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FARMINGTON — New criminal charges were filed Thursday against a West Bountiful man who prosecutors say has been acting as a con man in Utah for more than a decade.
Robert Sinclair Argyle, 35, was charged in 2nd District Court with theft by deception, a second-degree felony, and forgery, a third-degree felony. His wife, Mayra Gregoria Argyle, 31, of Layton, is listed in court documents as a co-defendant.
Davis County prosecutors have compared Argyle to Frank Abagnale, a former con man who posed as a doctor, airline pilot, lawyer and federal law enforcer. His story was the basis for the movie “Catch Me If You Can.”
Argyle was recently convicted of practicing law without a license and has several other fraud and forgery cases either currently filed against him or still pending, according to prosecutors. He was charged earlier this week with forging a letter from the victim in one of his ongoing criminal cases, claiming Argyle had been being falsely accused.
The latest charges accuse Argyle of instructing his wife during calls from the Davis County Jail to deposit a forged check.
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A West Bountiful man recently convicted of practicing law without a license who is currently accused of forging signatures has been charged yet again after prosecutors say he forged a document presented during his current criminal court proceedings.Prosecutors noted in the new charges that they have been investigating Argyle for more than a year.
“Argyle has claimed to be a Stanford-educated attorney and secured jobs as such through fraudulent means. Through subpoenaed records, I confirmed that Robert Argyle has never had a relationship whatsoever with Stanford University. I found through online public searches of social and professional media that Robert claimed he works or has worked for Google as a lawyer,” the charging documents state.
“I have not encountered any evidence to suggest that Robert ever attended any law school, finished undergraduate work, was licensed to practice law in any state, or had any legitimate business or legal experience, despite resumes Robert has offered, his claims in social and professional media and business websites. Evidence in that case suggests that Robert has committed the fraud for almost a decade in Utah,” the charges state.
