[Industrialblog,
November 25, 2003]
An old circle closes
Out of the blue, for no particular reason, I googled my freshman year roommate's name. And came up with one hit.
Now, before I tell you what came up, I should mention this guy was a nightmare. His conversation consisted entirely of his explaining how he had executed this or that scheme and gotten away with it — and how he had bested those who were suspicious of him through lies, manipulation, and ruthlessness.
Crowded restaurant
One thing I first learned about him: He was on trial for arson in Monmouth County when he came to college (this was fall of 1982.) He worked as a cook in a restaurant and didn't like the owner. Neither did some other workers. To avenge their perceived mistreatment, they conspired to set the kitchen on fire. On a busy summer night, my roommate placed leaky pans filled with grease in the oven. A co-conspirator placed a can of gasoline in a convection oven.
The gasoline heated and ignited, blowing the door off the oven. The missile fired into a waitress's arm, which was broken. And the leaky pans started an oven fire. Fortunately for the people in the restaurant, the fire didn't spread and no one else was hurt. But the restaurant had to close for the night and a week or so afterware. The roommate demonstrated no regret for starting the fire and for the the waitress's injury. She shouldn't have been standing there or something, I believe was his excuse.
Lies on stand
My roommate admitted to me that he lied through his teeth on the stand. That is, he placed his hand on the Holy Bible and swore before his fellows, our court and God Almighty that he would not lie, and then the creep lied. He said the leaky pans were an accident and he had nothing to do with the gas can. The jury believed him and he was acquitted. He then sued the owner for false arrest.
Obviously, we weren't pals. I wanted nothing to do with this guy. At the end of the year, I explained that if I caught him not only lying about me, but even talking about me, I would rip out his heart. The threat worked. Even though we spent three more years in dorms on a small campus, I cannot recall seeing him more than once, thank God.
So that's the backstory.
Where are they now?
So I google this sociopathic creep's name 20 years later and come up with the N.J. Office of Insurance Fraud.
State v. Creep, et al. A XXXXX Grand Jury handed up an indictment charging Creep and Creep's friend with theft by deception and conspiracy. Creep, while a claims adjuster for the Proformance Insurance Company in Freehold, is alleged to have fraudulently issued six purported settlement checks and mailed them to a post office box which he controlled. It is alleged that the checks were later cashed with the assistance of Creep's friend, codefendant Assistant Creep The insurance company's total loss has exceeded $44,000.
That sounds exactly like something he would do. Now, the question is, was he convicted this time?
Now, before I tell you what came up, I should mention this guy was a nightmare. His conversation consisted entirely of his explaining how he had executed this or that scheme and gotten away with it — and how he had bested those who were suspicious of him through lies, manipulation, and ruthlessness.
Crowded restaurant
One thing I first learned about him: He was on trial for arson in Monmouth County when he came to college (this was fall of 1982.) He worked as a cook in a restaurant and didn't like the owner. Neither did some other workers. To avenge their perceived mistreatment, they conspired to set the kitchen on fire. On a busy summer night, my roommate placed leaky pans filled with grease in the oven. A co-conspirator placed a can of gasoline in a convection oven.
The gasoline heated and ignited, blowing the door off the oven. The missile fired into a waitress's arm, which was broken. And the leaky pans started an oven fire. Fortunately for the people in the restaurant, the fire didn't spread and no one else was hurt. But the restaurant had to close for the night and a week or so afterware. The roommate demonstrated no regret for starting the fire and for the the waitress's injury. She shouldn't have been standing there or something, I believe was his excuse.
Lies on stand
My roommate admitted to me that he lied through his teeth on the stand. That is, he placed his hand on the Holy Bible and swore before his fellows, our court and God Almighty that he would not lie, and then the creep lied. He said the leaky pans were an accident and he had nothing to do with the gas can. The jury believed him and he was acquitted. He then sued the owner for false arrest.
Obviously, we weren't pals. I wanted nothing to do with this guy. At the end of the year, I explained that if I caught him not only lying about me, but even talking about me, I would rip out his heart. The threat worked. Even though we spent three more years in dorms on a small campus, I cannot recall seeing him more than once, thank God.
So that's the backstory.
Where are they now?
So I google this sociopathic creep's name 20 years later and come up with the N.J. Office of Insurance Fraud.
State v. Creep, et al. A XXXXX Grand Jury handed up an indictment charging Creep and Creep's friend with theft by deception and conspiracy. Creep, while a claims adjuster for the Proformance Insurance Company in Freehold, is alleged to have fraudulently issued six purported settlement checks and mailed them to a post office box which he controlled. It is alleged that the checks were later cashed with the assistance of Creep's friend, codefendant Assistant Creep The insurance company's total loss has exceeded $44,000.
That sounds exactly like something he would do. Now, the question is, was he convicted this time?
I wonder how many kids drop out school because of roommate problems, but that's part of life: learning how to handle difficult situations. Most of us probably have horror stories about some of the folks we have worked with. Even level-headed, sensitive, caring and reasonable people like us can come up against someone who rubs us the wrong way, so we just have to make the best of things.