Without a thought, he cashed in the fraudulent checks that he had been faking for years. As his only source of money, this is the one crime Abagnale could not stop committing. Wanting to settle down, he faked a diploma and convinced everyone that he indeed had credentials. As he “retired” from a life full of con schemes and trickery, Frank Abagnale took on the job of a small-town physician. He proceeded to pretend to live out the typical life of a bachelor in the American dream, filled with having a small apartment, a dream job, and peace and quiet all around. However, his simple life was about to be turned upside down when the Feds came knocking on his door.1
Frank William Abagnale had been in the criminal world for a long time before he decided to finally settle down. From minor crimes like lying about his age, to major ones, like creating a fake Airplane pilot license, he did it all.2 At his core, he craved the thrill that came with always being ahead of the law. However, when he realized that his risks had become too much for him to handle all at once, he began to consider the benefits that a relatively normal life offered. After some internal debate, Abagnale decided to move to France and finally make a life for himself outside of the criminal world. He considered abandoning his life of crime mainly because he found no satisfaction from running from the law anymore. He wanted a normal life, the one always seen as the American Dream.3 Although he had all but abandoned crime, he was not prepared for the ironic turn that his life was about to take.
As Frank Abagnale prepared to move to France to finalize his decision to straighten out, the FBI was hard at work trying to figure out who he was. Having heard many things about an emerging con-artist, they realized that they needed to act soon, as their perpetrator had great potential to slip through their fingers. The investigator on the Abagnale case quickly contacted other Bureaus in countries that Abagnale had committed crimes in, and put up wanted posters that could help citizens identify him. At the height of the case, agencies in France, Sweden, and the United States all cooperated in hunting Abagnale down. Despite their best efforts, however, all hopes of finding Abagnale began to fade. He had completely disappeared from their radar, and the agencies were running out of options.4
Miraculously, a young woman was able to answer their questions before the investigation faded into obscurity. A name was never mentioned in reports, but she was later confirmed to be a stewardess for Air France and the ex-girlfriend of Frank Abagnale. She had seen one of the wanted posters that the international agencies had posted and ultimately decided to turn him into the authorities. Many theories mentioned her as the ex-girlfriend that wanted revenge, but this could never be confirmed. This was the first time that the FBI had gotten ahead of Abagnale.5 Using the newfound tip, the three countries were able to compile enough information to make an official arrest in 1969, when Abagnale was just twenty-one and living in a small town in Southern France.6
At the time, Abagnale thought that treatment in European prisons was inhumane. Abagnale was kept in a dark cell, with no electricity, heating, proper sanitation, or bed. The situation was so pressing that the young criminal would later claim that his time in the local Perpignan prison was one of the hardest periods of his entire life. By the end of his stay, he went from one-hundred ninety-eight pounds to just under one-hundred and ten pounds.6 When he was transferred to a Swedish prison, he found it largely similar in treatment. It was in that cold and dark Swedish prison that Abagnale truly gave up hope. Lying on that cold, steely floor, he finally realized that he had lost everything. Although it was never truly his, losing his sense of freedom and the idea of living a normal life deeply affected Abagnale. He spent about six months in France and another six months in Sweden. After his tour of European prisons, he was extradited by the United States in 1971 to serve his last sentence. Once in the United States, a federal judge sentenced Abagnale to twelve years in federal prison in Atlanta, Georgia. At the time, it seemed like Abagnale would never get a happy ending.8
Everything changed, however, when the FBI came knocking on Abagnale’s prison cell door in 1986. After four years in federal prison, he was offered a new sentence: If he were to help the FBI in solving crimes similar to his, they would allow him to serve the remainder of his sentence and finish his parole conditions with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.6 In the end, Abagnale got what he always wanted: a normal life filled with uncomplicated things. After Frank Abagnale served his sentence with the FBI, he decided to continue working for the agency. He’s been working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation for forty years following his release, and now gives conferences on how to stop cybercrime, fraud, and identity theft.
As an honest civilian, he married his wife, Kelly Anne Welbes Abagnale, who he’s been happy with for over thirty years. Together they had three children, Sean, Scott, and Chris Abagnale. He became a professional writer, and he even got his life etched out in a movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio.10 He accomplished his life goals, through legal processes of course, and much more. In the end, his capture by the FBI was not the end of his life, but rather, it was the beginning.
