NEWPORT BEACH : Man Charged With Bilking Women

Joseph Duffy, 28, was arraigned Thursday on charges of bilking several women, whom he met while cruising Coast Highway, of more than $50,000.

Duffy, a transient, would exchange car telephone numbers and talk with women as they both drove along the highway in Newport Beach, or would pull into a bank parking lot and begin a conversation with a woman waiting to use an automatic teller machine, Police Sgt. Andy Gonis said.

He drove a Porsche or other expensive car and convinced the women that he was a golf pro or an investment broker who would wisely invest the money they gave him, Gonis said.

Duffy, who has no permanent address, reportedly dated some of the women. With others, he just tried to win their trust.

“At some point two months into the relationship, he would ask them to invest money into a business deal he was putting together,” Gonis said. “They would give him thousands of dollars to invest in the business deal he presented to them. They gave him the money willingly, based on the relationship they had developed. He would convert the money to his own use.”

Police began building a case over the past few months as women came forward to complain. One of the women hired a private detective who arranged for a meeting with Duffy, who was arrested Monday.

Duffy pleaded not guilty during his arraignment Thursday in Harbor Municipal Court, Deputy Dist. Atty. Bruce Patterson said. Bail was set at $25,000.