Accused fraudster Costello has history of posing as billionaire and threatening cops, police say

"It's casual to beryllium idiosyncratic you're not, but hard to beryllium yourself," Wisconsin teen Justin Costello wrote nether his elder photograph successful the Oconomowoc High School yearbook successful 1999.

Twenty-three years later, an FBI SWAT squad would apprehension Costello hiding from constabulary extracurricular of San Diego, successful part, due to the fact that helium was posing arsenic idiosyncratic helium wasn't: a billionaire with a Harvard MBA who was a twice-wounded Special Forces Iraq veteran.

None of those claims were true, authorities say.

The now-42-year-old was charged Sept. 28 with transgression ligament and securities fraud for allegedly swindling $35 cardinal from thousands of investors and others whose spot helium won due to the fact that they thought helium was a warfare leader who had go a affluent and palmy cannabis billionaire, national prosecutors say.

Although helium didn't bash immoderate of those things, according to prosecutors, helium did marque it connected the FBI's Most Wanted database for failing to surrender to authorities.

Costello skipped municipality with a fake ID, currency and bars of golden aft the Justice Department unsealed a 25-count indictment that elaborate aggregate schemes involving penny stocks, cannabis companies and a banking firm, prosecutors say.

When helium was apprehended successful California, FBI agents said Costello had taken connected yet different caller identity: "Christian Bolter," according to the driver's licence helium was carrying. He besides had $60,000 successful U.S. currency, $10,000 successful Mexican pesos, and six golden bars valued astatine $12,000 erstwhile helium was nabbed, tribunal records show.

A national magistrate justice successful San Diego ordered him detained without bail connected Oct. 25, saying helium was "an economical information to the community."

Prosecutors had argued that Costello, who has ties to California, Las Vegas and Washington, was "a superior formation risk."

Another San Diego justice past ordered Costello backmost to Washington authorities to look proceedings successful DOJ's transgression lawsuit successful U.S. District Court, tribunal documents show.

That's the aforesaid tribunal wherever Costello and different man, David Ferraro, were slapped successful October with a civilian suit by the Securities and Exchange Commission, which accused Costello of behaviour that is mirrored successful the transgression complaint.

The SEC past week agreed to settee the civilian allegations against Ferraro, a 44-year-old Radford, Virginia, nonmigratory who was accused of utilizing his Twitter relationship to assistance Costello with aggregate penny banal pump-and-dump schemes.

A justice connected Monday signed disconnected connected the woody with Ferraro, who agreed to respective conditions, portion neither admitting nor denying the allegations. The justice has yet to find monetary penalties against Ferraro, who is not charged successful the transgression case.

Costello's caller apprehension is not the archetypal clip helium has tally into occupation with the instrumentality — oregon posed arsenic a billionaire, tribunal and constabulary records show.

Three years earlier his latest arrest, helium brazenly claimed to beryllium a billionaire successful an unsuccessful bid to debar apprehension during a abstracted incidental successful Washington state, a constabulary study obtained by CNBC shows.

Police successful Snoqualmie, Washington, arrested Costello connected Sept. 15, 2019, aft receiving a study that helium was causing a drunken disturbance astatine the luxurious Salish Lodge & Spa, according to constabulary and tribunal records.

Officers arrived astatine Salish Lodge astatine astir 10:30 p.m. that nighttime aft an worker of that determination reported "a drunk antheral successful beforehand of the concern being disruptive and verbal with employees," and was "threatening a valet driver," according to the report.

Employees told constabulary that Costello had been screaming profanities connected a phone, threatened his girlfriend's sister and past grabbed the valet operator who was looking astatine Costello earlier threatening to nonstop "his boys after" the worker, the study reveals.

One worker said helium was convinced Costello was "a billionaire from Bellevue," a metropolis conscionable extracurricular Seattle, and that Costello had the means to nonstop radical aft him, constabulary wrote.

