Millions and millions of dollars flowed into his coffers. The press called him America's savior and seventy thousand Americans proclaimed his genius. He dressed in Savile Rowe finery and carried himself high and proud, like a peacock preening. In one hand he held a silver cane, in the other a thick brown Cuban cigar. Oscar Hartzel was bringing the Drake fortune in gold and silver from England to America. Folks with the last name Drake, or anyone willing to pay the legal fees of bringing back the billions of dollars, were lured to believe they would share the bounty. He was turning the poor into the rich and the rich into the poor--a real-life Robin Hood with a million-dollar smile.

The Drake fortune was thought to be a legend. Infamous pirate Sir Francis Drake robbed Spanish merchants of millions of pounds of silver. In return for his bravery, Queen Elizabeth I rewarded him with a title, land in America, money, and it was even thought that she had an illegitimate child with him. If this were the case, this child would be the only heir to the Drake fortune. It was this unknown illegitimate child that provoked an ongoing controversy as to whether the Drake fortune actually existed, and who was entitled to it. The hunt for the heir to the Drake fortune began.

The Drake fortune was the sole reason Oscar Hartzel was in England. He had made up his mind--he was going to reclaim the fortune for America.

In 1919, Hartzel met a beautiful young lady named Sudie B. Whiteaker. Through her charm and beauty, she persuaded Oscar to assist her in reclaiming the Drake fortune. As Sudie spoke, Oscar knew he had to invest in this undertaking--it was his self-appointed duty to get the money back to America.

He promptly gave Sudie several thousand dollars (quite a bit of cash in 1919) to invest in bringing back more money, which he was told would come back to him ten-fold. Oscar soaked up every word. Time began to drag on. Months after his conversation with Sudie, he felt that something was amiss. Where was his money? Why hadn't she contacted him? Questions piled up. Finally he came to the brutal conclusion--he'd been conned!

Oscar moved swiftly. He found Sudie and demanded his money back. Then he blackmailed her into letting him in on the con.

With Oscar's innocent demeanor, he became an expert con. Sudie realized the largest profits ever. The money was never enough for Oscar--he wanted more. Oscar blackmailed Sudie again, this time into relinquishing her power. There was nothing she could do. With his new power, and a few recruits, Oscar turned his scam into a nation-wide campaign.

To read Part 2 of how Oscar took his scam to epic proportions, click here.