- Frank Abagnale Frank and Stan Redding, Catch Me If You Can: the True Story Of A Real Fake (London: Mainstream Digital, 2011), 72. ↵
- Frank Abagnale Frank and Stan Redding, Catch Me If You Can: the True Story Of A Real Fake (London: Mainstream Digital, 2011), 22. ↵
- Patrick Lynch, “Catch Me If You Can: The Real Story of Frank Abagnale, Jr.” History Collection, July 2017, http://historycollection.co/catch-can-real-story-frank-abagnale-jr/ ↵
- Patrick Lynch, “Catch Me If You Can: The Real Story of Frank Abagnale, Jr.” History Collection, July 2017, http://historycollection.co/catch-can-real-story-frank-abagnale-jr/ ↵
- Frank Abagnale Frank and Stan Redding, Catch Me If You Can: the True Story Of A Real Fake (London: Mainstream Digital, 2011), 89. ↵
- FedScoop, “Frank Abagnale – FedTalks 2013,” YouTube, June 20, 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJIc16aqpO8. ↵
- FedScoop, “Frank Abagnale – FedTalks 2013,” YouTube, June 20, 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJIc16aqpO8. ↵
- Frank Abagnale Frank and Stan Redding, Catch Me If You Can: the True Story Of A Real Fake. (London: Mainstream Digital, 2011), 244. ↵
- FedScoop, “Frank Abagnale – FedTalks 2013,” YouTube, June 20, 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJIc16aqpO8. ↵
- Frank Abagnale Frank and Stan Redding, Catch Me If You Can: the True Story Of A Real Fake (London: Mainstream Digital, 2011), 24-37. ↵
46 comments
Briana Montes
Very well written article. This was a crazy story. I was never aware that someone can fake their diploma nor their pilot license. I find it scary because it gets me to thinking what if someone actually does these things now a days. I was confused on to how someone can go so long without being caught. Overall this was a very interesting and well written article to read.
Victoria Davis
It’s such an interesting article that just hooks you to want to read more. I do believe he should have served more time, the prisons he served that were not in the United States were cruel, but he had to do the time for the crimes he committed. He really was able to live wealthy and freely before getting caught, really having no worries. Yet he lied about everything and in the end, he got the life he wanted.
Azucena Cuevas
This article is really well written and entertaining.I can’t believe he was able to get away with all those crimes for so long. He seemed to be a genius con-artist. It’s also impressive how his life changed drastically. He was able to get a second chance at life and re start from where he ended. He even ended up helping the FBI catch other criminals that did the same thing as him.
Isabella Torres
I think it is so fascinating how Abagnale had such a drastic change of heart in deciding to completely abandon crime after relying on it for his source of income and satisfaction. It is also interesting how young he was when all of this was happening. He definitely deserved to go to jail, but the conditions he experienced were awful. However, the conditions he faced were most likely a large driving factor in his decision to begin helping the FBI catch people who did the exact same things he once did.
Vania Gonzalez
We have so many movies based on con artist and their lifestyle and they always show how they have fun doing these crimes but they never show that they may get tired just like Abagnale did and just wanted to have a normal life in the end. This article is very interesting it says a lot about the human nature and how we have an inner conscious that tells us to settle down after we begin to feel guilt from the bad things we do. Certain events that we go through can change our mindset and for Abagnale it was spending time in the Perpignan prison and enduring those harsh conditions that changed his life for the better. Great article very well organized.
Patricia Arechiga
It is pretty crazy how the hunger of wealth and power can drive one to committing some of the most wicked actions. Though not necessarily being a murderer and or serial killer, the fact that Abagnale was able to scam companies and banks out of thousands of dollars along with invalid licenses (ie pilot) is pretty remarkable. Despite his actions at the time, the change of circumstances often lead individuals to reflecting on their actions. Pretty crazy how it took Abagnale the loss of access to wealth and power to reflect on his actions, which resulted in the change of his mindset.
Nelly Perez
He wanted a normal life except he was committing several crimes throughout his life. He could have changed it but he got caught. He really tried to fool everyone with his age and education. At least someone knew him to give a piece of information to the FBI. After serving his time, he managed to get a chance of turning his life around.
Sydney Hardeman
This is definitely a crazy story. To be a con-artist, fake an airplane license, commit fraudulent offenses numerous times, for so many years, and to finally be arrested by the FBI, and then they come knocking on his door offering him a job?? That sounds like privilege. That’s all I have to say about his story. But nice article, it was very interesting to read.
Kaleb Werku
This story is so crazy that it is hard to comprehend. How can a man be a successful con artist for so long without getting caught by the FBI? Also, you would think an airplane license would be almost impossible to fake but he also faked that which is crazy. I’m just happy that his ex-girlfriend tipped the FBI so he could finally get caught.
Charli Delmonico
I absolutely loved this story! I read the book about Abagnale’s life in high school, and I watched the movie, and I enjoyed both of them so much! I’m impressed with his cunning abilities and the fact that he was able to evade so many people for so long at such a young age. I’m glad that he has turned his life around and now works to help stop criminals that are just like he used to be.