http://www.tnooz.com/2011/06/06/news/tnooz-nuggets-mon-6-june-2011/
Aviation blogger Steven Frischling is slated to appear in a New London, Conn., courtroom June 15 on larceny and forgery charges in connection with a dispute over his writing services for a KLM blog. Authorities allege that Frischling forged an invoice in January 2010 from the Innovation Analysis Group to KLM for blog writing services and pocketed $22,000. Authorities maintain that IAG had a blog contract with KLM and Frischling, who did the actual writing, was a subcontractor who wasn’t entitled to the full $22,000. IAG declined to comment on the matter, and Frischling, who currently pens the Flying With Fish blog, says he will plead not guilty to both counts.
Let's hope they set a trial as quickly as they set the arraignment so we don't have to wait for the fun to begin! As to whether he plans to represent himself, we will just have to wait and see.
How does he defend forging an invoice? How could that possibly be even defended?
ReplyDeleteoh please please please represent yourself!
ReplyDeleteThe core of Fish's defense seems to be:
ReplyDelete1. He was not given the title of Director of Emerging Social Media as it said on the warrant, but was the Director of Emerging Media!
2. IAG's lawyer sent a letter referring to his wife, but he was never married! A-ha!
3. The smoking gun: IAG's lawyer was listed as inactive in the California bar association several years ago!
All of this proves he is innocent! Slam dunk.
I've always thought Fish was an idiot and full of shit but that he would do something so brazenly stupid and so illegal proves he's a sociopath. He deserves to be locked up.
ReplyDeleteHe is not denying it at all is he? not that he can. If he got the $22k that means KLM paid it to him directly, and the only way that happened is if they got an invoice on IAG letterhead with his bank account number. He could have invoiced them on his own letterhead if he thought he deserved it all. That he forged it on someone else's letterhead proves he knew he wasn't entitled to it.
You know what I am most happy about with this brief? That he was referred to as an aviation blogger and not a photographer. You aviation bloggers can have him - I am glad this stain is not associated with the photo community, or at least not as much.
ReplyDeletedo any other aviation bloggers respect him? I imagine they can't stand him since he's so ridiculous
ReplyDeleteTnooz is one of the most respected online news sources inside the travel industry. I can only wonder how they got the scoop on this story. Perhaps the combination of Steven Frischling brining attention to himself with the iagfraud blog plus the good work of FishFraud in spreading the word.
ReplyDeleteIts amazing how quiet he went after he hired is attorney. Barely a peep out of him on twitter. The reality of his situation must have really sunk in by now.
@0830 As an aviation blogger I don't have much time for him, I've found him rude and has a lack of understanding on aviation industry. Oh and he took my idea turned into a post with no thanks.
ReplyDelete@ 6:47 Bingo - which is why is quiet now. Reality has surely dawned. Now he has to be frantically trying to rebuild the reality with spurious stuff to try cloud the issue. This is a criminal case. Prosecutors will focus only on one thing. No dancing lawyer can save him.
ReplyDeletethe prosector would not be making the case unless there was clear evidence of forgery. Physical evidence that is impossible to deny. How exactly can he plead not guilty?
ReplyDelete@8:57, we've tweeted the news all over the place with airline hashtags. Are there any other sites like tnooz that should be covering this?
ReplyDelete^ try flightglobal.com, airwise.com, atwonline.com
ReplyDelete"How exactly can he plead not guilty?"
ReplyDeletefor the same reason he stole the money in the first place. He thought he could get away with it. This guy's never been made to accept responsibility for anything his whole life. Whenever he is driven from one field he picks up and starts over somewhere else.
9:23, thanks!
ReplyDelete@ 9:06 has Fishdick EVER admitted he was wrong? I hope the case actually goes to trial. I'd use some vacation days to attend.
ReplyDelete^he EVENTUALLY admitted he was "terrible in the wedding business" but only after years of causing problems and blaming his victims... and still says it was a few "bridezillas" causing the problems. His fake wife/girlfriend blamed the brides too, saying the whole problem was caused by brides. How anyone can feel sorry for HER is shocking.
ReplyDeleteshe's nasty. I don't feel sorry for her
ReplyDeletehe may have gotten away with years of lying but karma finally caught up with him. Good luck getting work anywhere as a convicted felon.
ReplyDeleteI hope child welfare takes those poor children.
It's so funny how the complaints against him generated in the photography world are now appearing in the travel industry. Another commenter from a while back made this prediction.
ReplyDeleteNot sure if I missed it elsewhere here, but The Day has expanded their story about our favorite felonious fraudster which includes his explaination of what happened: http://www.theday.com/article/20110607/NWS01/110609665/1047
ReplyDelete"Questioned by police, Frischling said he had simply corrected errors on the IAG invoice at the airline’s request and provided his personal bank account number because he could not contact Schonland."
Updated
ReplyDeletehttp://www.theday.com/article/20110607/NWS01/110609665/1047
Maybe I'm late in asking this, but has anyone contacted The Day or The Norwich Bulletin to see if they will be covering the arraignment? Or has anyone sent reporter Karen Florin, who wrote the latest article for The Day, the link to Fish Fraud?
ReplyDeleteI sent them the link to the blog but I don't know if they will cover the arraignment. Let's hope!
ReplyDelete