Editing Christophe Rocancourt

{{short description|French imposter}}
{{BLP sources|date=January 2012}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Christophe Rocancourt
| image              = 
| caption            = 
| birth_name         = Christophe Thierry Rocancourt
| birth_date         = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1967|7|16}}
| birth_place        = [[Honfleur]], [[Calvados (department)|Calvados]], [[France]]
| nationality        = French
| other_names        = Christopher Rocancourt<br>Eric Rockefeller<br>Christopher Reyes<br>Christopher De Laurentiis<br>Christopher de la Renta<br>Christopher Loren<br>Christopher Lloyd<br>Fabien Ortuna<br>Prince Galitzine Christo<br>Michael van Hoven
| occupation         = [[Impostor]], [[confidence trick|Confidence man]]
| spouse             = Gry Park<br>[[Pia Reyes]] (1996&ndash;?)
| children           = 3
| parents            = Daniel Rocancourt & Annick Villers
}}
'''Christophe Thierry Daniel Rocancourt''' colloquially '''Christopher Rocancourt''' (born 16 July 1967), is a French [[impostor]] and [[confidence trick|confidence man]] who [[fraud|scammed]] affluent people by masquerading in turn as a French nobleman, the heir to the [[Rockefeller family]] or family member of a celebrity.

== Early life and education ==
Rocancourt was born 16 July 1967 in [[Honfleur|Honfleur, France]], to Daniel Rocancourt, a financially destitute painter, who suffered from alcoholism and unemployment, and Annick Rocancourt ([[née]] Villars), a 17-year-old prostitute, whom his father married one month after he was born. He has a younger sister, Angelina. Rocancourt confirmed to ''[[Dateline NBC]]'' in a 2006 broadcast that his mother sometimes worked as a [[prostitute]].

== Later life ==
His first big con was made in Paris, where he faked the [[deed]] to a property that he did not own, which he then "sold" for US$1.4 million.<ref name="Dateline">{{cite web|url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/11770944/ns/dateline_nbc/t/catch-him-if-you-can/#.WNwQ9IWcGP8|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141101085442/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/11770944/ns/dateline_nbc/t/catch-him-if-you-can/#.WNwQ9IWcGP8|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 1, 2014|title=Catch Him If You Can|author=Mike Taibbi|date=March 12, 2006|access-date=March 29, 2017|publisher=Dateline}}</ref>

Making his way to the [[United States]], Rocancourt used at least a dozen aliases, and got the rich and powerful to invest in his schemes, he told ''Dateline'', by tapping into their greed. He convinced them that he, too, was rich by paying for their lavish dinners in cash. He once estimated to ''Dateline'' that his various schemes/ventures netted him at least [[US$]]40 million, but this cannot be confirmed.

In [[Los Angeles]], he pretended to be a [[movie producer]], ex-[[boxing]] champion or [[venture capitalist]]; he also claimed to be the illegitimate son of [[Sophia Loren]], the nephew of [[Oscar de la Renta]] and [[Dino De Laurentiis]], and he associated himself with various celebrities, living for a time with [[Mickey Rourke]], and apparently convincing actor [[Jean-Claude Van Damme]] to produce his next movie. He was also in talks with [[Jermaine Jackson]] to develop a line of fragrances inspired by [[Michael Jackson]] songs.<ref name="Dateline"/><ref name="Vanity Fair">{{cite web|url=http://www.vanityfair.com/style/2001/01/rocancourt200101|title=The Counterfeit Rockefeller|author=Bryan Burrough|date=October 3, 2007|access-date=March 29, 2017|publisher=Vanity Fair}}</ref>

Rocancourt, using the name Christopher De Laurentiis, married Gry Park in 1992, with whom he had a child. He married ''[[Playboy]]'' model [[Pia Reyes]] in May 1996, and they had a son, Zeus. Beside being married to Pia Reyes, according to the press, he lived with ''Playboy'' model Rhonda Rydell for six months; Rydell did not know Rocancourt was married, and said he had told her he was French nobility, the son of a countess.<ref name="Vanity Fair"/>

In 1997 police raided Rocancourt's hotel suite, and in 1998 he was arrested for involvement in a shootout before he jumped [[bail]].