Costello was agitated erstwhile constabulary arrived connected the scene, the study said, and claimed to beryllium a "really affluent antheral ... I'm a billionaire."

"You messed with the incorrect dude," helium told 1 cop, according to the report.

One of the officers said Costello approached him with "clenched fists" and successful an assertive mode that suggested helium would "cause harm to myself oregon different subordinate of the radical down me," the constabulary study recounted.

The serviceman said helium threatened 3 times to usage his taser connected Costello, who allegedly ignored his commands to halt until helium was astir 10 feet to 12 feet distant earlier dropping to the ground.

The arresting serviceman aboriginal said Costello appeared to beryllium "impaired," adjacent though constabulary couldn't observe immoderate alcohol. Even aft helium was cuffed, Costello continued to hurl profanities and threats astatine police, they said successful the report.

"I'm going to civilly deed you successful the f---ing a--," Costello allegedly said to 1 of the officers. "This is going to outgo you brother, a batch of money."

"Bro, instrumentality these handcuffs off, truthful I tin footwear your ass," helium allegedly told a 2nd cop, the study says. "I'm going to ain you, motherf---er."

Costello was booked astatine the King County Jail connected a felony complaint of intimidating a nationalist servant. Prosecutors yet charged him successful Issaquah Municipal Court with obstruction, related to the allegation of disorderly conduct, and 2 counts of harassment.

Costello entered a alleged Alford plea to disorderly behaviour successful July 2020, prosecuting lawyer Lynn Moberly told CNBC.

In Alford pleas, a suspect does not admit guilt but concedes that prosecutors person capable grounds to convict them if a proceedings were to beryllium held. A justice past finds the suspect to beryllium guilty.

Moberly said that Costello was besides capable to get the 2 counts of harassment dismissed aft the victims successful the lawsuit agreed to settee successful speech for $3,000 apiece. Although she opposed that deal, it's ineligible nether Washington transgression instrumentality and a justice signed disconnected connected it, Moberly said.

Even aft charges were filed successful court, Costello kept up his charade arsenic a cannabis billionaire.

Moberly said his lawyer told her astatine the clip that Costello could "afford to wage disconnected these witnesses." Costello's lawyer allegedly said his lawsuit was a "Harvard grad" who was "involved successful the marijuana business," Moberly recalled.

Costello's condemnation was deferred, according to the prosecutor. He was ordered to implicit 40 hours of assemblage service, debar consuming intoxicant and drugs for a year, and to person nary interaction with the witnesses oregon the lodge, according to the plea deal.

The lawsuit was dismissed a twelvemonth later, successful July 2021, Moberly said.

Costello's lawyer successful that case, Shira Stefanik, didn't instrumentality messages seeking comment.

Stephen Lobbin, an lawyer who represents Costello successful different abstracted civilian suit successful California by 1 of 3 cannabis companies that claims it was allegedly swindled by Costello, said his lawsuit besides told him helium spent immoderate clip successful Iraq and took immoderate classes astatine Harvard.

"If helium says it, I accidental it's true," helium said successful an interview.

As acold arsenic his claims of being a billionaire and warfare hero, Lobbin said those allegations are based connected hearsay.

"I cognize him to beryllium a precise lukewarm and affable and personable guy," Lobbin said.

When asked astir Costello's 2019 arrest, Lobbin said: "I've spent capable clip with him" and ne'er known him to beryllium "drunk oregon disorderly."

In the civilian lawsuit successful which Lobbin represents him, Costello submitted a sworn declaration successful September, that said astatine slightest $2.9 cardinal of the company's funds were being held successful a Tacoma, Wash., recognition national relationship successful the sanction of a Costello company.

That relationship really had a equilibrium of $15.35 arsenic of Sept. 9, according to the national transgression indictment against Costello.

"Like thing successful life, determination are 2 sides to a story," Lobbin said. "I don't cognize thing astir what the authorities is talking about."