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Man Falls For The Old "Can We Take A Photo In Your Maserati?" Trick In Times Square
By
John Del Signore
Published Aug 14, 2012
Modified Aug 14, 2012
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By
John Del Signore
Published Aug 14, 2012
Modified Aug 14, 2012
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Florida real estate broker Chadwick Lange, 43, recently relocated from sunny Florida to New York City, a provincial backwater known for its small-town charm and trustworthy citizenry, where nobody locks their doors at night and everybody knows each other's name. Sadly, New Yorkers' sterling reputation for unfailing probity was tarnished early Sunday morning when Lange's $150,000 Maserati was absconded with by two rapscallions—after they asked Lange's permission to take photographs of the vehicle in Times Square.
Lange had pulled over at West 47th Street and Broadway just before 5 a.m. on Sunday because, he says, he spotted a friend. (Like we said, it's a small town!) Police sources tell ABC 7 that Lange exited his motor vehicle to chat with the friend, leaving the keys in the ignition and the engine idling. That's when two unidentified confidence men swooped in and, affecting admiration for Lange's luxurious conveyance, requested permission to pose for photos inside it.
But as soon as poor, trusting Lange gave the polite scoundrels his blessing, one of the grifters slid behind the wheel, shut the door, and sped off. His accomplice dashed after him and hopped inside at the next corner, and then Maserati disappeared from sight, taking with it Lange's faith in his fellow man. The local constabulary is still on the lookout for the rogues, who no doubt hail from the less honorable districts of Shelbyville or North Haverbrooke.
Tagged
crime
maserati
Times Square
transplants
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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