West Islip Businessman Charged in Broadway Fraud

LongIsland.com

Mark Hutton, 46, of West Islip is facing multiple charges for fraud related to the now-defunct Broadway musical, "Rebecca."

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Mark Hutton, a Long Island businessman, was arrested in his West Islip home on Monday for defrauding producers of the Broadway show “Rebecca.”  The musical was cancelled due to lack of funding.

According to the FBI complaint, Hutton, 46, led producers to believe he had no less than 4 investors in Great Britain ready to invest $4.5 million, and that he could personally produce a $1.1 million.  In return, the producers paid Hutton over $60,000 in fees.  
 
Hutton is facing two counts of wire fraud, and an unrelated charge of real estate fraud totalling $750,000.  
 
In April, the producers paid Hutton $18,000 against his commission to cover the costs of a safari trip he took with one of his phony investors, Paul Abrams and Abrams’ son, though Hutton never actually left the country.  
 
When producers began turning up the heat Hutton to wire the money due from the investors by the end of July, Hutton then fabricated the story of Abrams’ death earlier in the month from malaria, says FBI agent Thomas McDonald in the complaint. 
 
Following an FBI investigation which began last month, it was quickly uncovered that Abrams and the other three investors did not exist.  Hutton registered domain names for companies associated with the investors he had created, and controlled their emails.  
 
Hutton is awaiting his arraignment in federal court in Central Islip.  
 
 
 
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