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away. He didn’t see his mother for seven years and completely lost contact with his father, who was a struggling businessman himself. After growing up with three siblings, this drastic change meant the loss of all structure and belonging for young Frank. In his speeches, ABAGNALE always stresses that it was the love for his wife KELLY ANNE WELBES ABAGNALE that gave his life a new sense of meaning – not his time spent behind bars. That’s right, despite all of his luck and success, Frank’s crimes lead him
IN 1964, HE CHANGED THE AGE ON NEW YORK DRIVER'S LICENCE FROM 16 TO 26.
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to jail. Like so often, it was his time off spent in France with an ex-lover that brought about his downfall: she recognised his face on a »WANTED« poster and prompted his arrest in 1969 . The following years were spent in inhumane conditions in prison in Perpignan, France, then in Malmö, Sweden, and finally in the United States where he was sentenced to 12 YEARS of imprisonment. But Frank Abagnale was lucky again and was released early (in 1974 ) in order to support the U.S. GOVERNMENT as a consultant in the fight against cheque fraud. In 1976 , he got married and now has three sons: Scott, Sean and Chris. Not one of his boys was allowed a bank card in younger years – they had credit cards that were thoroughly checked by Mr. Abagnale himself. TRUST IS GOOD, CONTROL IS BETTER.
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SISTERMAG 40 | 08 / 2018