In 1999 he was freed of charges of forging [[passport]]s after he had bribed [[State Department]] employees to get a passport. He was arrested in 2000 in the [[Hamptons]] for an unpaid hotel bill, and was also wanted for involvement in diamond smuggling, possession of hand grenades, money laundering, bribery, perjury, and at least 17 cases of defrauding people by offering them to invest with him.

After posting bail, he again fled and relocated to Canada where he assumed the identity of [[Grand Prix motor racing|Grand Prix]] driver Michael van Hoven. On April 27, 2001 he and Reyes were detained in [[Victoria, British Columbia|Victoria]], [[British Columbia]], Canada, and Rocancourt was later charged with defrauding an elderly couple; Reyes was released after convincing authorities that she had no part in the scam, much less any idea of her husband's criminal activities.<ref name="Dateline"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/christopher-rocancourt-one-of-lifes-truly-great-pretenders-has-no-regrets---honestly/article4138322/|title=Christopher Rocancourt, one of life's truly great pretenders, has no regrets - honestly|author=Rod Mickleburgh|publisher=The Globe and Mail|date=March 21, 2009|access-date=March 29, 2017}}</ref> Rocancourt served a year in prison before being extradited to New York and pleading guilty to charges of [[theft]], [[grand larceny]], [[smuggling]], [[bribery]], [[perjury]] and [[fraud]] against 19 victims. In September 2003, the plea resulted in a fine of $9 million, an order to pay $1.2 million in restitution and a term of three years and ten months in federal prison.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/fake-rockefeller-gets-jail-time/|title=Fake Rockefeller Gets Jail Time|author=Jarrett Murphy|date=October 21, 2003|access-date=March 29, 2017|work=CBS News}}</ref>

While being held in Canada, Rocancourt wrote an autobiography in which he ridiculed his victims. In [[Switzerland]], police have connected him with a jewel theft, and at one point barred him from the country for 14 years; this ban expired in 2016.<ref name="Dateline"/>

Rocancourt returned to Paris in October 2005 after completing his prison sentence. He lived with former Miss France [[Sonia Rolland]], and they had a daughter together, named Tess. They announced their split in early 2008.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.purepeople.com/article/sonia-rolland-et-christophe-rocancourt-leur-histoire-d-amour-est-terminee_a6738/1|title=Sonia Rolland et Christophe Rocancourt : leur histoire d'amour est terminée !|date=April 10, 2008|access-date=March 29, 2017|publisher=Purepeople|archive-date=July 21, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190721111523/http://www.purepeople.com/article/sonia-rolland-et-christophe-rocancourt-leur-histoire-d-amour-est-terminee_a6738/1|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In July 2009, French filmmaker [[Catherine Breillat]] accused Rocancourt of scamming her out of [[euro|€]]700,000. Breillat, who was diagnosed with a [[cerebrovascular disease]] in 2004, accused him of taking advantage of her due to her mental incapacity.<ref>{{cite web|last=Groves|first=Don|title=Breillat's new twist on Sleeping Beauty|url=http://www.sbs.com.au/films/blog-articles/120022/breillat-s-new-twist-on-sleeping-beauty|work=[[Special Broadcasting Service|SBS]]|access-date=15 January 2013|date=9 August 2010|archive-date=19 April 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130419195417/http://www.sbs.com.au/films/blog-articles/120022/breillat-s-new-twist-on-sleeping-beauty|url-status=dead}}</ref> Due to this event, the film ''Bad Love'', with Rocancourt and model [[Naomi Campbell]], was cancelled. Breillat told a French journalist that her first meeting with Rocancourt was the worst day of her life, even worse than the day when she was diagnosed with her cerebrovascular disease. In 2012, Rocancourt was convicted of "abus de faiblesse" ("abuse of weakness") for taking Breillat's money, and sentenced to 16 months in prison.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lefigaro.fr/actualite-france/2012/02/17/01016-20120217ARTFIG00667-huit-mois-de-prison-ferme-pour-rocancourt.php|title=Christophe Rocancourt sort de prison et prépare un livre|author=Delphine de Mallevoüe|date=February 18, 2012|access-date=March 29, 2017}}</ref>

In October 2014, he was arrested along with his lawyer, 23-year-old girlfriend, and a member of the French police that he allegedly bribed to supply him with genuine passports and visas to be sold on for extortionate sums to illegal migrants.

