(SUMMARY) — April 21, 2011
Federal prosecutors indicted Isaac Feldman and 14 other Eastern Europeans last Friday with engineering one of the most spectacular frauds in the Magic City’s long history of strange crimes. They allegedly set up six Potemkin nightclubs in South Beach and employed a squad of young Estonian and Latvian beauties to lure well-off male tourists inside. Bartenders then pillaged their credit cards for up to $43,000, including $5,000 for cheap bottles of champagne.
Feldman was, in a way, the star of the show — the most public figure involved in the scam, which made headlines from Vancouver to Moscow. A former Russian-language radio show host, wealthy real estate agent, and aspiring actor, he had raised thousands of dollars last fall in a bid for the City of Sunny Isles Beach Commission. Feldman also spoke four languages, flew planes, and studied karate.
When Feldman decided last summer to join a three-way race for an open commission seat, no one seemed shocked. He raised $8,100, tapping some big names including RK Management, a realty company owned by Miami Heat limited partner Raanan Katz. He printed ads in Russian and plastered red-white-and-blue signs around town. In the November vote, he nabbed 26 percent but fell short of a runoff. “We will win the next elections!” he promised on his Facebookpage.
To read the entire article, pleaes go to: http://www.miaminewtimes.com/2011-04-21/news/eastern-european-b-girls-in-sobe-scam/