Crime

Con Man Has Tricked Restaurants Into Giving Him $60,000-Worth of Wine

Artist's approximation of the suspect.
Artist’s approximation of the suspect. Photo: Shutterstock

A scam-artist supertaster with a soft spot for pricy wine has been making a grand tour of Britain’s Michelin dining rooms and snapping up the priciest stuff on offer with stolen credit cards. The suspect, or maybe suspects, struck twice, first at the one-star Pied à Terre last week, then doubling the star count by targeting Midsummer House a few days later. The thief’s M.O. was apparently to pretend to be the agent of Chelsea striker Didier Drogba and place a delivery order (they’ll do that, apparently) for $44,000 of Lafite and Pétrus. Assuming “the footballer had more money than sense,” chef Daniel Clifford obliged. He later learned a cab driver was told to deliver it to a McDonald’s in the area, meaning authorities are looking for someone with a worn-out Sideways DVD.

At Pied à Terre, the mystery man phoned in as a “fixer” for “rich Arab clients” and asked for three magnums of Cristal, a bottle of Cristal, and a $12,000 vintage Pétrus. This, too, was paid for with a stolen card. Police admit they don’t really have any leads, so he’s likely out there plotting the next move. We hear Gordon Ramsay has had trouble seeing a bunch of false identities lately, so perhaps he should be watching his wine cellar all the more carefully.

[Evening Standard]

Con Man Has Tricked Restaurants Into Giving Him $60,000-Worth of Wine