Judith DeLong has been defrauding victims with her model agency scams since the mid-80s. Her newest accomplice is a photographer in midtown, Max deCherchi (www.maxdecherchi.com), who goes by the pseudonym "Marco" when working with Judith. Judith changes her name every couple of weeks. She has been "Morgan Taylor", "Candy Taylor", "Taylor Thompson", "Amy" "Suzette" and dozens of other monikers.
She rents office space, usually in midtown, on an hourly basis. She has been at 575 Lexington Ave, 4th Floor, 315 Madison Ave, 9th Floor, 40 Wall Street, 845 3rd Avenue, amongst others. She buys phone numbers and disconnects them as soon as her victims realize they have been scammed. Some of her numbers include/have included: 212.726.2322,917.297.6616 and 646.409.2292.
Here's how her scam works:
She posts numerous ads on Craigslist for modeling gigs. She claims "no experience necessary" and entices the reader with a generous compensation ($500-$2500). She advertises with popular, well-known clothing store clients. She asks for a photo and a contact number. After submitting, the hopeful model will then receive an e-mail from one of her phony modeling agencies such as CastingsNYC.com or WhyNotCasting.com (she has created a plethora of these websites.
Notice there is no street address listed, only a phone number, and the portfolios of all her "models" represents everybody she has scammed. The e-mail says to call if still interested. The caller will only be on the phone for a short time, or will receive a text directing the victim where and when to meet. All you need to bring is yourself.
The first thing Judith asks is if you have photos. If you do, it doesn't matter according to her, because you need to get them retaken with her photographer. If you don't, even better. She cuts straight to the point, so small-talk, and asks for $360 cash up-front for the photographer "Marco". She won't give you Marco's phone number or e-mail, nor will she give you her e-mail. The only way to get in touch with either of them is through one of Morgan's frequently-disconnected phone numbers.
Typically a day or two after meeting Morgan she wants you to meet with "Marco", whose real name is Max DeCherchi. He explains that your photos will be e-mailed in a file attachment that will expire after a couple of weeks. How convenient. This way it's even harder to trace any record of his scam-artistry and connect him back to Judith. He has set up a fake e-mail account, [email protected], even further disconnecting him from his scam.
Through a little research I found out "Marco" has been in cohorts with Judith for years. It must be nice getting cash off the books and taking a nice cut of Morgan's referrals.
After the photoshoot Morgan asks you to call her to let her know how it went. It doesn't take long to find out that what she really wants is an additional $260 cash upfront to have your photos retouched or get a composite card. She will never actually have your photos retouched and she pockets the cash and moves on to dozens of other victims. If you try to contact her she will repeat herself like a sociopath broken-record and say "no refunds, no cancellations" or her phone will be disconnected. She will also pretend like she doesn't remember you or your'e the crazy one.
This is what the infamous Judith DeLong looks like: (link redacted)
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