==In popular culture==
The American Court TV (now [[TruTV]]) television series ''Mugshots'' released an episode on Christophe Rocancourt titled ''Chris Rocancourt - A French Con'', aired in 2013.<ref>{{cite web|title=MUGSHOTS: CHRIS ROCANCOURT – A FRENCH CON|url=http://filmrise.com/mugshots-chris-rocancourt-a-french-con-2/|website=FilmRise|access-date=8 November 2017|date=1 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171020135630/http://filmrise.com/mugshots-chris-rocancourt-a-french-con-2/|archive-date=2017-10-20|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Catherine Breillat's 2014 film ''Abuse of Weakness'' presents a lightly fictionalized depiction of her relationship with Rocancourt.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Titze |first1=Anne-Katrin |title='Abuse of Weakness' Director Catherine Breillat on How to Blackmail Isabelle Huppert Into Starring in Your Film |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2014/08/abuse-of-weakness-director-catherine-breillat-on-how-to-blackmail-isabelle-huppert-into-starring-in-your-film-206088/ |website=IndieWire |publisher=Penske Business Media, LLC |access-date=31 January 2019|date=14 August 2014}}</ref>

[[72 Hours: True Crime]] S2E2, "The Hustler," is about Christophe Rocancourt and his crimes in Canada.

The American TV show ''The Unexplained'' discussed his abilities and how he manipulated people.

The [[Investigation Discovery]] show [[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair Confidential]] also covered his story in the first season sixth episode.

The [[Law & Order: Criminal Intent]] season 1 episode "The Extra Man" was inspired by Christophe Rocancourt.

In 2024, [[David Serero (singer)|David Serero]] directed and produced the official biopic with Christophe Rocancourt: "ROCANCOURT, The Film," which was released in movie theaters in France and Europe and premiered at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.<ref>{{Cite web | title="ROCANCOURT, The Film” by David Serero Celebrated at the Cannes Film Festival and Set for International Release | url=https://www.theculturenews.com/single-post/rocancourt-the-film-by-david-serero-celebrated-at-the-cannes-film-festival-and-set-for-internatio | access-date=2025-02-24 | website=www.theculturenews.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | title=Christophe Rocancourt, "l'escroc des stars", au Festival de Cannes pour un documentaire... mais pas sur le tapis rouge - Nice-Matin | url=https://www.nicematin.com/people/rocancourtun-documentaire-pas-le-tapis-rouge-922002 | access-date=2025-02-24 | website=www.nicematin.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | title=Festival de Cannes : Rocancourt, le film du Franco-marocain David Serero projeté – Aujourd'hui le Maroc | url=https://aujourdhui.ma/culture/festival-de-cannes-rocancourt-le-film-du-franco-marocain-david-serero-projete | access-date=2025-02-24 | website=aujourdhui.ma}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
*{{IMDb name|1597715}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20051231222315/http://www.courttv.com/onair/shows/mugshots/indepth/rocancourt.html CourtTV video files about Rocancourt]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20131027034048/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/04/18/60minutes/main550070.shtml ''Counterfeit Rockefeller'' (CBS News)]
* [http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/05/20/ctv.rocancourt/ ''Faux Rockefeller 'I misled people''' (CNN)]
* [https://archive.today/20041126105714/http://playermagazine.com/ManageArticle.asp?C=840&A=34 Con artist's luck runs out in British Columbia]
* [http://www.purepeople.com/article/christophe-rocancourt-aurait-arnaque-catherine-breillat-a-hauteur-de-650-000-euros_a35146/1 Pure People]
* [http://www.normandythenandnow.com/the-rockefeller-from-honfleur-and-other-lies/ The Rockefeller from Honfleur and other lies]

{{Scams and confidence tricks}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rocancourt, Christopher}}
[[Category:1967 births]]
[[Category:French fraudsters]]
[[Category:French people imprisoned in the United States]]
[[Category:Impostors]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People extradited from Canada to the United States]]
[[Category:Foreign nationals imprisoned in Canada]]
[[Category:People from Honfleur]]