In the 1980s, con artist David Bloom scammed wealthy New Yorkers out of millions of dollars in fraudulent investment schemes. Dubbed by New York tabloids as the “Wall Street Whiz Kid," Bloom served time in prison, but after his release conned even more people in the late 1990s.
This time, the twice-convicted con man is facing nine felony counts each of securities fraud and grand theft in Los Angeles after allegedly bilking nine people out of nearly $250,000. Prosecutors say he stole their money in exchange for phony investments and financial opportunities.
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced the charges on Tuesday: “This is an individual who’s a predator, and he’s been preying on victims, vulnerable people, all his life, and he came to L.A. to do the same thing here,” Gascon said.
Bloom is accused of trolling for victims at Hollywood apartment complex, the historic Villa Carlotta apartments on Franklin Avenue, as well as in local bars.
Caroline D’Amore, a Villa Carlotta resident who lost money to Bloom, spoke at Tuesday’s press conference with Gascon.
D’Amore, a former reality TV cast member who has an organic pasta sauce business, shared how deep the lies went.
“He sent me and my business partners on a trip to Texas to meet the CEO of Whole Foods, who I thought I had spoken to on the phone. He went so far as to have someone impersonate this man to me,” D’Amore said.
She added, “He preys on people’s hopes and dreams and beliefs.”
One of Bloom's haunts was the Frolic Room, a legendary Hollywood Boulevard watering hole that’s served patrons since the 1930s.
As he tended to the noontime crowd, Frolic Room bartender Troy White said he remembered Bloom well: Bloom started frequenting the bar almost daily in 2021, White said, holding court at the end of the bar near the front door, and acting like he was somehow important.
White said Bloom would claim he had business meetings but surmised, "he was really going to another bar.”
After a while, White said, “a lot of the regulars and everybody kind of knew he was full of it, and they just left him alone and wouldn’t sit next to him.”
But last February he duped many bar patrons, along with White, into believing he was getting them Super Bowl tickets.
Bar patron Kyle Crichton remembers Bloom dropping names, saying he had connections to Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke.
“He told me he’s got the spot in the owner’s box and that’s where all these guys were going to be,” said Crichton, who already had a ticket but agreed to meet Bloom and about 20 bar regulars at the game.
White bought into it too, arriving at the bar the morning of the Super Bowl along with the others to meet Bloom as planned.
“He claimed he had a suite, and he had us all meet here,” White said. “And then he texted me at 10 o’ clock Sunday morning of the Super Bowl saying his sister was killed in a car crash.”
This was not true. White said later on, Bloom was sighted playing pool at another bar; Bloom never went back to the Frolic Room after that.
One of the bar patrons who was duped, Alex Rinks, said he even bought new shoes to go to the big game. He had choice words for Bloom on Tuesday.
“Scumbag. An awful person,” Rinks said.
While they were duped, Rinks, White, Crichton and other would-be Super Bowl attendees said at least it didn't cost them anything.
Bloom faces up to 14 years in prison.
