Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!americast-post Newsgroups: americast.twt.news From: americast-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: americast-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: Con man on loose after fooling D.C. Date: Sat, 7 Nov 92 19:23:58 EST Message-ID: \SE A \HD Con man on loose after fooling D.C. \SH Court lets widely wanted felon walk \BY Brian Reilly and Margaret Rankin \CR THE WASHINGTON TIMES A high-living con artist who eluded police in at least three states before being caught in the District last week is again on the loose. Paul Marion Johnson slipped away from D.C. Superior Court Thursday night after convincing court officials he had paid his bond. He spent the night at a downtown hotel and taunted District fraud detectives by calling to let them know he was free. Johnson, 30, used a mix-up in court records, a character reference from a phony employer and a lie about the status of his bond payment to walk free, law enforcement officials said. "He's either very slick or very lucky - probably both," a fraud detective said, adding that Johnson simply saw an opportunity in court Thursday and seized it. Johnson is wanted in Fairfax County, St. Louis, Houston and Denton County, Texas, and a number of felony fraud charges are pending in the District. He was ordered held in the D.C. Jail in lieu of $50,000 bond Oct. 28, a day after he was arrested in an undercover operation as a fugitive from justice for violating probation on a Houston forgery conviction. On Wednesday, he was released into police custody and booked at Metropolitan Police headquarters on misdemeanor charges of using a stolen credit card at Trader Vic's Restaurant earlier this year. At his arraignment Thursday, the handsome Johnson arrived in the well-tailored suit he wore at the time of his first arrest. Johnson, who police believe has passed himself off as a lawyer, gave his stand-in lawyer specific instructions on how he wanted the case handled, sources said. He told Superior Court Commissioner Pamela Diaz his bond had been paid by his family. The lawyer, Sharon Burka, said she left the courtroom confused about what had happened. "It was weird. I walked out of there thinking something really weird has just happened. I mean, this man is known for scamming people, but he didn't even really have to do anything this time," she said. "All the cards were in his favor; it was his day." Commissioner Diaz recommended that Johnson be released on personal recognizance on the credit card charges because they are misdemeanors. Ms. Burka said she questioned whether the $50,000 bond had been paid, prompting Commissioner Diaz to call Pretrial Services. Officials there said the bond had been paid, but court records yesterday showed it had not. The commissioner tried to check on the bond with the court's finance office. But it was 5:30 p.m. and the office was closed. A police source who talked to Commissioner Diaz said she was skeptical of Johnson's claims but had no documentation to contradict him. Pretrial Services staffer Trudy Van Voorhis said her agency was using jail records when it confirmed for Commissioner Diaz that Johnson's bond had been paid. The jail records were classified "inactive" when Johnson was transferred to police custody Wednesday. "The file indicated he is not currently under the supervision of the Department of Corrections, so we thought he must have paid his bond if he was released," she said. A Pretrial Services worker had checked the phone number Johnson gave the court for his place of employment. The person who answered said Johnson was an outstanding employee at the District lobbying firm of Gunther and Hamilton. But when detectives called the same number today, it was no longer in service, and that company is not listed in the Washington area. Shortly after he left Superior Court last night, Johnson called detectives in the check and fraud branch and said, "I'm out," a police official said. Johnson tried to set up a meeting at the Capital Hilton on 16th Street NW on the condition that he not be arrested. He promised to pay back all the people he swindled. Police agreed, but when they arrived at the Hilton, he wasn't there. Several people told police that a man matching Johnson's description spent the night at the Carlton Hotel across the street from the Hilton. Police say Johnson, who is known by at least 16 aliases, lived for the past eight months in a downtown condominium, rented a Georgetown office for $6,000 a month and rode around in limousines with a "beautiful blond girlfriend." He rented a condominium at 701 Pennsylvania Ave. NW under the name Stuart Winthrop, officials said. He never paid for the limos and has been evicted from both the office and the condominium. He has no documented employment, though police said he may recently have impersonated a lawyer and represented at least two clients in D.C. Superior Court. Police touted his arrest as a major coup that would solve a number of fraud cases across the country. "Now we just have more work do," said Lt. Jeffrey Stowe, commander of the department's check and fraud branch. "It's not an embarrassment to us." This article is copyright 1992 The Washington Times. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. 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