A Michigan conman claiming to be a wealthy Saudi prince is headed to prison for 18 years after swindling $8 million from investors. Anthony Gignac, 48, pleaded guilty in Miami last March and was sentenced on May 30 by Judge Cecilia Altonaga. The charges included wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, aggravated ID theft and impersonating a diplomat.
“Over the course of the last three decades, Anthony Gignac has portrayed himself as a Saudi prince in order to manipulate, victimize and scam countless investors from around the world,” real estate paper The Real Deal reported U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan said, adding, “As the leader of a sophisticated, multi-person, international fraud scheme, Gignac used his fake persona – Prince Khalid Bin Al-Saud – to sell false hope.”
Here’s what you need to know about Anthony Gignac and his royal ruse.
1. Gignac Impersonated Members of the Saudi Family
Gignac’s victims thought his name was Khalid Al-Saud, son of the king of Saudi Arabia, Salman Abdulaziz Al Saud. According to Gignac, he was residing in the United States representing his family’s varied business interests. In reality, the true Khalid Al-Saud is 79-years old and lives in Mecca.
The Michigan-raised Gignac bilked both naive investors and members of the Saudi royal family out of millions of dollars. Once, after attempting to have $3.9 million wired from the real Prince Khalid Al-Saud’s bank account and charging over $17,000 to his Neiman Marcus account, Al-Saud had to send a notarized letter to authorities stating that the charges were fraudulent and he and Gignac were not related.
Gignac dressed in traditional Saudi clothing and used fake consulate license plates to pass himself off as a prince while racking up bills at swanky hotels, restaurants, and shops. “He was not a member of the Royal Family nor associated in any way with the Saudi Royal Family,” an assistant to the U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia told U.S. government officials in 2003.
Vanity Fair reported that an investigator dispatched by the State Department interviewed Gignac only to hear several outrageous stories. Gignac told Diplomatic Security Services officer Ed Seitz that he had been the lover of two Saudi royals who had paid him hush money, that he’d been adopted by a Saudi prince, and that he’d been given a trust fund of $480 million until a “lump sum” payment could be arranged.
Gignac was able to pull off his deception with the help of business partner Carl Williamson. The North Carolina businessman had a background in finance and access to wealthy individuals. In 2015, the two set up Marden Williamson International, a sham business venture that offered affluent investors fraudulent investment opportunities. Williamson committed suicide in 2017 after his home was raided by authorities who tied him to Gignac’s criminal activities. Williamson told family and friends that Gignac had duped him and that he was also one of Gignac’s victims.
2. Gignac Flaunted his Wealth on Social Media
Posing as a Saudi royal, Gignac was by no means modest. He posted dozens of photos and videos on Instagram where he’s flashing Rolex watches, showing off his credit cards, luxury cars, penthouses, yachts, gourmet food, champagne, and jewelry. There are also several videos of Gignac on private jets. In one post, he shows keys to both a Bentley and a Rolls-Royce with the comment, “You pick.”
While Gignac’s face is never seen, he frequently featured his beloved Chihuahua Foxy on social media. The dog is usually photographed on top of automobiles, in a Louis Vuitton pet carrier or relaxing poolside at posh hotels.
One image shows $70,000 in cash and two diamond-studded wristwatches on the dashboard of his car with the comment “Birthday gifts from the fam.” In another post, his hand sports a large diamond ring next to a Rolls-Royce with the comment, “My father has great taste.”
3. A Real Billionaire was Responsible for Helping to Catch Gignac
(Photo by John Parra/Getty Images for Pritzker Architecture Prize)Billionaire developer Jeffrey Soffer with ex-wife Elle Macpherson. Soffer helped put faux Saudi prince Anthony Gignac behind bars.
Gignac went from the penthouse to the penitentiary after he attempted to swindle prominent Miami developer and billionaire Jeffrey Soffer. Gignac said he wanted to purchase an interest in Soffer’s most famous property, the luxurious Fontainebleau Hotel on Miami Beach.
The Miami Herald reported that Soffer spent $50,000 on luxury gifts to woo his prospective business partner. “Believing that Gignac was royalty and a Saudi Arabian diplomat, with the means to purchase the hotel, (Soffer) expressed interest in the deal,” the criminal complaint read.
Soffer became suspicious when he invited Gignac to join him and his family for a 2017 dinner in Aspen, only to watch his “royal” friend eat pork. Members of the Saudi royal family are devout Muslims who are forbidden to eat pork. Soffer had his security team investigate Gignac. The FBI was contacted when Soffer learned Gignac’s true identity.
4. Gignac Has a Been Claiming to be a Prince Since he was 12 Years Old
Gignac’s true biography is far from royal. Born in 1970 in Bogota, Colombia, he and his brother Daniel were orphaned and lived on the streets for two years. In 1977 the siblings were adopted by Jim Gignac and Nancy Fitzgerald, a couple from Plymouth, Michigan.
Gignac has been passing himself off as a prince since the age of 12. Vanity Fair reported that while he was in the sixth grade, he duped a Mercedes dealership into believing he was the son of a Saudi prince. Eager to sell a pricey car, the salesman picked Gignac up at a local mall and took him on test drives. His parents discovered the ruse when they received a call from the dealership telling them their car was ready for pickup. It was around this time that Gignac began therapy for making up wild stories about his family’s wealth.
Prosecutors revealed that Gignac took his scam to a new level after he ran away at 17 and started introducing himself as billionaire arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi. He also used the name “Omar Khashoggi” and obtained a California state ID with the name Khalid al-Saud. Using multiple aliases, Gignac has passed himself off as Saudi royalty in several different states. In 1991 at the age of 21, he pleaded no contest for leaving a limousine company and the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel on the hook for $10,000. In total, Gignac has been arrested 11 times over 30 years for his royal Saudi scheme.
5. Gignac Was Diagnosed With “Mixed Personality” Disorder
Gignac’s attorneys say his criminal behavior is a symptom of mental illness and that their client has been diagnosed with mixed-personality disorder. Mixed personality refers to someone who has traits of more than one of the 10 recognized personality disorders. These include Narcissistic Personality Disorder, Schizoid Personality Disorder, Obsessive-Compulsive, and Paranoid Personality Disorder. According to the Mayo Clinic, childhood conduct disorder, an abusive childhood and family history of mental illness are potential risk factors for the condition.
One of Gignac’s previous attorneys told the court that he had spent a year-and-a-half in mental hospitals. Daniel Gignac said their traumatic childhood in Bogota is partially to blame for his brother’s behavior. Those who have known Anthony Gignac since childhood say that he is his own biggest believer and that his whole life has been about acquiring wealth and status. One unidentified friend who has known him since his arrival in the United States told Vanity Fair “He yearned for the good life and the limelight,” adding, “He wanted to be someone important.”