Lost ID spurs bogus-inspector scam
He was the hardest-working con man in New York, authorities claim.
A scam artist found a Health Department worker's ID on the ground -- and used it to pose as a city contractor for nearly a year, duping small-business owners into paying him fees to avoid failing inspections, officials said.
Hector Collet, 41, came across the card in March 2009. After gathering information on the Web, he created phony letters claiming he was under contract with the city to provide "pre-inspection" services for restaurants and nail salons, according to the Department of Investigation.
In a statement to authorities, Collet allegedly boasted that his con was so successful that he would hit numerous businesses a day.
"I did this in all five boroughs of New York City, approximately two, three times per day," he allegedly said. "Sometimes I did it seven days per week. If I got paid, I would usually stop, but there were days I got paid multiple times."
Dressed in a shirt, tie and khaki pants -- with the ID hanging from his jacket -- Collet allegedly would go into businesses and tell the owners he could help them avoid paying fines. After doing a cursory inspection, he'd ask for anywhere between $60 and $200, officials said. He would even give them a receipt. His total take might have reached six figures.
"He showed me an ID and gave me a paper that looked very official," said Nelly Hernandez, who runs Nelly's Nail Salon on Water Street downtown. "He said it was something new that Bloomberg was doing.
"I would have never doubted he was an inspector. The only part that wasn't right was that he requested only cash and money orders. He made me sign a paper that said I paid $70." When she told her son about the visit, he was suspicious, "so I called the number on the receipt -- and it was a sex line."
Ultimately, enough business owners filed complaints that the Department of Investigation and the Manhattan District Attorney's Office opened a case. Investigators caught up with Collet on Tuesday.
Collet, who was homeless at the time of his arrest, has several prior arrests for forgery, burglary and grand larceny. He is charged with six counts of forgery and identity theft, and officials are looking to link him to other cases.
A scam artist found a Health Department worker's ID on the ground -- and used it to pose as a city contractor for nearly a year, duping small-business owners into paying him fees to avoid failing inspections, officials said.
Hector Collet, 41, came across the card in March 2009. After gathering information on the Web, he created phony letters claiming he was under contract with the city to provide "pre-inspection" services for restaurants and nail salons, according to the Department of Investigation.
In a statement to authorities, Collet allegedly boasted that his con was so successful that he would hit numerous businesses a day.
"I did this in all five boroughs of New York City, approximately two, three times per day," he allegedly said. "Sometimes I did it seven days per week. If I got paid, I would usually stop, but there were days I got paid multiple times."
Dressed in a shirt, tie and khaki pants -- with the ID hanging from his jacket -- Collet allegedly would go into businesses and tell the owners he could help them avoid paying fines. After doing a cursory inspection, he'd ask for anywhere between $60 and $200, officials said. He would even give them a receipt. His total take might have reached six figures.
"He showed me an ID and gave me a paper that looked very official," said Nelly Hernandez, who runs Nelly's Nail Salon on Water Street downtown. "He said it was something new that Bloomberg was doing.
"I would have never doubted he was an inspector. The only part that wasn't right was that he requested only cash and money orders. He made me sign a paper that said I paid $70." When she told her son about the visit, he was suspicious, "so I called the number on the receipt -- and it was a sex line."
Ultimately, enough business owners filed complaints that the Department of Investigation and the Manhattan District Attorney's Office opened a case. Investigators caught up with Collet on Tuesday.
Collet, who was homeless at the time of his arrest, has several prior arrests for forgery, burglary and grand larceny. He is charged with six counts of forgery and identity theft, and officials are looking to link him to other cases.
NY Post
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