Case File
The $400 Million Rip-Off
- The Gambler
- Once an up and coming stockbroker, Nicholas Cosmo turned to a life a crime in order to save his own skin. Cosmo had a gambling addiction and discovered how to hustle and con investors. He worked New York's boiler rooms, funneling investor money into his personal accounts to pay gambling debts…that is, until he went to prison.
- Agape World Inc.
- It appeared that Nicholas Cosmo did not learn his lesson. The same month he's released from prison, Cosmo establishes a new corporation, Agape World Inc. By 2007 Agape appeared to be a very successful money-lending firm specializing in short-term bridge loans for big real estate developments.
- The Investors
- Thousands of working class investors including cops, teachers, hairdressers and builders, believed Agape World Inc. was a good place to put their money. They were lured by the promise of high returns. But they would soon find out Nicholas Cosmo was a con artist running a scam and using their money to fuel his habit.
