to do business in the world’s second-largest Inter­net market, which has at least 130 million users. Google is accused of blocking access to sites that the Chinese government deems sensitive. Cisco Systems has sold China equipment that authorities use to block access to such sites. Yahoo has come under fire for signing a pledge to abide by all censorship laws. (Source: L.A. Times, Visual Artists Guild) DUNA Travel 8530 Holloway Dr. If 102 W. Hollywood, CA 90069 Spa, Hotel foglalások, Kocsi bérlés Kedvezményes repülőjegy árak LAX-BUD-LAX $575.-tól +TX. (május 17-ig) I Információért hívják ZSUZSÁT TEL: (310) 652-5294 FAX: (310) 652-5287 1-888-532-0168 AMERIKAI Hfagyar Hírlap

Next

/
  • Elrendezés
  • Igazítás
  • Forgatás
Oldalképek
Tartalom