Filippo Bernardini, an Italian citizen who worked at UK publisher Simon & Schuster, was arrested upon landing in the US on Wednesday. The FBI alleged that Bernardini had “impersonated, defrauded, and attempted to defraud, hundreds of individuals” to obtain unpublished and draft works. Simon & Schuster was not named in the indictment, and the Guardian understands it is not accused of wrongdoing. None of the books ever turned up online, and everything from celebrity releases to debut novels by unknown writers were targeted. Some had suspected the individual was a literary scout, attempting to secure information to make film and television deals ahead of others.

Source: The Guardian January 06, 2022 21:59 UTC