About this episode Uncover the incredible story of Victor Lustig, the con artist who managed to 'sell' the Eiffel Tower not once, but twice! This episode delves into the audacious scheme, revealing the meticulous planning, psychological manipulation, and sheer nerve that brought him tantalizingly close to pulling off the perfect crime. Learn the intricate details of how Lustig exploited human greed and trust, and discover the fatal flaws that ultimately led to his downfall in this fascinating tale of deception.
0:00 the counterfeit stationery lay flat on the desk sealed with a forged crest from the french ministry of posts and telegraphs victor lustig adjusted his cuffs smiled at the scrap dealer across from him and quietly asked for a bribe to ensure the eiffel tower belonged to him by nightfall0:27 in episode 29 we traced how thieves dug through 80 meters of earth under fortaleza to crack the banco central from below but victor lustig didn't bother with shovels he simply walked into a luxury suite at an expensive paris hotel in 1925 and offered to sell 7,000 tons of world famous iron out from under the french republic0:53 you have to appreciate the sheer unblinking nerve of it paris was still bruised from the first world war and newspapers were openly complaining that repainting and repairing the tower cost far more than it was worth most people saw civic decay lustig saw inventory he summoned a handful of the city's wealthiest scrap metal dealers to a hushed private1:18 conference introducing himself as a discreet deputy director the government he told them could no longer justify the upkeep they were tearing it down but public outrage was guaranteed so the bidding had to happen in total secrecy he didn't just tell them the lie he gave them theater he bundled them into a hired limousine toured the champ de1:42 mars flashed his forged credentials to the guards and watched his marks closely he wasn't looking for the richest merchant in paris he was hunting for the hungriest enter andre poisson poisson was insecure desperate for a seat among the elite and terrified of missing the deal of the century when poisson's wife raised doubts about the rush lustig did2:09 something brilliant he feigned embarrassment he leaned in admitted a bureaucrat salary was modest and hinted that a private cash envelope would grease the wheels think about the mechanics there a clean official looks like a trap a corrupt official that felt entirely real poisson swallowed the bait handed over chf70,000 for the scrap rights and tossed in the bribe2:38 lustig packed the cash boarded the train to vienna and waited for the police sirens they never came poisson was so profoundly humiliated by what he had done that he refused to file a report his shame was the getaway car2:57 now an ordinary criminal takes that chf70,000 and disappears disciplined mind retires but lustig was an artist and artists cannot resist an encore a month later he slipped back into paris invited a fresh batch of scrap dealers to another hotel room and rolled out the exact same pitch did he really think thunder strikes3:26 twice on the same monument3:30 this time the prospective mark balked suspicions flared someone called the police and lustig had to flee the country before the handcuffs clicked shut he slipped off to america but the discipline had evaporated he traded the bespoke psychology of high stakes fraud for mass producing counterfeit banknotes in new york and that is where the genius completely dissolved in3:58 1935 federal agents tracked him down a key he wouldn't explain opened a locker in a times square subway station packed with printing plates and $50,000 in fake cash he staged a daring escape from jail lasted a month on the run and was hauled right back in ending his days behind the concrete walls of alcatraz4:23 lustig's true weapon was never printing plates or forged ministerial letterheads it was the quiet lethal understanding that people will hand over a fortune just to feel important and they will swallow the loss in silence rather than admit they were fools 7,000 tons of iron still stand over the champ de mars tonight cold bolted and utterly unmoved by4:52 the man who sold it twice
