Frank William Abagnale, Jr. (; born April 27, 1948) is an American security consultant known for his history as a former
confidence trickster,
check forger, and
impostor between the ages of 15 and 21. He became one of the most famous impostors ever, claiming to have assumed no fewer than eight identities, including an airline pilot, a physician, a
U.S. Bureau of Prisons agent, and a lawyer. He escaped from police custody twice (once from a taxiing airliner and once from a
U.S. federal penitentiary), before he was 21 years old. He served less than five years in prison before starting to work for the federal government. He is currently a consultant and lecturer for the
FBI academy and field offices. He also runs Abagnale & Associates, a financial fraud consultancy company.